Banking Law

California Supreme Court permits foreclosure lawsuits over ownership of loans

A ruling from the California Supreme Court could enable lawsuits from thousands of people who may have been wrongfully foreclosed, the Los Angeles Times reported today. The court ruled unanimously Feb. 18 that foreclosed homeowner Tsvetana Yvanova of Los Angeles may amend her lawsuit with a wrongful foreclosure count based…

Mar 2, 2016 5:37 PM CST

Bitcoin’s blockchain technology being used in business, finance and contracts

For many people, their introduction to the digital currency bitcoin came when federal agents shut down online black market Silk Road. The notorious website where users could indulge in all sorts of illicit activities—including drug trafficking, prostitution and hiring a hitman—landed its founder in prison for the rest of his…

Mar 1, 2016 2:00 AM CST

March 14, 1984: The savings and loan crisis begins

On the morning of March 14, 1984, a team of federal regulators arrived at an inconspicuous strip mall in the eastern Dallas suburb of Mesquite to seize control of what had been one of the nation's fastest-growing thrift institutions, Empire Savings and Loan.

Mar 1, 2016 12:30 AM CST

Bank tellers may pose greater threat to customers than hackers, NY Times says

It may not be hackers that pose the biggest threat to bank customers’ funds and personal information. Bank tellers have access to a great deal of information about customers, as well as their accounts, and a lack of security and enforcement against those who transgress leaves customers vulnerable, the New…

Feb 3, 2016 11:10 AM CST

Will those who led the financial system into crisis ever face charges?

In 2005, when the impending financial crisis was obvious to some and under the radar to many, Bill Black published a book laying out his theory of control fraud, his criminological term for looting a corporation from the inside. Read this ABA Journal feature recently honored by the American Society of Business Publication Editors.

Feb 1, 2016 4:10 AM CST

Former Dewey chairman faces suit for loan repayment

Dewey & LeBoeuf’s former chairman Steven Davis hasn’t seen an end to his legal troubles. In a suit filed this week, Citibank says Davis is responsible for repayment of a loan for his capital contribution to the law firm, the New York Law Journal (sub. req.) reports. The bank is…

Jan 15, 2016 8:10 AM CST

Goldman Sachs OKs $5B settlement of civil claims over toxic mortgage bonds

One of Wall Street’s best-known financial institutions has agreed to pay more than $5 billion to settle claims that it sold toxic bonds based on residential mortgages between 2005 and 2007, as the nation’s mortgage market was about to go into a meltdown. The agreement in principle by Goldman Sachs…

Jan 14, 2016 5:00 PM CST

Supreme Court appears to side with terrorism victims in arguments on Iran reparations law

The U.S. Supreme Court considered on Wednesday whether Congress violated the separation of powers when it passed a law allowing victims of Iran-sponsored terrorism to seize nearly $2 billion in assets held in the United States by Iran’s central bank. A lawyer for Bank Markazi, Jeffrey Lamken, said the law…

Jan 14, 2016 11:19 AM CST

13-attorney Sidley Austin office acquires enough office space for 60 lawyers

The Boston office of Sidley Austin has barely grown in the last few years. It now has an attorney roster of 13, most of whom specialize in advising the financial services industry. But that’s about to change. In recent months, the office has leased an entire floor that can accommodate…

Jan 12, 2016 2:45 PM CST

Burr & Forman opens Jacksonville office, expects more growth in Florida

A Southeast regional firm announced Monday that it has opened a Jacksonville, Florida, office with three partners and anticipates more growth in the state. Joining the nearly 300-attorney Burr & Forman are Adrian Rust, J. Ellsworth Summers, Jr. and Michael Waskiewicz. All three previously worked for Rogers Towers. Rust, who…

Jan 11, 2016 12:25 PM CST

Judge dismisses lawsuit seeking federal approval for credit union serving marijuana businesses

A credit union formed to serve Colorado’s legal marijuana industry has lost its bid for approval by the U.S. Federal Reserve Bank, the Associated Press reported Wednesday. Fourth Corner Credit Union sued the Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City in July for turning down its application for the master account…

Jan 6, 2016 4:30 PM CST

Debt buyers use courts to collect debt, then cite arbitration clauses to deflect legal challenges

Debt collectors who buy up debt and sue to recover the money are deflecting class action suits challenging their practices with arbitration agreements purportedly signed by the debtors with their original lender. Consumer lawyers criticize the practice as “the legal equivalent of debt collectors having their cake and eating it,…

Dec 23, 2015 6:15 AM CST

Customers suing over fake Wells Fargo accounts are sent to arbitration

Wells Fargo customers who tried to sue over fake accounts set up in their names have learned they can’t take their cases to the courthouse. Federal and state judges in California have ruled the cases must go to arbitration because of agreements the customers signed when opening legitimate accounts, the…

Dec 7, 2015 8:56 AM CST

UK approves its first deferred prosecution agreement in bank’s bribery case

A judge on the High Court of Justice of England and Wales today approved the United Kingdom’s first deferred prosecution agreement, under which the ICBC Standard Bank will avoid criminal charges and instead receive other sanctions, Reuters and Bloomberg Business report. The DPA statute enacted in February 2014 is stricter…

Nov 30, 2015 12:05 PM CST

Top state court says litigation funding is subject to consumer lending law

A litigation finance company has lost its bid to persuade the Colorado Supreme Court that providing interim funding to allow a tort lawsuit to proceed is more like making an investment than making a loan. In a Monday decision (PDF), the state’s top court declined to issue a declaratory judgment…

Nov 17, 2015 4:50 PM CST