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Insights / news

In the Media

What Mortgage Servicers Need to Know About CFPB’s Junk Fees Update

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Member Jim Sandy‘s (Cleveland) article “What Mortgage Servicers Need to Know About the CFPB’s Junk Fees Update” was republished in Westlaw Today.

In early March 2023, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) issued a special edition of its  Supervisory Highlights that focused exclusively on “junk fees” uncovered in supervisory examinations in various industries, including mortgage servicing. This continued focus on junk fees is unsurprising given the priorities of the Biden Administration to curb the use of fees charged to consumers for goods and services.

The Bureau highlighted numerous Unfair or Deceptive Acts or Practices (UDAAP) and Regulation Z violations related to junk fees in mortgage servicing. Those examinations resulted in servicers waiving or refunding these so-called junk fees and also serve as notice to other mortgage servicers for potential future regulatory or enforcement actions if these practices were to continue.

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Insights

Presentation

Complex Issues in Foreclosure

October 26, 2023

Member Jim Sandy (Cleveland) will co-present "Complex Issues in Foreclosure," a National Business Institute (NBI) webinar on Thursday, October 26, 2023.

In the Media

Subjective Aspects of FTC’s ‘Junk Fee’ Rule Likely to Cause Legal Departments Fits

October 17, 2023

Member James Sandy was quoted in Law.com’s Corporate Counsel in a piece detailing the complications that may arise following the Federal Trade Commission’s new proposed ban on junk fees. Indeed, “perhaps one of the strongest defenses to an attack on alleged ‘junk fees’ is to make clear the fees were disclosed clearly and conspicuously toMore

Published Article

Eleventh Circuit Calls Out CFPB’s Conduct

July 3, 2023

In an unusually blunt decision, the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals affirmed a district court’s decision to dismiss various claims brought by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) for “violating the district court’s clear orders and derailing multiple depositions… .”

Alert

SCOTUS: “Home Equity Theft” Violates the Takings Clause

May 26, 2023

In a unanimous decision, the Supreme Court held in Tyler v. Hennepin County that a county’s process of retaining the equity in a homeowner’s property constitutes a violation of the Takings Clause of the Fifth Amendment. This decision has important repercussions for not only homeowners but lienholders and loan servicers as well.

Published Article

Abusive Practices: CFPB Policy Statement Murky at Best

May 18, 2023

On April 3, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau published a policy statement on abusive practices. As readers know, the bureau has authority to supervise and enforce acts and practices that are unfair, deceptive or abusive in the consumer financial service industry.

Presentation

Compliance Conversations: RESPA Section 8 and Lead Generation

May 7, 2023

Member Jim Milano (Washington, DC) will present "Compliance Conversations: RESPA Section 8 and Lead Generation" at the Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA) Legal Issues and Regulatory Compliance Conference May 7, 2023, in Austin, TX.

Presentation

Navigating Challenges in the Current Mortgage Market

May 2, 2023

Member Jim Milano (Washington, DC) will join a panel, "Navigating Challenges in the Current Mortgage Market," at the American Mortgage Conference in Isle of Palms, SC, on May 2, 2023.

Published Article

CFPB: ‘Junk fees’ in auto servicing are unfair, deceptive

April 4, 2023

Continuing its aggressive push of investigating and regulating so-called junk fees charged by banks and financial companies, the CFPB recently issued a special edition of its Supervisory Highlights, which outlines such fees it uncovered in various industries, including auto servicing.

In the Media

Mortgage Lending-Focused Partner Joins McGlinchey In DC

March 28, 2023

Member Jim Milano (Washington, DC) was profiled by Law360 on March 28, 2023 on his recent move to McGlinchey. “I have very deep and long relationships with many McGlinchey attorneys that go back, in some cases, 35 years or more,” he said. Moving to McGlinchey will also give him and his clients the chance to take advantageMore

Published Article

CFPB Loses Novel Redlining Case Against Non-Bank Mortgage Lender

March 15, 2023

On February 3, 2023, an Illinois federal judge dismissed with prejudice Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection v. Townstone Financial Inc. et al., the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s redlining case against a non-bank mortgage lender.

Alert

Taking the Case: SCOTUS to Decide Constitutionality of CFPB

February 27, 2023

Today, the Supreme Court of the United States granted the petitions for writs of certiorari filed in CFPB et. al. v. Com. Fin. Services Assn., where a panel of the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit ruled that the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB)’s funding mechanism is unconstitutional, and ultimately invalidated the payday lending rule at issue in that case. The Community Financial Services case is the latest in a long line of challenges to the Bureau itself that could have a wide ranging impact on businesses and entities subject to the CFPB’s authority.