Here. It's about the CFPB's forthcoming qualified mortgage rules. An excerpt: The rules are meant to help bolster the housing market. By shielding banks from potential litigation, policy makers contend that the industry will have a powerful incentive to make higher quality home loans. But some banking and housing specialists worry that borrowers are losing […]
by Paul Alan Levy Earlier this month, Brian Wolfman and I both wrote about an impending preliminary injunction hearing in a libel suit over a consumer's review of a local contractor who, she said, had botched his work on her home. The trial judge largely denied relief, but orally ordered the homeowner to revise her […]
I remember when "full employment" was considered achieved when unemployment did not exceed 4 or 4.5%. Now, it seems that people think of full employment as unemployment of 6 or 6.5%. The Hamilton Project has released a report on how long it will take to get to 6.5% unemployment, assuming various rates of job growth. […]
by Jeff Sovern I kid you not. The House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, chaired by Darrell Issa, and its Subcommittee on TARP, Financial Services and Bailouts of Public and Private Programs, chaired by longtime CFPB foe Patrick McHenry, has issued a report titled THE CONSUMER FINANCIAL PROTECTION BUREAU’S THREAT TO CREDIT ACCESS IN THE UNITED STATES. Here […]
Here is the FTC's press release, which praises Vladeck's record of achievement as the agency's top consumer enforcer. Vladeck was in the position for the Obama Administration's first term and is returning to Georgetown Law School. The press release also announces Vladeck's successor, Charles Harwood, who will serve in an "acting" capacity. Pat Bak will […]
Revelations that banks manipulated the benchmark Libor rate sent shockwaves across the financial world this summer. (Libor, despite sounding like a Tolkien villian — "People of Middle Earth! We must unite in defense of the realm against the forces of Mordor and Libor!" — stands for "London interbank offered rate" and forms the basis for […]
by Brian Wolfman Indiana University medical school professor Jon Duke and two co-authors have published this study entitled "Consistency in the safety labeling of bioequivalent drugs." The study could have been entitled "Inconsistency in the safety labeling of bioequivalent drugs" because it finds that the warnings on generic drug labels often deviate from the brand-name […]
In Devlin v. Scardelletti, the Supreme Court held that a class member who objects in a federal district court to a proposed class-action settlement may appeal approval of that settlement without moving for (and being granted) intervention. As I explained in this article, despite efforts by settling parties to limit Devlin to members of non-opt-out classes, […]
by Paul Alan Levy The New York Times carries an exceptionally detailed report of the controversy over the rape of a high school girl and the libel case brought by the parents of a player against an online blogger and several anonymous commenters, discussed here two weeks ago. A reminder that reporting can be dangerous […]