CFPB’s first jury trial to test agency overreach
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau is set to face its first jury trial in April in what is shaping up to be a critical test of the agency’s authority. The CFPB sued Nationwide Biweekly Administration, in Xenia, Ohio, and its founder Daniel Lipsky in 2015 for allegedly making misleading claims about a program to help consumers pay off their mortgage faster and reduce interest payments. But Nationwide has countered that the CFPB used tactics that resemble Operation Choke Point, a 2013 Justice Department initiative that critics say was overzealous and captured legitimate businesses in addition to shady ones.