For three centuries or more, the common law has prohibited contract provisions that impose a penalty greater than the amount of damages caused by a breach of the contract. When those damages are difficult to determine, the common law permits “liquidated damages” provisions that are reasonably related to the actual damages sustained by the party.…
Credit reports and scores, tenant and employment screening reports, and other background checks all impact fundamental necessities in a consumer’s life: the ability to rent an apartment or buy a home, obtain insurance, find a job, open or keep a bank account, and obtain fairly priced credit. Yet each one of these categories of “consumer…
Read More about 2024 Credit & Consumer Reporting Priorities to Promote Economic Stability
On behalf of the clients, communities, companies, and veterans we represent, we urge the VAto prioritize allocating and seeking the budgetary resources necessary to expand the lossmitigation options available under the VA Home Loan Guaranty Program to help veteranborrowers avoid foreclosure. We believe your agency’s current loss mitigation tools andresources are insufficient to meet the…
In response to the questions posed in the VA’s October 17, 2022 Advance Notice of ProposedRulemaking, the National Consumer Law Center (on behalf of its low-income clients) and theCenter for Responsible Lending urge VA to expand the opportunities available to help veteranborrowers avoid foreclosure. The mortgage relief options available for veteran borrowers shouldnot be less…
Read More about NCLC & CRL Letter to the VA Regarding Loss-Mitigation Options for Guaranteed Loans
This written testimony is submitted on behalf of the National Consumer Law Center in support of Md. H.B. 42 / S.B. 106, which would amend Md. Code, Comm. Law § 11-504 to create a self-executing $500 bank account protection that will shield that minimal amount from seizure by creditors. Enacting this legislation is an important…
Read More about Testimony in Support of Legislation to Improve State Exemption Laws in Maryland
This written testimony is submitted on behalf of the National Consumer Law Center in support of S.B. 5173, which would amend RCW 6.15.010 to increase protections for financially-stressed families in the state. This would be an important step toward strengthening Washington’s overall property protections for families struggling with debt.
NCLC and the National Community Reinvestment Coalition submit comments that fall into two categories. We agree with the Federal Reserve’s intention to provide greater clarity on how it will evaluate applications. But we remain opposed to the possibility of accounts for the uninsured institutions in Tier 2 and Tier 3, which will permit evasions of…
Brief of Amici Curiae of members of the Free to Drive Coalition in support of Appellants Petition for Rehearing En Banc. Millions of people in the United States have had their driver’s licenses suspended, revoked, or not renewed, not for unsafe driving, but for unpaid fines and fees. Most of these people are poor; they…
Brief of Amici Curiae of Lewis & Clark Law School Criminal Justice Reform Clinic, American Civil Liberties Union of Oregon, Oregon Tradeswoman, Oregon Consumer Justice, Fines & Fees Justice Center, and National Consumer Law Center in support of Appellant Kenneth Marion Duhham. Kenneth Marion Dunham is caught in a debt trap. Without expungement of his…
We support the proposed rule but have a number of recommendations, including adding protections to protect distressed borrowers and prevent the misuse of escrow account refunds; removing repayment-plan payments from the definition of “monthly payment” used for the seasoning rule; and working with Congress to determine whether statutory changes are necessary to prevent other abuses…
COVID-19 has made cancellation a necessity for student loan borrowers, writes borrower advocates, including NCLC, and legal aid organizations in a brief submitted to the U.S. Supreme Court. By tailoring the student debt relief to reduce the prospect of widespread defaults upon a return to repayment, the Department acted well within its HEROES Act authority…
Read More about Brief in Biden v. Nebraska & Brown v. U.S. Department of Education
Brief of Amici Curiae submitted by California Reinvestment Coalition, National Community Reinvestment Coalition, National Association of Latino Community Asset Builders, Center for Responsible Lending, Texas Appleseed, and National Consumer Law Center in support of Defendant’s Motion to Dismiss or, in the Alternative, for Partial Summary Judgement. In March 2022, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB)…