The podcast we are releasing today is part 1 of a re-purposed webinar we produced on March 25 titled "The Impact of the Election on the CFPB - Part 4." As a result of the diminishing impact of the CFPB on enforcing the consumer financial services laws, we expect that void to be filled by state government enforcement agencies and private civil litigation, including class and mass actions. Our webinar will focus on private civil litigation. Our featured guest for this webinar was Ira Rheingold, Executive Director of the National Association of Consumer Advocates. He was joined on the panel by Thomas Burke, Dan McKenna, Jenny Perkins, Joseph Schuster, and Melanie Vartabedian, litigators in our firm's Consumer Financial Services Group.

The podcast began with Ira observing that state enforcement agencies and plaintiffs' class action lawyers will be taking a careful look at enforcement actions voluntarily dismissed by the CFPB to ascertain whether the complaints should be re-filed by them in federal or state court. 

We then proceeded to discuss the following areas where the panelists are predicting an increase in private civil litigation during 2025 and beyond:

1. Increased FCRA litigation, especially in ID Theft (Jenny, Ira).
2. The use of AI and corporate responsibility for ensuring that it does not create unfair or discriminatory practices (Ira).
3. Increased retail bank litigation, including EFTA claims (Ira, Tom).

Part 2 of this re-purposed webinar will be released next Thursday, May 1.

Alan Kaplinsky, the former chair for 25 years and now Senior Counsel of the Consumer Financial Services Group, hosted the podcast show.

For our podcasts repurposed from webinars that we produced as part of our series entitled "The Impact of the Election on the CFPB" Part 1 (regulations and other written guidance), click here and here; Part 2 (supervision and enforcement),  click here and here; Part 3 (state AGs and departments of banking), click here and here.