No one saw that coming! That was industry’s response when the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) reversed its stance on a discrimination case it had already settled. The change of heart was directly connected to the change in leadership at the bureau under the Trump administration. Garris Horn LLP Co-Managing Partner Rich Horn was one of the lead defense attorneys in the years-long case against Townstone Financial. Listen as Horn dives into the legal depths of one of the bureau’s most high-profile cases that drew no shortage of headlines. Horn’s insider knowledge of the facts and legal arguments provide an eye-opening perspective on the matter and the implications of reopening a case that had already been settled – an unprecedented move for a federal agency.
Chapters:
00:00 The Townstone Financial Case Overview
03:14 Legal Arguments and Court Decisions
06:00 Settlement Negotiations and Outcomes
09:09 Reopening the Case: New Developments
11:48 CFPB's Changing Leadership and Its Impact
15:11 The Role of Subjectivity in Regulatory Actions
18:00 Consumer Testing and Its Implications
20:53 The First Amendment and Political Speech
24:03 Statistical Analysis in Discrimination Cases
26:46 The CFPB's Enforcement History
30:11 Future of CFPB and Regulatory Changes
32:59 Final Thoughts and Future Outlook
Get In Touch…
For more on this topic, follow these links:
October Research’s Townstone Articles Bundle: https://www.respanews.com/rn/articlesrn/breaking-news-cfpb-asks-to-vacate-settlement-with-94005.aspx
Declaration of Dan Bishop: https://www.consumerfinancialserviceslawmonitor.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/880/2025/03/Dan-Bishop-Declaration.pdf
NS3 Info: https://www.ns3thesummit.com/
To email the guest or host:
Rich Horn (Guest), rich@garrishorn.com
Mary Schuster (Host), mschuster@octoberresearch.com
To find more episodes of “Keys to Real Estate” or learn more about October Research – the nation’s leading independent provider of market intelligence, industry news, expert analysis and regulatory information for professionals in the real estate, title, financial and settlement services industries – visit www.OctoberResearch.com.
Episode sponsored by Closinglock – https://www.closinglock.com
Episode produced by October Research – https://www.octoberresearch.com