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With three judges dissenting, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit upheld the CFPB's constitutionality in the PHH Corp. lawsuit against the bureau – reversing the court's panel opinion from 2016 regarding the constitutional question.

"While the court upheld the CFPB's structure as constitutional, NAFCU still supports changing the leadership of the bureau from a single director to a five-person commission," said NAFCU President and CEO Dan Berger. "NAFCU was the only financial services trade association to oppose subjecting credit unions to CFPB authority under the Dodd-Frank Act, and our view on that has not changed. We will continue to push for the bureau to exempt credit unions from current and future rulemakings."

Last February, the court granted the bureau's petition for a full court rehearing of the case, after the court's initial ruling in October 2016 found the bureau's structure unconstitutional.

In Wednesday's ruling, the court opinion states: "Today, we hold that federal law providing the Director of the CFPB with a five-year term in office, subject to removal by the President only for 'inefficiency, neglect of duty, or malfeasance in office,' is consistent with the President's constitutional authority."

NAFCU will continue to monitor the suit for its impact on credit unions.

In a win for the industry, the court on Wednesday did reinstate the October 2016 panel's decision regarding the Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act (RESPA) issue, which held that former CFPB Director Richard Cordray's interpretation of RESPA was incorrect so the resultant $109 million penalty levied on PHH was invalid.

In March, NAFCU and 12 other trade associations filed an amicus brief in support of PHH's underlying challenge to the CFPB's interpretation of the RESPA.

Currently, the CFPB is being run by President Trump-appointed Acting Director Mick Mulvaney. There is an ongoing case between Mulvaney and Leandra English, who Cordray appointed to lead the bureau prior to his departure.

English filed suit against Trump and Mulvaney asking a federal judge to declare her as acting director of the CFPB and block Mulvaney as the bureau's interim chief. English has thus far lost preliminary motions in this case, but filed her appellant brief this week – in the same court that ruled on the bureau's constitutionality case – doubling down on her defense as to why she is the rightful director of the bureau. Her brief can be read here.

NAFCU continues to follow developments in this case and has enlightened Mulvaney on a few areas where action can be taken to provide credit unions with much-needed regulatory relief.