In Obduskey vs. McCarthy & Holthus LLP (No. 17-1307), the Supreme Court addressed whether a law firm hired to carry out a non-judicial foreclosure on a Colorado home owned by the Petitioner was acting in the capacity of a "debt collector" […]
On July 27, 2017, Andrew Bailey, the head of the U.K. Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), surprised the banking industry (and other financial markets) when he announced the London Interbank Offered Rate (LIBOR) may cease to be published as early as the […]
The 85th Session of the Texas Legislature passed H.B. 1217 to allow online notarization, making it the third state (after Virginia and Montana) to allow notaries to perform remote notarial acts. Effective on July 1, 2018, the new law enables a signing […]
Business bankruptcy filings have dropped by more than one-third over the last five years. One potential reason for this drop is that lenders have increasingly sought non-bankruptcy solutions for defaulted or distressed loans. Virtually all non-bankruptcy […]
The House of Representatives recently passed H.R. 3299, the "Protecting Consumers Access to Credit Act of 2017." This act codifies the "valid-when-made" doctrine and ensures that bank loans that fall within the maximum rate […]
The London Interbank Offered Rate ("LIBOR") is a nearly 50-year old global borrowing benchmark which underpins more than $350 trillion of financial products. LIBOR is based on daily submissions from a panel of banks estimating the interest […]
In the past few years, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau ("CFPB") has focused on taking action against multiple financial institutions for their overdraft services practices. These practices are regulated by the Federal Reserve Board’s “Regulation […]
Late last week, the United States Supreme Court said that it erred when it granted certiorari to resolve a bankruptcy dispute over whether state or federal law should apply to the recharacterization of debt. In In re Province Grande Olde Liberty, […]
The United States Supreme Court will soon decide whether state or federal law will apply to the recharacterization of debt. On June 27, 2017, the Court granted certiorari in In re Province Grande Olde Liberty, LLC, a decision out of the Fourth Circuit […]
On June 12, 2017, Judge Gorsuch issued his first written opinion since taking the bench on the Supreme Court. In Henson vs. Santander Consumer USA, the Supreme Court ruled unanimously that a company that purchases defaulted loans and then attempts […]
The Fair Debt Collection Practices Act ("FDCPA") authorizes private lawsuits and fines to deter abusive collection efforts by "debt collectors"—a term defined under 15 U.S.C. §1692a(6) to include anyone who "regularly collects or attempts to collect […]
No Texas Court has considered whether a written offer to enter into a loan modification satisfies the requirement under Texas law—known as the statute of frauds—that all loan agreements over $50,000 must be in writing and signed by the party to be […]