Making good on promises to creatively explore all of its options for enforcement, the FTC yesterday notified 70 for-profit higher educational institutions that it intends to use its long dormant Penalty Offense Authority to obtain civil penalties when institutions make misrepresentations about their programs and job and earnings prospects. The move closely follows recommendations proposed
Chopra Confirmed as Next CFPB Director; Departure Leaves FTC Evenly Divided
The Senate yesterday confirmed current FTC Commissioner Rohit Chopra as the new Director of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB). The 50-48 vote to confirm was along party lines and followed Vice President Harris’s breaking of a 50-50 tie to invoke cloture and end debate on Chopra’s nomination.
With Chopra’s departure from the FTC
Privacy Expert Alvaro Bedoya Nominated to FTC
The future composition of the FTC became a bit clearer on Monday, as the White House announced that President Biden will nominate privacy expert and scholar Alvaro Bedoya as FTC commissioner. If confirmed, Bedoya would take the seat currently held by Commissioner Rohit Chopra, whose nomination as CFPB Director remains pending, and serve in a
TINA.org Lobbies FTC to Use Penalty Offense Authority against Direct Sellers
TINA.org continues to aggressively beat the enforcement drum. Today, its leaders sent a letter to Acting Director of the Bureau of Consumer Protection Samuel Levine encouraging the FTC “to implement a penalty offense program targeting the direct selling industry and its market-wide practice of utilizing deceptive earnings representations and false health claims.”
As we discussed
FTC Continues Push for Civil Penalties with Important Implications for Financial Institutions and MLMs
The FTC yesterday took two actions that on their face seemed part of the regular course, but that could signal notable changes for financial institutions and multi-level marketing companies. First, the FTC filed an amended complaint against RCG Advances, a merchant cash advance provider, alleging that the company violated the Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act and seeking civil
FTC Nominee Lina Khan Sails through Committee with Bipartisan Support While Chopra Awaits Senate Vote for CFPB Director
The Senate Commerce Committee today voted overwhelmingly to move forward with Lina Khan’s nomination as FTC Commissioner, signaling that Khan is likely to ultimately be confirmed as the youngest Commissioner ever at 32. As we previously discussed here, Khan is primarily known as an antitrust scholar advocating for more exacting scrutiny of big tech
CFPB Rescinds “Abusive” Policy Statement, Signaling Broader and More Aggressive View of “Abusive” Authority
In a significant but unsurprising move, the CFPB announced today that it was rescinding a policy statement issued in January 2020 that sought to tether the Bureau’s “abusive” authority to certain limiting principles. The move signals that the Bureau is likely to interpret its authority to prevent “abusive acts and practices” under the Dodd-Frank Act
Chopra Navigates Questions and Predicts Priorities at Friendly CFPB Nomination Hearing
President Biden’s nominee to serve as CFPB Director, Rohit Chopra, today testified in front of the Senate Banking Committee about his potential regulatory and enforcement priorities as head of the consumer finance regulator. As we previously discussed, President Biden tapped Chopra, three years into his tenure as FTC Commissioner, to serve as Director
Ad Law Access Podcast – What to Expect in Consumer Financial Protection and FinTech in 2021
Often when people think about the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) they say to themselves, “well, I’m not a bank so that doesn’t really apply to me.” But consumer financial protection laws are actually much broader and cover all aspects of consumer financial products, any way that consumers bank, pay, or finance transactions and the
Biden Taps Rohit Chopra, Current FTC Commissioner and Vocal Proponent of Aggressive Enforcement, to Lead CFPB
Things are about to change dramatically at the CFPB. President-elect Joe Biden today nominated Rohit Chopra, a current commissioner at the Federal Trade Commission and long-time proponent of aggressive enforcement, to serve as director of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau.
We knew that the incoming Biden administration would entail significant change on many fronts from