The U.S. Department of Education has issued a final rule that broadly addresses the ability of a student to assert a school's misconduct as a defense to repayment of a federal student loan. The final rule includes a ban on...more
11/4/2016
/ Arbitration Agreements ,
Borrowers ,
Consumer Financial Products ,
Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) ,
Department of Education ,
Educational Institutions ,
Federal Arbitration Act ,
Federal Student Loans ,
Higher Education Act ,
Loans ,
Misrepresentation ,
Program Participation Agreements (PPAs) ,
Title IV
The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS), an agency within the U.S. Health and Human Services Department, has issued a final rule that includes prohibiting nursing homes and other long-term care facilities from...more
10/3/2016
/ Arbitration ,
Arbitration Agreements ,
Binding Arbitration ,
Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) ,
Contract Terms ,
Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) ,
Federal Arbitration Act ,
Health Care Providers ,
Healthcare ,
Long Term Care Facilities ,
Long-Term Care ,
Medicaid ,
Medicare ,
Nursing Homes ,
Preemption ,
Skilled Nursing Facility
Republican Congressman Randy Neugebauer, who chairs the House Financial Services Committee’s Subcommittee on Financial Institutions and Consumer Credit, and Democratic Congressman W. Lacy Clay, the Subcommittee’s Ranking...more
9/16/2016
/ Arbitration ,
Arbitration Agreements ,
Class Action ,
Class Action Arbitration Waivers ,
Consumer Contracts ,
Consumer Financial Products ,
Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) ,
Dodd-Frank ,
Financial Institutions ,
Financial Services Industry ,
Legislative Committees ,
Safe Harbors ,
Service Contracts
In an important decision underscoring the challenges faced by retailers and others in enforcing online arbitration agreements with their customers, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit has reversed a district...more
8/30/2016
/ Amazon Marketplace ,
Arbitration ,
Arbitration Agreements ,
Browsewrap Agreement ,
Class Action ,
Class Action Arbitration Waivers ,
Clickwrap Agreements ,
Corporate Counsel ,
E-Commerce ,
Internet Retailers ,
Retail Market ,
Terms and Conditions ,
Websites
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit announced this week that it agrees with the National Labor Relations Board that individual arbitration waiver agreements, which prevent employees from filing or participating in...more
8/26/2016
/ Appeals ,
Arbitration ,
Arbitration Agreements ,
Class Action ,
Class Action Arbitration Waivers ,
Collective Actions ,
Ernst & Young ,
Federal Arbitration Act ,
Mandatory Arbitration Clauses ,
NLRA ,
NLRB ,
Protected Concerted Activity ,
Section 7
The American Bankers Association, the Consumer Bankers Association and The Financial Services Roundtable (Associations) have filed a joint letter commenting on the CFPB’s proposed rule regulating consumer arbitration...more
8/23/2016
/ Arbitration ,
Arbitration Agreements ,
Class Action ,
Class Action Arbitration Waivers ,
Consumer Contracts ,
Consumer Financial Products ,
Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) ,
Dodd-Frank ,
Financial Institutions ,
Financial Services Industry ,
Mandatory Arbitration Clauses ,
Service Contracts
The Pew Charitable Trusts has released an issue brief, “Consumers Want the Right to Resolve Bank Disputes in Court,” in which it urges the CFPB to “expeditiously finalize” its proposed arbitration rule. The CFPB’s proposal...more
8/19/2016
/ Arbitration ,
Arbitration Agreements ,
Banking Sector ,
Banks ,
Class Action ,
Class Action Arbitration Waivers ,
Consumer Contracts ,
Consumer Financial Products ,
Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) ,
Consumer Lenders ,
Dodd-Frank ,
Financial Services Industry ,
Pew Foundation
Perhaps overshadowed in the raging battle over the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau's proposal to ban the use of class action waivers in consumer arbitration agreements involving consumer financial products or services is...more
8/10/2016
/ Arbitration ,
Arbitration Agreements ,
Clickwrap Agreements ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Mobile Apps ,
Motion to Compel ,
Privacy Policy ,
Registration ,
Sharing Economy ,
Terms of Service ,
Uber
A total of 102 Democratic lawmakers, consisting of 37 Democratic Senators joined by Independent Senator Bernie Sanders and 65 House members, have signed on to letters sent to Director Cordray expressing support for the CFPB’s...more
8/5/2016
/ Arbitration ,
Arbitration Agreements ,
Class Action ,
Class Action Arbitration Waivers ,
Comment Period ,
Consumer Contracts ,
Consumer Financial Products ,
Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) ,
Dodd-Frank ,
Financial Institutions ,
Financial Services Industry ,
Service Contracts
A divided California Supreme Court has held that an arbitrator, rather than a court, should determine whether an arbitration clause in an employment agreement allows employees to bring their claims in arbitration on a...more
The U.S. Department of Education has issued a proposed rule that includes a ban on mandatory pre-dispute arbitration agreements by schools receiving Title IV assistance under the Higher Education Act (HEA) and a new federal...more
Conflicting decisions issued within one week of each other from the U.S. Courts of Appeals for the Seventh and Eighth Circuits exemplify the ongoing debate in circuit courts across the country about the enforceability of...more
6/9/2016
/ Arbitration ,
Arbitration Agreements ,
Class Action ,
Class Action Arbitration Waivers ,
Collective Actions ,
Corporate Counsel ,
D.R. Horton v NLRB ,
Federal Arbitration Act ,
NLRA ,
NLRB ,
Popular ,
Pre-Employment Agreements ,
Section 7
A recent editorial in the Wall Street Journal is a “must read” for those who will be affected if the CFPB’s May 5, 2016 proposed rule banning class action waivers in consumer financial services arbitration agreements becomes...more
5/23/2016
/ Arbitration ,
Arbitration Agreements ,
Class Action ,
Class Action Arbitration Waivers ,
Consumer Contracts ,
Consumer Financial Products ,
Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) ,
Dodd-Frank ,
Financial Institutions ,
Financial Services Industry ,
Mandatory Arbitration Clauses ,
Service Contracts ,
Wall Street Journal
As widely anticipated, the CFPB announced at its field hearing today in Albuquerque, New Mexico that it is proposing regulations that would prohibit covered providers of certain consumer financial products and services from...more
Yesterday, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) announced at a field hearing in Albuquerque, New Mexico, that it is proposing regulations that would prohibit covered providers of certain consumer financial products...more
The U.S. Chamber of Commerce’s Center for Capital Markets Competitiveness has sent a letter to Director Cordray suggesting a series of issues for Mr. Cordray to address in his prepared remarks at the CFPB’s field hearing on...more
In the wake of the U.S. Supreme Court's holding in Campbell-Ewald Company v. Gomez that an unaccepted Rule 68 offer of complete relief does not moot a plaintiff's individual claims, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third...more
4/8/2016
/ Article III ,
Campbell Ewald v Gomez ,
Class Action ,
Class Representatives ,
Genesis Healthcare Corp. v. Symczyk ,
Mootness ,
Rule 68 ,
SCOTUS ,
Settlement Offer ,
Standing ,
TCPA
At a presentation on February 18, 2016 to the American Constitution Society, CFPB Director Richard Cordray devoted most of his remarks to the subject of consumer arbitration. Director Cordray revealed that the effect on...more
The U.S. Supreme Court has ruled that an unaccepted Rule 68 settlement offer does not moot a class action even when the offer would provide the named plaintiff with complete individual relief. The decision in Campbell-Ewald...more
The U.S. Supreme Court has ruled that an unaccepted Rule 68 settlement offer does not moot a class action even when the offer would provide the named plaintiff with complete individual relief. The decision in Campbell-Ewald...more
Resolving a split between the California Court of Appeal and the Ninth Circuit concerning the enforceability of the same DirectTV arbitration agreement, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that the California Court of Appeal’s...more
The U.S. Supreme Court heard oral argument in Campbell-Ewald Co. v. Gomez on October 14, 2015, an important case presenting the question of whether a defendant can defeat a class action by offering complete individual relief...more
10/23/2015
/ Article III ,
Campbell Ewald v Gomez ,
Class Action ,
Collective Actions ,
Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) ,
Financial Institutions ,
FRCP 23 ,
Genesis HealthCare ,
Genesis Healthcare Corp. v. Symczyk ,
Mootness ,
Motion to Dismiss ,
Offer of Judgment ,
Putative Class Actions ,
Rule 68 ,
SCOTUS ,
Standing ,
Statutory Damages ,
Subject Matter Jurisdiction ,
Summary Judgment ,
TCPA
Today, the CFPB announced at a field hearing in Denver, Colorado that it is considering proposing rules that would prohibit consumer financial services companies from using class action waivers in consumer arbitration...more
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) is considering proposing rules that would prohibit consumer financial services companies from using class action waivers in consumer arbitration clauses, the CFPB announced...more
10/8/2015
/ Arbitration Agreements ,
AT&T Mobility v Concepcion ,
Class Action ,
Class Action Arbitration Waivers ,
Class Certification ,
Consumer Financial Products ,
Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) ,
Financial Institutions ,
Mandatory Arbitration Clauses ,
SCOTUS ,
Small Business
Recently, Professor Jeff Sovern sent an email to the editor of the Consumer Financial Services Law Report commenting on an article we published in the August 9, 2015 issue of the Report titled, “CFPB Makes Consumer...more