On May 22, 2018, the U.S. House of Representatives passed S. 2155, titled The Economic Growth Regulatory Relief and Consumer Protection Act ("Act"). This was the penultimate legislative hurdle for the Act, which now only requires the President's signature to become law. The President is expected to sign the Act into law in the very near future.
The Act has a number of important regulatory relief provisions governing the lending and banking industry including:
- Reduces the level of regulatory oversight by the Financial Stability Oversight Counsel (FSOC) for banks with between ...
In Barton v. Credit One Financial d/b/a Credit One Bank, No. 16CV2652, 2018 WL 2012876, (N.D. Ohio April 30, 2018), the Northern District of Ohio followed the Second Circuit's decision in Reyes v. Lincoln Automotive Financial Services, 861 F.3d 51 (2d Cir. 2017), and held that a plaintiff who consented to receiving telephone calls as part of a credit card application could not unilaterally revoke that consent.
The plaintiff, Carlton Barton, Jr. ("Plaintiff"), filed a lawsuit claiming that Credit One Financial d/b/a Credit One Bank ("Credit One") violated the Telephone Consumer ...
For the third time in less than two years, the Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals has ruled that a chapter 7 debtor who does not reaffirm secured debt or redeem the property must surrender the property. In re Woide, No. 17-10776 (11th Cir. Apr. 5, 2018).
In Woide, the debtors filed a chapter 13 bankruptcy petition, and on schedule A, listed their real property and stated "to be surrendered." The case was later converted from chapter 13 to 7, and the debtors did not file any statement of intention with respect to the property. After the close of the debtors' bankruptcy case, the secured creditor ...
In Edelsberg v. Vroom, Inc., No. 16-cv-62734-GAYLES, 2018 WL 1509135 (S.D. Fla. Mar. 27, 2018), the Southern District of Florida held that an advertisement directing interested persons to contact a number provided in the advertisement constituted prior express consent under the Telephone Consumer Protection Act ("TCPA").
The plaintiff, Mark Edelsberg ("Plaintiff"), posted a classified advertisement for the sale of a vehicle on Craigslist. The advertisement included the price and information about the vehicle and stated "Call XXX-XXX-6445 for more info . . . do NOT contact me ...
On February 13, 2018, the Florida Supreme Court accepted jurisdiction in an appeal emanating from a hot button issue in contested foreclosures - can the borrower in a foreclosure secure an award of contractual attorney's fees after successfully defending the foreclosure on the basis that the lender lacked standing to enforce the mortgage contract?
Florida law follows the American Rule on attorney's fees, i.e. the loser does not pay the winner's fees, unless there is a basis in contract or statute that provides for fee shifting. The avenue for a borrower to secure attorney's fees in a ...
In Ferrer v. Bayview Loan Servicing, LLC, No. 15-20877-Civ-Scola, 2018 WL 582584 (S.D. Fla. Jan. 26, 2018), the Southern District of Florida determined that a telephone dialing system that was incapable of predictively dialing, storing, or independently producing telephone numbers and could not place a call without human input was not an automatic telephone dialing system ("ATDS") within the meaning of the Telephone Consumer Protection Act ("TCPA").
Plaintiff Maria Ferrer ("Plaintiff") filed suit against Bayview Loan Servicing, LLC and other defendants ("Bayview ...
Over the course of the past few years, Blockchain technology - a platform that acts as a digital ledger for assets - has rapidly grown in prominence. While it is perhaps most well-known for its connection to Bitcoin, the potential applications for Blockchain's technology go far beyond cryptocurrencies. Blockchain provides a peer-to-peer tool for sharing information about assets and transactions, such as digital goods, money, medical records, company records, intellectual property, contracts, and other types of data. This article seeks to provide a brief overview of Blockchain ...
In Kristensen v. Credit Payment Services, Inc., --- F.3d ---, 2018 WL 343758 (9th Cir. 2018), the Ninth Circuit recently held that three lenders and two marketing companies could not be vicariously liable under the TCPA for text messages sent in connection with marketing campaigns.
Plaintiff Flemming Kristensen received a text message containing a link to apply for a loan. The text was generated in connection with a marketing campaign undertaken by three lenders, Enova International, Inc., Pioneer Financial Services, Inc., and Credit Payment Services, Inc. Each lender entered ...
In Latner v. Mt. Sinai Health System, Inc., ___ F.3d ___, 2018 WL 265085 (2d Cir. 2018), the Second Circuit recently held that a single flu shot reminder text does not violate the TCPA when a patient gives prior express consent to be contacted.
David Latner ("Latner") filed a putative class action against Mt. Sinai Health System, Inc. ("Mt. Sinai") and West Park Medical Group, P.C. ("WPMG") alleging that defendants violated § 227(b)(1)(A)(iii) of the TCPA by sending him a single flu shot reminder text. Defendants moved for judgment on the pleadings, and the district court granted their ...
In Breda v. Cellco Partnership, No. 16-11512-DJC, 2017 WL 5586661 (D. Ma. Nov. 17, 2017), the plaintiff, Robin Breda ("Plaintiff") claimed Cellco Partnership ("Cellco") violated § 227(b)(1) of the Telephone Consumer Protection Act ("TCPA") by calling her cell phone number with recorded messages regarding another person's Verizon account. Under § 227(b)(1)(A)(iii) of the TCPA, calls "to any telephone number assigned to a paging service, cellular telephone service, . . . or any service for which the called party is charged for the call" made using an automatic telephone dialing ...