Offering expert advice to litigants as they develop case strategy, identify prospective plaintiffs, and engage with the media and lawmakers.
Representative Matters
- Demanding Great Lakes, Experian, TransUnion, Equifax, and VantageScore Solutions LLC Comply with the CARES Act. In March 2020, Congress passed the CARES Act, which suspended federal student loan borrowers’ payments. Great Lakes, as well as the three major credit bureaus, reported inaccurate credit information in violation of the law for these payments. The SBPC joined Towards Justice and Berger Montague to sue for relief. After we filed our lawsuit, Great Lakes repaired the damage caused to nearly 5 million borrowers’ credit reports.
- More information on Sass et. al. v. Great Lakes et. al.
- Forcing the CFPB to Follow the Law and Oversee the Student Loan Industry’s Handling of More Than $1.3 Trillion in Student Debt. Beginning in 2017, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau bowed to pressure from Education Secretary Betsy DeVos and abandoned its legal duty to oversee the practices of the Education Department’s student loan servicing contractors. In November 2019, SBPC supported a lawsuit against CFPB brought by Democracy Forward on behalf of Student Debt Crisis. This case seeks to force CFPB to restart its oversight over the servicing of 80% of all student loan debt. This litigation is ongoing.
- More information on Student Debt Crisis v. CFPB
- Demanding Betsy Devos End Illegal Administrative Wage Garnishment During the Coronavirus Crisis. In March 2020, Congress passed a new law temporarily halting wage garnishment for hundreds of thousands of borrowers in order to provide relief during the pandemic. Despite these protections, the Education Department continued to garnish wages from struggling borrowers in violation of the law. The SBPC joined Student Defense and National Consumer Law Center to sue the Department of Education and Secretary Betsy DeVos. After we filed our lawsuit, the Department of Education returned nearly $200 million to borrowers whose wages were unlawfully seized.
- More information on Barber v. DeVos
- Demanding Justice for Teachers Cheated by Navient. In October 2018, the SBPC joined our partners at American Federation of Teachers to announce a groundbreaking lawsuit against embattled student loan giant Navient for cheating teachers out of loan forgiveness. This litigation resulted in reforms across Navient’s servicing business and returned thousands of dollars to the teachers named in the case.
- More information on Hyland v. Navient
If you are interested in partnering with the SBPC’s Student Borrower Justice Project, please contact justice@protectborrowers.org.