Law and legal issues

The high court heard what is likely the last realistic judicial attempt to assert that the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau is structurally unconstitutional. It didn't go well for the plaintiffs.

In a case challenging the funding of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, justices across the political spectrum questioned where — and whether — the Constitution placed limits on Congress' power to delegate funding for federal agencies outside of annual appropriations.

Donald Trump wanted to get higher on the Forbes billionaires list and save a fortune on loan terms by overvaluing his properties, according to documents presented by New York Attorney General Letitia James at the former president's civil fraud trial. 

Making the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau's funding subject to congressional appropriations would bring some much-needed accountability to a runaway regulator.

The high court will hear oral arguments on Oct. 3 on whether the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau's funding violates the Appropriations clause. A key issue is whether parameters can be placed around Congress' authority over the federal purse strings.

The Supreme Court said Friday it would grant North Dakota convenience store Corner Post Inc.'s appeal to a lower court ruling as to when the statute of limitations for challenging a Federal Reserve interchange fee rule begins under the Administrative Procedure Act.

The New Jersey senator, who is a powerful member of the Banking Committee, is facing calls from fellow Democrats to resign. He was released on Wednesday after posting a $100,000 bond.

Subjecting the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau to congressional appropriations would throw a wide range of essential regulatory activities into disarray, disrupting the industry and putting consumers at risk.

The $75 million deal between the megabank and the U.S. Virgin Islands includes various commitments, such as terminating customers' accounts if there is credible information that the accounts are involved in human trafficking.

A New York judge ruled Donald Trump is liable for fraud for exaggerating his net worth by billions of dollars a year on financial records submitted to banks and insurers, a major victory for the state's attorney general before a high-stakes civil trial over remaining claims in the case.

The suit alleged that many off-duty cops picked up shifts at TD as security guards, only to go unpaid or wait months for their paychecks. The settlement did not include an admission of liability by the bank.

The Securities and Exchange Commission — which charged Coinbase this year with operating as an unregistered securities exchange, broker and clearing house — says Coinbase Global's proposed involvement in Celsius Network's plan to emerge from bankruptcy raises many of the same concerns as those in the agency's lawsuit.

With class certification now in hand, the cities that brought the lawsuit have two weeks to outline how other municipalities will be provided notice of the chance to join.

Federal prosecutors say Menendez, a New Jersey Democrat who sits on the Senate Banking Committee, accepted bribes in return for exerting political influence — including helping Fred Daibes, a small-bank executive who had been accused of loan fraud.

The private equity firms accused the bank of concealing key changes to a credit agreement, in part because it wanted to win future muni bond business from Brightline Holdings.

Educational institutions ought to have some skin in the game when it comes to the student loan market.

The lawsuit takes issue with the agency's 2022 guidance on nonsufficient funds fees, a hot-button topic in the banking industry. The FDIC is asking a judge to dismiss the case, arguing that the plaintiffs lack standing to sue.

The managers of the bankrupt crypto exchange FTX sued the parents of co-founder and former CEO Sam Bankman-Fried to "recover millions of dollars in fraudulently transferred and misappropriated funds," according to a court filing.

The ruling comes in a lawsuit New York Attorney General Letitia James filed in 2020, claiming Jonathan Braun and others made thousands of merchant cash advances to small businesses, charged annualized interest that sometimes exceeded 1,000% and defrauded and harassed borrowers. 

Carrie Tolstedt, the company's former retail banking chief, was sentenced to three years of probation, including six months of home confinement. A federal judge detailed why she denied the stiffer sentence sought by federal prosecutors, who wanted to send a message about the consequences of white-collar crime.