In a significant development, for the first time under Consumer Financial Protection Bureau Acting Director Russell Vought, CFPB litigators have informed a court that they have received authority from the Acting Director to continue litigating a matter.
Since Rohit Chopra was removed as Director of the CFPB on January 31, 2025, the only certainty for the CFPB has been uncertainty. Over the past week the CFPB has dismissed at least seven lawsuits it had previously filed. This began on February 24, 2025 with the dismissal of its enforcement action against SoLo Funds, and it has continued through Friday with at least two additional dismissal filings in litigated matters.
This has led to speculation that Acting Director Vought may authorize the dismissal of the CFPB’s entire litigation docket. That no longer appears to be the case given the CFPB’s latest filing in CFPB v. MoneyLion Technologies, Inc.
In a February 28, 2025 court filing, the CFPB confirmed that it will, in fact, continue to prosecute at least one of the actions held over from the prior administration. In response to an order from the court, the CFPB filed a letter in CFPB v. MoneyLion Technologies, Inc., stating that “the Acting Director of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau has authorized the continued prosecution of this action.” While the letter provides no further details on the Acting Director’s rationale, this appears to be the first instance of a CFPB litigation action being authorized to substantively proceed under Vought’s leadership. The lawsuit concerns allegations by the CFPB that the defendant overcharged military service members through subscription costs and fees for access to low-APR loans in violation of the Military Lending Act.
There is also another filing that indicates the CFPB may decide to proceed with other litigation matters. On February 27, 2025, the CFPB filed a Motion seeking a temporary stay in CFPB v. Reliant Holdings, Inc., in which it stated that it needed a 60-day stay “to allow sufficient time for the newly appointed Acting Director of the Bureau to review and consider” whether to proceed with prosecuting the matter. Notably, the defendants objected to the stay and the request is still pending before the court.
Companies following the CFPB’s activities under the new administration should watch this space for updates.
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