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Effective April 19, New Mortgage Servicing Rights for Heirs, Spouses, and Debtors in Bankruptcy

April 13, 2018
As explained in this article, effective April 19, CFPB mortgage servicing rules expand the rights of those inheriting homes, awarded a marital home in divorce, or otherwise succeeding in interest to a mortgage loan. The rules also offer an important new right for debtors in bankruptcy to determine if mortgage servicer fees and application of mortgage payments are proper.

How to Draft a Chapter 13 Plan Under the New Rules

February 28, 2018

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.

The TCPA Year in Review: New Precedent re Challenges to Unwanted Calls, Texts, & Faxes

February 7, 2018
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...

Ninth Circuit: Collector Hired by State Agency Cannot Require Arbitration

January 11, 2018

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 Partners with National Consumer Law Center to host the Digital Green Book

January 4, 2018

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.

Game-Changing New Bankruptcy Rules Effective December 1

December 1, 2017
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.

CFPB Issues Final Rule Regulating Payday Loans

October 11, 2017
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.

Key Steps to Minimize Risk After Equifax Data Breach

September 24, 2017
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.