The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) resolved an appeal in an enforcement suit against a foreclosure relief scam operation.
The resolution of the case resulted in $12 million in consumer redress and penalties.
The action was taken against a company called Consumer First Legal Group, LLC and four attorneys, Thomas G. Macey, Jeffrey J. Aleman, Jason Searns, and Harold E. Stafford,. The CFPB said they charged millions of dollars in illegal advance fees to financially-distressed homeowners for legal representation the defendants promised but did not provide.
This case was part of a coordinated effort conducted by the CFPB, Federal Trade Commission (FTC), and 15 states in 2014 against various foreclosure relief scam operations. The CFPB filed three lawsuits in this long-running case, while the FTC filed six lawsuits, and the states took 32 actions.
The CFPB had won a judgment against the defendants in 2019. However, the case has been ongoing given multiple appeals. This settlement brings the case to an end.
Under this resolution, the defendants will pay $10.9 million in consumer redress and a $1.1 million penalty into the CFPB’s victims relief fund. Further, the individual defendants are covered by 8- or 5-year bans from the mortgage assistance industry, under the district court’s original order.