In a continuation of enforcement activity related to redlining under October 2021’s Combatting Redlining Initiative, the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) announced on May 31, 2023, that ESSA Bank & Trust has agreed to pay $3 million to settle allegations that it engaged in redlining, a discriminatory practice in which lenders fail to provide
On April 26, 2023, the CFPB issued an advisory opinion clarifying that a debt collector who brings or threatens to bring a foreclosure action to collect a time-barred mortgage debt may violate the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA) and its implementing regulation. The CFPB also issued two related blog posts on the topic: CFPB
The Supreme Court has asked the solicitor general to weigh in on an issue that could affect lenders and borrowers alike: whether the National Bank Act (NBA) trumps state laws that require lenders to pay interest on mortgage escrow accounts. The request, which follows the Supreme Court’s previous denial of a request to review a
Less than three years after the U.S. Supreme Court reviewed the CFPB’s appointment structure, the bureau again finds itself before the Court in what could prove the most consequential case for the financial services industry in years. Four months ago, the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals issued a decision in Community Financial Services Association of
The SEC’s Division of Examinations last week announced its 2023 “examination priorities.” The division’s annual announcement of priorities provides valuable insight into the categories of registrants most likely to be the subject of an SEC examination and the issues most likely to be a focus of those examinations. In determining its priorities, the division employs
On January 18, 2023, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) released an updated version of its Mortgage Servicing Examination Manual. As the CFPB described in a corresponding blog post, the manual outlines “the types of information that CFPB examiners gather to evaluate mortgage servicers’ policies and procedures; assess whether servicers are complying with
The California Department of Financial Protection and Innovation (DFPI) recently issued a Notice of Modification to Proposed Regulations and published the newly modified proposed regulations to amend its student loan servicing regulations. Among other things, the modified regulations would expand the definition of “income share agreement,” impose additional rules related to responding to a borrower’s
The Director of the Justice Department’s U.S. Trustee Program (USTP), which oversees the administration of bankruptcy cases, is about to change for the first time in nearly 20 years. Clifford White will be stepping down from the role and consumer advocate Tara Twomey will be taking up the mantle. In a recent press announcement, Attorney
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) issued a release on December 12, 2022, considering a proposed rule that would require nonbank financial institutions to register with the CFPB following a confirmed violation of consumer protection laws.
This proposed rule notably seeks not only registration, but also reporting by nonbank institutions, each time they are subject
As we all hit the grocery store for that forgotten cranberry sauce and send a few last urgent work emails, we hope everyone is able to be with friends and family this Thanksgiving. Here at Bradley, we are counting our blessings and looking back at another remarkable year. We are thankful for being able to