Goodwin Procter announced today the release of the 2015 Consumer Finance Year in Review report, which highlights the major litigation, enforcement and regulatory developments that impacted the consumer finance industry in 2015 and spotlights issues and trends to watch during 2016. The report offers detailed analysis both across and within the mortgage, credit card, student lending, auto lending, debt collection, payday lending, and other sectors.
The report examines recent rulemaking, supervisory and enforcement activity by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (Bureau), along with critical appellate challenges that will shape consumer finance litigation in 2016 and beyond. It also provides insights on cybersecurity issues and emerging issues facing online lenders and other Fintech companies.
“This past year, a noteworthy increase in consumer class action litigation based on alleged TCPA violations, and the Bureau signaling its plan to regulate the $46 billion payday lending industry were just two of the major trends we saw,” said Sabrina Rose-Smith, partner in Goodwin Procter’s Consumer Financial Services Litigation Group and a lead author of the report. “In 2016, we anticipate the Bureau will issue a formal notice of proposed rulemaking involving payday loans that will have a dramatic effect on the industry and consumers’ access to credit, and the uptick in TCPA litigation will continue, though whether plaintiffs will be aided or hindered by FCC 15-72 remains to be seen.”
In addition to the major developments in 2015 the report details, it also highlights a number of noteworthy predictions for 2016, including:
- The Bureau will continue to sharpen its focus on regulating and enforcing student lending and servicing activity, in addition to mortgages, credit cards and debt collection.
- Scrutiny of add-on products marketing and sales practices will continue to migrate from credit card issues to auto and other lenders.
- The Fintech sector will receive increased attention from regulators as the first wave of online lending, payment systems, and big data companies continue to gain market share and consumer reach.
The report can be accessed through Goodwin’s LenderLaw Watch and Consumer Finance Enforcement Watch blogs. Additionally, Sabrina Rose-Smith can be reached at srosesmith@goodwinlaw.com
Goodwin’s Consumer Financial Services Litigation group represents some of the nation’s most prominent providers of consumer financial services, including banks, mortgage companies, credit card issuers, student lenders, and debt collectors, on both litigation and enforcement matters. It defends consumer financial services companies in putative class actions in courts across the nation. Goodwin’s attorneys also represent clients before a variety of administrative officers and agencies, including the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, the FDIC and other banking agencies, the Department of Justice, the Federal Trade Commission, the Department of Housing and Urban Development, and state attorneys general. Goodwin’s litigation and enforcement attorneys work closely with attorneys in the Consumer Financial Services Regulatory practice.