Our Record of Major Achievements Speaks for Itself
If not for NCLC’s history of advocacy Americans would not enjoy many
of the basic consumer protections we now take for granted.
The most fundamental of protections - due process - has not always been
available to consumers. NCLC played a key role in the courts’
recognition of due process in consumer cases. Our participation in
Swarb v. Lennox, Fuentes v. Shevin, and Memphis Light, Gas &
Water Division v. Craft was critical to the development of consumer due
process.
We led the fight for the FTC’s Holder in Due Course Rule
that removed many of the obstructions consumers faced when seeking relief
from creditors and forced financiers to take responsibility for policing the
market.
NCLC made sure the FTC’s Credit Practice Rules abolished
many of the most outrageous, commonplace creditor abuses consumers were experiencing.
Our leadership and shocking report on home improvement and second mortgage
abuses led to the enactment of the Home Ownership & Equity Protection
Act of 1994 and legal remedies for thousands of unsophisticated homeowners
who risked losing their homes because of equity skimming scams.
We set the standard for third party debt collection with
our Model Consumer Credit Code that was the foundation for the federal Fair
Debt Collections Practices Act and the credit codes of Wisconsin, West Virginia,
and Iowa.
NCLC’s design and evaluation of affordable energy programs
for low-income consumers were critical to making them a reality.
We were the primary advocate for the Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program
(LIHEAP) and pioneered the Percentage of Payment Plan (PIPP) that targeted
LIHEAP funds to those households most in need.
Our expert testimony was crucial to the court’s decision that a loan
is unconscionable where repeated financings are structured for the benefit
of the lender in Besta v. Beneficial Loan Co.
We made certain that the Truth in Lending Act and Regulation
Z were there for consumers by defending them from numerous attempts
to undercut their effectiveness.
We take special pride in our leadership role in the development of consumer
law as an area of legal expertise - and in the increasing numbers of attorneys
who practice in this field. (The National Association of Consumer Attorneys
[NACA], for example, was conceived at one of NCLC’s national conferences.)
We look with much satisfaction at the increasing legal resources NCLC
has helped to make available on behalf of low-income consumers.
And so much more.
Although NCLC’s achievements are many, there is much yet to be done. We
must both guard those rights consumers already have and seek new marketplace
protections for emerging problems.
