The added witnesses are Jason S. Johnston of Virginia School of Law and Dong Hong, VP and Regulatory Counsel, Consumer Bankers Association. A link to Johnston's article on class actions is included in the post just below this one. Johnston has previously criticized the Bureau's arbitration report and the Dodd-Frank mortgage restrictions. Neither witness seems likely to […]
Sarah Rudolph Cole has written The Federalization of Consumer Arbitration: Possible Solutions, University of Chicago Legal Forum No. 271. Here's the abstract: Over the past fifteen to twenty years, businesses dramatically increased the use of arbitration clauses in contracts with consumers. Although commentators criticize the use of arbitration to resolve consumer disputes because arbitration lacks the […]
The title of the hearing is "Examining the CFPB’s Proposed Rulemaking on Arbitration: Is it in the Public Interest and for the Protection of Consumers?" It will take place Wednesday, May 18. The witnesses seem not to have been announced, but given the composition of the Committee, I think we can anticipate the majority answering […]
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau filed suit this week against All American Check Cashing, Inc., which offers check cashing and payday loans, and its owner, for allegedly tricking and trapping consumers. The complaint alleges that All American tried to keep consumers from learning how much they would be charged to cash a check and used […]
The Second Circuit Court of Appeals held yesterday that a class-action lawsuit against the Department of Education by former students of a now-defunct for-profit beauty school can proceed. The students sued the Department for aggressive collection tactics against students who likely had the right to discharge their loans. Courthouse News offers this summary: Former […]
The NAACP Legal Defense and Education Fund has released this report on the judicial work of Judge Merrick Garland, some of which relates to the interests of consumers.
We have been asked to announce this to students: The Consumer Protection and Legislation Committees of the Section of Antitrust Law are looking for volunteers to monitor state antitrust and consumer protection legislative developments and when appropriate, draft short legislative updates to post on Connect. The volunteer involvement will consist of monitoring antitrust and consumer […]
Payday lenders will lose access to Google’s biggest online ads network in mid-July. From that point on, search results pages will stop displaying paid marketing from payday lenders. ThinkProgress has the story.
by Jeff Sovern Jean Sternlight of UNLV is circulating an impressive and well-argued letter for law professors to sign supporting the CFPB's proposed arbitration regulation. According to my count, 139 have already signed it. If you would like to add your name to the list, please email Jean at jean.sternlight@unlv.edu no later than May 20.
In Nebraska, ProPublica reports, debt collectors frequently sue over medical debts as small as $60 and a simple missed doctor’s bill can quickly land you in court. Filing suit is one of the most aggressive ways to collect debt, but no one tracks how frequently it happens or to whom. An examination of Nebraska’s courts, […]