On April 2, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit issued an order staying the district court’s decision to transfer the lawsuit challenging the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s (CFPB) credit card late fee rule from the Northern District of Texas to the District Court for the District of Columbia (D.D.C). As discussed here, on March 28, 2024, the district court had transferred the case to D.D.C. finding an “attenuated nexus” to the Fort Worth Division since, according to the district court, only one of the six plaintiffs had even a remote tie to the division. The Fifth Circuit’s stay is in effect until 5:00 pm on Friday, April 5, 2024.

Of note, there are now two cases pending in the Fifth Circuit related to this action — the plaintiff trade groups filed a notice of appeal from the district court’s “effective denial” of their motion for preliminary injunction (because it was not decided on an expedited basis), and then separately filed a petition for writ of mandamus. Both of these have been expedited by the Fifth Circuit.

Troutman Pepper will continue to monitor and report on any significant developments in this case.