In the new year, the CFPB will be regulating the debt collection industry. This represents the first time that one federal agency will have the responsiblity of regulating the debt collection industry.
The new rules issued by the agency also give the CFPB the authority to regulate debt collection law firms. This has caused quite a stir in the creditor's bar as the debt collection attorneys argue that this will jeoparidize the attorney-client privilege. Given that regulating the practice of law has historically been the job of the several states, it is interesting to see if this portion of the CFPB's new rules will survive a legal challenge.