It Wasn’t Just Wells Fargo, Says OCC

by Jeff Sovern I have long wondered whether Wells Fargo was alone in opening unauthorized accounts or if it other banks did the same.  A student reported to me that his bank–not Wells–opened an unauthorized account in his name, and I have heard isolated reports of similar behavior elsewhere.  Now Kevin Wack reports in the […]

Does Mulvaney Want to Protect the CFPB from Consumers?

by Jeff Sovern More and more, the CFPB's acting director, Mick Mulvaney, has made clear that he is not interested in hearing from consumers or their advocates. As Allison reported earlier today, the CFPB has kicked off all the members of its advisory committees, which included industry folks as well as consumer advocates and professors. […]

Mulvaney dismisses members of CFPB advisory board

Consumer Financial Protection Bureau's Mick Mulvaney has dismissed the members of the agency’s Consumer Advisory Board. The CFPB's Policy Associate Director for External Affairs informed board members of the decision on a conference call Wednesday. The members were told that their terms were terminated and they were not permitted to reapply. Politico has the story.

Fitbit Lawyer Admits Admits No Rational Consumer Would Arbitrate $162 Claim

by Jeff Sovern So Allison Frankel reports for Reuters in a story headlined Fitbit lawyers reveal ‘ugly truth’ about arbitration, judge threatens contempt. Here are the first three paragraphs: At a hearing Thursday in San Francisco federal court, a lawyer for the fitness tracking company Fitbit told U.S. District Judge James Donato that no rational customer would arbitrate a $162 […]

CFPB asks court to stay its payday rule

In April, payday lenders sued the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau over the payday lending regulation — a rule that provides borrowers with various protections to avoid the cycle of debt too-often associated with payday lending. Yesterday, in a joint filing, the CFPB and the payday lenders together asked the court to stay the litigation while […]

Paper on Advertising’s Short-Term Effects

Chen He of the Tilburg Law and Economics Center and Tobias J. Klein of the Tilburg University Department of Econometrics & Operations Research, Center for Economic Research, Law and Economics Center; IZA Institute of Labor Economics; and Netspar, have written Advertising as a Reminder: Evidence from the Dutch State Lottery. Here is the abstract: We use […]

2019 International Association of Consumer Law (IACL) Conference to be in Indiana next June

We received the following announcement: The next conference of the International Association of Consumer Law (IACL) will be held at the Indiana University McKinney School of Law in Indianapolis on June 13-15, 2019. This is the first time that the conference will be held in the United States, and we are hoping to get a good turnout from consumer law […]

“Lowe’s Is Making Managers Sign Arbitration Agreements If They Want Their Bonuses”

"Salaried managers and assistant managers at the big-box home improvement retailer are being required to enter binding arbitration agreements under the threat of losing their valuable bonuses, according to a copy of the contract obtained by HuffPost.By signing the contract, managers agree they won’t take Lowe’s to court with any claims or join in class-action […]