As explained in this article, February legislation provides important tax relief to homeowners who faced foreclosure, short sales, or loan modifications in 2017. The Qualified Principal Residence Indebtedness exclusion that had expired after 2016 has been extended, allowing homeowners to continue excluding certain forgiven mortgage debt from taxable income.

Key to drafting a successful chapter 13 plan under the new Bankruptcy Rules is adding “nonstandard provisions” not found on the standardized forms. As set out in this article, NCLC now provides sample language for over thirty-five nonstandard provisions that attorneys can copy/paste into their plans.

2017 saw hundreds of new decisions and FCC actions interpreting the Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA), which provides significant statutory damages for unwanted calls, texts, and faxes. This article outlines the areas where there has been the most significant case law and FCC activity in 2017. All links are to NCLC’s Federal Deception Law Chapter 6—a detailed analysis of all significant...

Too often those who are least able to afford it are taken advantage of at tax time. Now that 2017 tax returns can be filed, this article provides six important areas of advice for clients.

Breazeale v. Victim Servs., Inc., 2017 WL 6601779 (9th Cir. Dec. 27, 2017) is an important decision with potentially broad consequences for litigation involving the commercialization of the criminal justice system. The court held that the Federal Arbitration Act, 9 U.S.C. § 1, et seq., does not apply to agreements between individuals and private contractors acting on behalf of the government, at...

National Housing Law Project (NHLP) has partnered with the National Consumer Law Center (NCLC) to offer the 5th edition of HUD Housing Programs: Tenants’ Rights on NCLC’s digital library. NHLP has wanted to bring the Green Book online for years, but it took the expertise and generosity of NCLC. The new digital format will allow users to copy and paste text and citations, bookmark, highlight, and will provide live links to companion materials. The digital platform also makes the Green Book much more portable and available on cell phones and laptops. The digital format will allow NHLP to update the manual much more frequently, to fix inevitable errors and to provide to our readers even more extensive and accessible companion materials.

NCLC has just released the Ninth Edition of our popular Consumer Class Actions treatise, with recent major developments in class action law. This article sets out what subscribers and non-subscribers should know about the new edition.

This article examines new bankruptcy rule amendments, effective December 1, that significantly alter chapter 13 practice. The new rules affect the form of the chapter 13 plan, procedures for valuing and voiding liens, filing deadlines for creditor proofs of claim, objections to proofs of claims, and objections to plan confirmation.

Critical CFPB rules governing mortgage servicing are now in effect as of October 19. As described in this article, the rules provide essential protections for homeowners applying for loan modifications to avoid foreclosure or otherwise dealing with mortgage servicers.

On October 24 the Senate joined the House in repealing the CFPB Arbitration Rule that would have eliminated forced arbitration clauses containing class action bans in consumer financial contracts. This article lists twelve ways to still defeat a forced arbitration clause, even for class actions.

The CFPB issued its final “payday lending rule” on October 5, not effective until 2019. This free article describes the rule’s application to high-interest loans and sets out a list of other currently applicable challenges to such lending.

This article sets out seven essential steps for FDCPA consumer litigants to deal with Spokeo standing challenges, surveys all six circuit court FDCPA decisions on Spokeo challenges, and organizes by FDCPA violation with links to analysis of over 100 federal district court decisions.

Nearly every adult with a credit history is at risk of identity theft after the recent Equifax data breach. In this free article, NCLC offers key advice for consumers, with specific steps that can be taken to minimize the risks—freezes, thaws, fraud alerts, credit monitoring, and more.

Lenders may lose their right to foreclose by waiting too many years after accelerating the loan or where a prior foreclosure litigation has been dismissed. This article explains these novel defenses and lists other foreclosure defenses.

New CFPB mortgage servicing rules offer homeowners key protections. In the last year, over thirty significant decisions interpret the new CFPB mortgage servicing rules. This article provides a roadmap to detailed analyses of the recent federal circuit and district court decisions.

This article highlights two key new developments limiting arbitration of FDCPA and other claims against debt buyers and collectors: a AAA letter about Midland Funding and an important Eleventh Circuit ruling.

NCLC has just released in print and online Unfair and Deceptive Acts and Practices (9th ed. Dec. 2016) (1011 pp.). This article sets out what subscribers and non-subscribers should know about the new edition.

As described in this article, two dramatic changes to consumer credit reporting become effective this summer, scaling back reporting of tax liens, civil judgments, and medical debt. The result will be improved accuracy and higher credit scores for millions of consumers.

The Supreme Court on June 12 in Henson held that debt buyers are not covered under the FDCPA’s second definition of debt collector because they do not collect debts owed to another. This article explains the ruling and details why the FDCPA still applies to debt buyers.

On July 10, the CFPB issued its long-awaited final rule allowing class actions to proceed in court despite arbitration requirements. This article examines the new rule’s practice implications, outlines other arbitration developments, and provides a thumbnail guide to arbitration issues.