Patrick T. Lewis

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Supreme Court Overturns “Wholly Groundless” Exception to Contractual Delegations of Arbitrability Decisions to Arbitrators

By Patrick T. Lewis, Lars H. Fuller and Greg Mersol on January 11, 2019 Posted in Litigation

On Jan. 8, 2019, the U.S. Supreme Court issued a unanimous decision regarding an important procedural issue under the Federal Arbitration Act (FAA). In Henry Schein, Inc. v. Archer & White Sales, Inc., No. 17-1272, it held that under the FAA, courts must enforce provisions in arbitration agreements delegating threshold questions of whether claims are … Continue Reading

Florida Passes Bill to Stop Bankruptcy Debtors From “Having Their Cake and Eating It Too”

By Patrick T. Lewis on March 26, 2018 Posted in Uncategorized

On March 20, Florida Governor Rick Scott signed Senate Bill 220 into law. The bill is designed to limit the ability of defendants in foreclosure proceedings to keep contesting the foreclosure after agreeing, in bankruptcy, to surrender the property to their lenders. By way of background, when an individual debtor files for bankruptcy, whether under … Continue Reading

Second Circuit Dismisses FACTA Class Action Under Spokeo

By Patrick T. Lewis on September 21, 2017 Posted in FACTA

The Second Circuit’s Sept. 19, 2017 decision in Katz v. The Donna Karan Company, LLC, et al., Dkt. No. 15-464, has potentially provided a new road map to defeating class actions alleging statutory damages for bare procedural violations. The case arose under the Fair and Accurate Credit Transactions Act (FACTA). Passed in 2003, FACTA prohibits … Continue Reading

CFPB Takes Enforcement Action Against Loan Officer for Alleged Mortgage Fee Kickback Scheme

By Patrick T. Lewis on May 27, 2016 Posted in Consumer Financial Protection Bureau

Yesterday, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) announced the issuance of a consent decree with a former mortgage loan officer arising out of alleged violations of the Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act’s (RESPA) anti-kickback laws and Dodd-Frank’s prohibition on unfair, deceptive or abusive acts or practices (UDAAP). The officer was required to pay an $85,000 … Continue Reading

Supreme Court Unanimously Rejects FDCPA Claim Against Private Attorneys Collecting Debt for State Attorney General

By Patrick T. Lewis on May 17, 2016 Posted in Fair Debt Collection Practices Act

On May 16, 2016, in Sheriff v. Gillie, Case No. 15-338, the Supreme Court reversed a decision of the Sixth Circuit holding that private attorneys contracted by a state attorney general’s office to collect debt owed to state agencies or instrumentalities violated the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA) by sending collection letters on state … Continue Reading

D.C. Circuit Judge Expresses Concern That CFPB Concentrates “Huge Power” in Single Director

By Patrick T. Lewis on April 13, 2016 Posted in Consumer Financial Protection Bureau

Yesterday’s oral argument in the CFPB v. PHH Corporation appeal included sharp questioning about the constitutionality of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s (CFPB) single-director structure, which the parties agreed had few other precedents in American government. This questioning followed an order issued by the panel on April 4, 2016, raising, sua sponte, these constitutional questions. … Continue Reading

ICYMI: Financial Services Risk Summit

By Patrick T. Lewis on April 4, 2016 Posted in Uncategorized

In March, BakerHostetler and the Ohio Banker’s League held a Financial Services Risk Summit in Cleveland, Ohio, where nearly 140 bankers, mortgage lenders, regulators, compliance officers, and counsel gathered to discuss and learn about the leading compliance, regulatory, and litigation risks facing the financial services industry. The proceedings of the Summit have now been published … Continue Reading

CFPB Encourages Financial Institutions to Improve Checking Account Access

By Patrick T. Lewis on February 4, 2016 Posted in Consumer Financial Protection Bureau

In remarks delivered yesterday at a field hearing in Louisville, Kentucky, Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) Director Richard Cordray announced three actions the CFPB is taking to encourage financial institutions to expand access to checking accounts to the 10 million households it claims lack access to basic checking or savings accounts. These steps focus on … Continue Reading

FTC Launches “Operation Collection Protection” to Target Debt Collection Practices

By Patrick T. Lewis and Marissa Black on November 6, 2015 Posted in Uncategorized

On Wednesday, November 4, the Federal Trade Commission announced the largest-ever-coordinated federal-state enforcement initiative targeting allegedly deceptive and abusive debt collection practices. The initiative, consisting of 30 enforcement actions by federal, state, and local authorities, targets debt collectors who utilize harassing phone calls and false threats of litigation, arrest, and wage garnishment. The FTC is … Continue Reading

PHH Fine on Hold, Says D.C. Circuit

By Patrick T. Lewis on August 13, 2015 Posted in Uncategorized

On August 3, 2015, the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals entered an order staying Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) Director Richard Cordray’s June 4, 2015, order imposing injunctive relief and disgorgement of over $109 million for alleged Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act (RESPA) violations stemming from a mortgage reinsurance program PHH and certain of its affiliates … Continue Reading

CFPB Launches Monthly Complaint Report to Spotlight Consumer Complaint Trends

By Patrick T. Lewis on July 23, 2015 Posted in Consumer Financial Protection Bureau

Last week, the CFPB launched a new series of monthly reports to “highlight key trends from consumer complaints submitted to the Bureau.” The first report is here. The CFPB intends for each monthly report to provide top-level highlights of consumer complaints reported to the CFPB’s Office of Consumer Response. The reporting includes complaint volume broken … Continue Reading