Litigation

DMB Financial, a debt-settlement firm near Boston that operates in 24 states, agreed to pay $5.4 million in restitution to consumers for allegedly charging upfront fees before providing any service, the CFPB said.

Collectors are mulling a procedural overhaul after a three-judge panel said the practice of using vendors to inform consumers about outstanding debts is illegal. The case may also complicate the CFPB's upcoming rule on electronic messaging.

Less than two years after shutting down its biggest business amid fraud allegations, the Michigan company has sold branches, settled a shareholder lawsuit and returned to profitability under turnaround specialist Thomas O’Brien.

The state's Department of Financial and Professional Regulation will reduce assessments by 61% this year because of overpayments in 2020, helping state-chartered credit unions deal with economic fallout from the pandemic.

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau disputes a district court ruling that misconduct claims against the company were already covered by a previous settlement.

The Maryland company is closer to addressing claims it lacked sufficient controls under its previous management.

The company paid Driver Opportunity Partners nearly $10 million for the shareholder's stock and to resolve a longstanding legal battle.

Four former employees and several clients of Washington Federal Bank for Savings face charges of falsifying records to conceal the embezzlement of $31 million prior to the bank's December 2017 collapse.

The Maryland company agreed to improve its risk and compliance controls, estimating that it will cost $2 million to make changes.

The CFPB issued two rulemakings in 2020 that the financial services industry and consumer advocates hoped would finally clarify key issues over how collectors contact debtors and deal with legacy debts. But both sides want the incoming Biden administration to make further changes.

The new legislation includes a provision sparing lenders from having to pay such fees on Paycheck Protection Program loans, except in cases where they agree in advance with borrower representatives to do so.

Bansley & Kiener, without admitting wrongdoing, agreed to pay $2.5 million to address allegations that lax oversight contributed to the 2017 collapse of Washington Federal Bank for Savings.

The president-elect has legal backing to fire Director Kathy Kraninger thanks to a recent court ruling, but Republicans are prepared to challenge his ability to choose her successor.

The Ohio company will benefit after settling unpaid judgments tied to nonperforming loans at a bank it bought before the last financial crisis.

The agency’s final rule modernizing the Fair Debt Collection Practice Act limits calls to seven per week, but collectors won stronger protections from liability claims and other key changes to the original proposal.

The Iowa company said it will pursue a two-step acquisition to address unspecified issues raised by the Federal Reserve as part of its review of the acquisition.

The agency’s consolidation of supervision and enforcement policy into one office could compromise the independence of those deciding when to investigate alleged wrongdoing by banks and others, critics of the move say.

Plaid said it has been in discussions with TD Bank over allegations of trademark infringement and false advertising and was caught off-guard by the lawsuit the bank filed Wednesday.

Plaid said it has been in discussions with TD Bank over allegations of trademark infringement and false advertising and was caught off-guard by the lawsuit the bank filed Wednesday.

Driver Management, a bank investor, alleges that First United in Maryland made false claims and improperly lobbied lawmakers to keep its nominees off the board. The bank asserts that it acted properly in response to an attempted hostile takeover.