Below are recent announcements from the Department of Justice about the work of its Consumer Protection Branch, including work related to mass-marketing fraud schemes, adulterated food, and odometer fraud. Justice Department and Dutch Authorities Announce Simultaneous Enforcement Actions Against International Mass-Mailing Fraud Schemes Targeting the Elderly (June 2, 2016) District Court Enters Permanent Injunction Against […]
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by Paul Alan Levy A California Superior Court judge has issued a decision that threatens to blow a gaping hole in the protection that online hosts for critical speech have enjoyed under section 230 of the Communications Decency Act and, therefore, in public’s ability to post critical speech. In Cross v. Facebook, Judge Donald Ayoob […]
Here is a sampling of reaction to the proposed rule on payday pending issued yesterday by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. EDITORIAL: A Lame Response to Predatory Loans (The New York Times) The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau has been promising for more than a year to rein in the payday lending industry, whose business model […]
by Paul Alan Levy I blogged back in February about a small-claims act proceeding that a Dallas pet-sitting company called “Prestigious Pets” had filed against a couple named Michelle and Robert Duchouquette over the fact that Michelle Duchouquette had posted a Yelp review presenting some fairly mild criticisms of the company’s policies. The company claimed […]
The Hill reports today: Students who start at four-year, nonprofit colleges only have about a 50-50 chance of graduating, according to a new report released Wednesday. Third Way, a centrist think tank in Washington, studied students with loans at the colleges and found what it called “stunning levels of institutional failure.” The report said private […]
Separate from its new proposed rule on payday lending, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau today issued a "request for information" concerning potentially high-risk loan products and practices that are not specifically covered by the proposed rule. The request for information is focused on: Concerns about risky products not covered: The Bureau is seeking information about […]
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau today proposed a rule aimed at ending payday debt traps by requiring lenders to take steps to make sure consumers have the ability to repay their loans. The proposed rule would also cut off repeated debit attempts that rack up fees. The proposed rule would cover payday loans, auto title loans, […]
We have discussed the Obama Administration's new overtime rule. It will significantly raise the pay threshold that triggers exceptions to the general rule that entitles workers to time-and-a-half for every hour they work over 40 per week. We also posted about holes in the overtime rules that exempt various workers entirely. Now, this article by Natalie Kitroeff says that the new […]
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau has taken action against a former Wells Fargo employee for an illegal mortgage fee-shifting scheme. The CFPB found that David Eghbali referred a substantial number of loan closings to a single escrow company, which shifted its fees from some customers to others at Eghbali’s request. Eghbali could then manipulate loan […]
This week, the Federal Trade Commission and the State of Florida fled cases against two operations charged with running phony student loan debt relief schemes, and the FTC settled a case brought earlier this year against a operators of a debt-relief scheme. In the first case, the FTC and the State of Florida allege in […]