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Christopher J. Willis

Christopher J. Willis

Ballard Spahr LLP


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Florida Federal Court Rejects FCC Ruling on Autodialed Collection Calls to Cell Phones

A Florida federal court has rejected the Federal Communication Commission's 2008 ruling that by providing a wireless number to a creditor on a credit application, a consumer has given "prior express consent" as required by...more

5/14/2013 - Cell Phones Damages FTC Penalties TCPA Telecommunications Vicarious Liability

Mortgage-Related Litigation Declined in Q4, But Remains at Historic Levels

Mortgage Daily's Fourth Quarter 2012 Litigation Index indicates that while litigation activity in the mortgage industry has been declining, there are signs that it could remain above historic levels as foreclosure, investor,...more

4/5/2013 - Delinquent Borrowers Foreclosure Mortgage Servicers Mortgages

Federal Banking Agencies Issue Flood Insurance Guidance

The federal banking agencies, together with the Farm Credit Administration, have issued joint guidance on amendments to the Flood Disaster Protection Act of 1973 (FDPA). The amendments were part of the Biggert-Waters Flood...more

4/4/2013 - Flood Disaster Protection Act Flood Insurance Flooding

Keep up with CFPB Monitor with alternatives to Google Reader

Many devotees of Google Reader—including yours truly—are lamenting Google’s recent announcement that this “reading list” function is going away. I always found Google Reader to be a handy one-stop-shopping method for keeping...more

4/2/2013 - CFPB Google Google Reader

Auto finance: can we really call disparate impact “discrimination”?

I want to thank Jeff Sovern over at the Public Citizen Consumer Law & Policy Blog for having an interesting back-and-forth with me over the last week about the application of the disparate impact theory of liability to dealer...more

4/1/2013 - Automotive Industry Car Dealerships CFPB Discrimination Disparate Impact ECOA Fair Lending

CFPB Expands Public Consumer Complaint Database

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau has expanded its public Consumer Complaint Database to include complaints about mortgages, bank deposit products and services, student loans, and other consumer loans (which category...more

4/1/2013 - CFPB Consumer Complaint System Loans Mortgages Student Loans

How the CFPB’s stance on ECOA in auto finance will raise consumer prices

Ever since the CFPB’s release of its bulletin relating to disparate impact analysis of dealer rate participation last week, the press and consumer advocacy groups have been buzzing about the Bureau’s stance and its potential...more

3/28/2013 - Automotive Industry Car Dealerships CFPB Dealer Rate Participation Disparate Impact ECOA Financing

CFPB Issues Second Annual Report on FDCPA Activities

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s second annual report to Congress on enforcement of the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA) confirms that debt collection will continue to be a major CFPB focus in 2013....more

3/27/2013 - CFPB Debt Collection Dodd-Frank FDCPA FTC

CFPB Issues Guidance on Indirect Auto Lending ECOA Compliance

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau has issued guidance on fair lending compliance for indirect auto lenders. The guidance targets the practice of “dealer markups.” This practice involves an auto dealer charging the...more

3/22/2013 - Automotive Industry Car Dealerships CFPB Compliance ECOA Fair Lending Financing

The CFPB previews its coming auto finance fair lending enforcement actions

Earlier today, the CFPB released its guidance bulletin with respect to automobile indirect finance fair lending issues. The bulletin’s intent is unmistakably clear from the accompanying press release’s tag line: “CONSUMER...more

3/22/2013 - Automotive Industry Car Dealerships CFPB ECOA Fair Lending Financing

CFPB Issues Proposal To Supervise Student Loan Servicers

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau has issued a proposal to supervise nonbank servicers of private and federal student loans who qualify as “larger participants” in the student loan servicing market. Comments on the...more

3/19/2013 - CFPB Dodd-Frank Servicing Policies Student Loans

Collection Letter Inviting Debtor To Call Toll-Free Number Violated FDCPA, Third Circuit Holds

A collection letter violated the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA) because its invitation to call a toll-free number could be read by the “least sophisticated debtor” to permit the debt to be effectively disputed by...more

3/14/2013 - Debt Collection Debtors FDCPA Notice Requirements

Sixth Circuit Rejects Nationwide Settlement of Robo-Signing Class Actions

A nationwide settlement of three class actions involving claims that a creditor’s practice of using “robo-signed” affidavits in debt collection actions violated the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA) has been...more

3/12/2013 - Class Action Debt Collection FDCPA Robo-Signing

Prevailing Defendant Can Recover Costs in FDCPA Suit Not Filed in Bad Faith, Supreme Court Rules

A prevailing defendant in a Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA) case can recover costs even without a court finding that the plaintiff filed suit in bad faith and for the purpose of harassment, the U.S. Supreme Court...more

3/1/2013 - Attorney's Fees CFPB Debt Collectors FDCPA General Revenue Corp. Legal Costs Prevailing Party SCOTUS

Kentucky County Clerks Cannot Sue MERS for Failure to Record Mortgage Assignments, Sixth Circuit Rules

The U. S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit recently affirmed the district court’s dismissal of a putative class action filed against Mortgage Electronic Registration Systems (MERS), its parent company, and 15 financial...more

2/27/2013 - Assignments Class Action County Clerks Failure to Record Injunctions MERS Mortgages Public Officials Recording Fees Standing

The CFPB Stretches ECOA Past the Breaking Point with Auto Finance

In a story released last night, Carter Dougherty at Bloomberg reports that the CFPB has warned “at least four banks” that it may take enforcement action against them under ECOA, alleging that a “policy” of “allowing” dealers...more

2/22/2013 - Automotive Industry CFPB Discrimination Disparate Impact ECOA Enforcement Financial Institution Liability Financing Retail Installment Sales Contracts

DOJ Settles Another ‘Pattern or Practice’ Fair Lending Case

The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) recently settled a fair lending lawsuit against Texas Champion Bank. This means that, once again, a DOJ attempt to use disparate impact evidence to establish that a lender engaged in a...more

2/21/2013 - Consumer Lenders Discrimination Disparate Impact DOJ ECOA Fair Lending National Origin Pattern or Practice Settlement Uniform Pricing

HUD Issues Final ‘Discriminatory Effects’ Rule

The Department of Housing and Urban Development has issued a final rule that provides that if a practice has a "discriminatory effect," HUD or a private plaintiff can establish liability under the Fair Housing Act (FHA), even...more

2/13/2013 - Burden of Proof Discriminatory Effects Rule Disparate Impact FHA HUD

FTC Continues To Target Debt Collectors and Debt Relief Companies

The Federal Trade Commission’s continuing focus on the debt collection and debt relief industries was clearly demonstrated by several recently announced lawsuits and settlements....more

2/11/2013 - CFPB Debt Collection Debt Collectors Debt Settlement Services Debt-Relief Industry FDCPA FTC Section 5

FTC Issues Debt Buying Industry Study

The Federal Trade Commission has issued a report, The Structure and Practices of the Debt Buying Industry, which the FTC has described as “the first of its kind” empirical study of debt buyers. ...more

2/1/2013 - CFPB Debt Debt Buyers Debt Collection FTC

D.C. Circuit NLRB Decision Casts Doubt on Validity of Cordray Appointment

The validity of President Obama’s January 2012 recess appointment of Richard Cordray as Director of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau is now under a dark cloud as a result of the decision by the U.S. Court of Appeals...more

1/29/2013 - Barack Obama Canning v NLRB CFPB NLRB Political Appointments Pro Forma Sessions Recess Appointments Richard Cordray

Settlement of Michigan Lending Discrimination Lawsuit Underscores Regulatory Focus on Equal Access to Credit

The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) has reached a settlement with Community Bank of St. Charles, Michigan, in a federal lending discrimination lawsuit filed by DOJ against the bank....more

1/28/2013 - CFPB Discrimination DOJ ECOA Equal Access to Credit Fair Lending FHA Mortgages Settlement

NEWS FLASH: DC Circuit holds NLRB recess appointments invalid

The D.C. Circuit has just released its decision in Noel Canning v. NLRB, holding that the NLRB lacked a quorum to take action against the company....more

1/25/2013 - Barack Obama Canning v NLRB NLRB Recess Appointments

Mortgage Foreclosure Is Debt Collection under the FDCPA, Sixth Circuit Holds

Lawyers whose principal business is mortgage foreclosure or who regularly handle mortgage foreclosures are “debt collectors” subject to the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit...more

1/24/2013 - CFPB Debt Collectors FDCPA Foreclosure Mortgages

State AG Lawsuit Not Removable under CAFA, Second Circuit Holds

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit has ruled that a parens patriae action brought by a state attorney general is not removable from state to federal court as a “class action” under the Class Action Fairness Act....more

1/16/2013 - Attorney Generals CAFA Class Action Parens Patriae Pharmaceutical Prescription Drugs Removal

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