The CFPB’s Disappointing Abusiveness Policy Statement

by Jeff Sovern On Friday, the CFPB issued a Policy Statement on Abusive Acts or Practices. The Policy Statement is disappointing in several respects. First, it is intended to address a problem that has never been shown to exist. The Bureau explained that the Policy Statement is designed to ensure that “uncertainty does not impede or […]

Briefing on the constitutionality of the CFPB

The briefing is almost complete in Seila Law. v. Consumer Financial Protection Agency. In that case, the Supreme Court will consider whether the structure of the CFPB, which was established by the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform Act of 2010, violates the separation of powers because the agency has a single direct who is removable by […]

Update on the claims process in the Equifax data breach litigation

Yesterday, Tara Siegel Bernard of the New York Times published a story providing an update on the claims process in the Equifax data breach litigation. The deadline to file initial claims was January 22, 2020. She reports that as of December 1, 2019, “just more than 10 percent of the consumers affected had filed for […]

How protective orders impede public safety

Reuters reports on how protective orders sealing evidence about defective cars, drugs, and other products from public view can hide health and safety information from the public and impede government agencies — such as the Consumer Product Safety Commission and the Food and Drug Administration — from protecting the public. The article is here.

Apps are sharing your personal information. Are they violating data privacy laws?

A report released Tuesday by the Norwegian Consumer Council, a government-funded nonprofit organization in Oslo, describes how apps on our phones systematically violate users’ privacy collecting and sharing information with third-party advertisers without users’ knowledge or consent. The report "demonstrate[s] how every time we use our phones, a large number of shadowy entities that are […]

New report on safety risks faced by travelers and limits on their legal rights

The Center for Justice & Democracy at New York Law School has released a report examining both safety risks and disappearing legal rights for commuters and business travelers. The study presents an overview of some of the most common yet dangerous methods of transportation today and explores the shrinking legal options available to individuals harmed […]

Politico report on consumer groups’ opposition to proposed Community Reinvestment Act regs

Here.  Excerpt: Community groups across the U.S. are mobilizing to oppose a plan by President Donald Trump's bank regulators to radically remake a landmark law designed to combat discriminatory lending, saying the proposal would undercut that goal. * * * The groups say the proposed regulation, which Otting released jointly with the FDIC on Dec. […]