Links in “Department of Justice”
- Choking Operation Choke Point
ICBA lends its support to bill that would rein in Operation Choke Point, which it perceives as "overzealous Justice Department intimidation. [7/1/14]
- $9B BNP Fine Intended to Serve as Wake-up Call to Shareholders
Justice Department says the $9 billion fine against France's BNP Paribas will hopefully be a wake-up call to shareholders about the importance of holding corporate chiefs accountable for following the law. The bank was accused of falsifying records to conceal funneling billions of dollars from blocked nations through its U.S. operations. [7/1/14]
- DOJ to Banks: Enable Scam Artists and We’ll Come After You
U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder cites as an example a North Carolina bank that facilitated a third-party payment processor to process transactions reported as fraudulent in exchange for $850,000 in fees. The settlement included a $1 million fine and $200,000 to a consumer fraud fund. [6/24/14]
- Deceptive and Illegal Mortgage Servicing Practices Bring Down the Hammer
CFPB, DOJ, and HUD proposed a federal court order requiring SunTrust Mortgage, Inc. to provide $500 million in loss-mitigation relief to underwater borrowers. âTodayâs action will help homeowners and consumers harmed by SunTrustâs unlawful foreclosure practices," said Richard Cordray.  [6/18/14]
- House Attempts to Choke Disparate Impact
The House appropriations bill includes an amendment that prohibits the Department of Justice from using funding to enforce disparate impact actions. The bill now moves to the Senate. [6/13/14]
- BoA’s Civil Probes Settlement Possibly in the $12B Neighborhood
Bank of America is in talks to settle civil probes by the Department of Justice for somewhere in the $12 billion neighborhood, $5 billion of which is expected to go to consumer relief. [6/6/14]
- DOJ Takes Down Hacking Network That Stole from Bank Accounts
Gameover Zeus, a botnet, infected up to 1 million computers, putting them in the control of hackers in Russia and Ukraine. The network stole bank credentials and used them to make wire transfers overseas. It is estimated the network stole more than $100 million. [6/3]
- Operation Choke Point: DOJ Just Getting Warmed Up?
Operation Choke Point, the Department of Justice program considered by some as a way to enable the administration targets legal companies it finds objectionable, may be moving from payday lenders to other industries, such as gun makers.
- NAFCU & CUNA Advocate Limiting Justice Departmentâs Use of âDisparate Impactâ
In a letter jointly signed by six industry trade associations, NAFCU and CUNA are urging Congress to limit the Justice Departmentâs ability to bring legal action solely on the basis of disparate impact. Disparate impact is defined as discrimination that results from an activity, despite any and all reasonable efforts to prevent the discrimination, that results in an adverse impact on a federally protected class. [5/30]
- Legislation Would Seek to Unplug “Disparate Impact”
Several trade associations are lending their support to an amendment to the appropriations bill for fiscal year 2015 that would prohibit any funds made available by the Act from being used in "disparate impact" litigation. Under the disparate impact theory, even a lender who takes every step to prevent discrimination and treat all consumers fairly and equally could be the target of serious claims if it impacts a protected group adversely. For example, the DOJ and CFPB recently entered into a $98 million settlement with a bank for its indirect auto lending program. [5/30]
