Tax season isn't a surprise—it’s the most predictable liquidity event on the calendar. For lenders and servicers, the arrival of household refunds in Q1 2026 creates an immediate, high-velocity window for portfolio resolution. But knowing the capital is there is only half the battle. The real challenge is capturing it before it’s diverted to other household expenses.
In a recent decision, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit affirmed summary judgment in favor of Freedom Mortgage Corporation, rejecting Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) claims brought by borrowers who insisted they had made their mortgage payments on time. The court held that the servicer accurately reported a 30‑day late payment and conducted a reasonable investigation in response to the borrowers’ disputes forwarded to it by the consumer reporting agencies (CRAs).
In a recent episode of the award-winning Consumer Finance Monitor podcast, Alan Kaplinsky was joined by Nick Bourke, Kate Griffin, and Ballard Spahr partner Joseph Schuster to discuss a groundbreaking new report from the Aspen Institute Financial Security Program: United We Stand: A National Strategy to Prevent Scams.
The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) is issuing a final rule to clarify the longstanding authority of national banks limited to the operations of trust companies and activities related thereto to engage in non-fiduciary activities in addition to their fiduciary activities. The final rule would neither expand nor contract the OCC’s authority to charter a national bank. The final rule is effective April 1, 2026.
In the wake of the Tenth Circuit’s decision in National Association of Industrial Bankers v. Weiser, 159 F.4th 694 (10th Cir. 2025), Oregon legislators have once again introduced legislation that would “opt out” of Section 521 of the Depository Institutions Deregulation and Monetary Control Act of 1980 (DIDMCA), pursuant to the opt-out right conferred by Section 525 of that Act
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