NTEU v. Vought

Established by Congress in response to the 2008 financial crisis, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) is tasked with overseeing financial institutions and protecting consumers from predatory practices. Since its inception, the agency has recovered billions of dollars for American citizens and helped create a fairer, more transparent financial marketplace. Congress exercised its constitutional authority to regulate commerce when it created the CFPB, ensuring that it operates independently to fulfill its mandate.

In defiance of Congress’s role in our constitutional system and the separation of powers, President Trump declared his intent to “totally eliminate” the CFPB, and Acting Director Russell Vought and the agency are acting quickly to carry out that direction. Their actions have caused mass confusion and imposed significant and irreparable harm on consumers across the country.

Co-counseling with Gupta Wessler LLP and the National Treasury Employees Union (NTEU), we represent NTEU, National Consumer Law Center, National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP), Virginia Poverty Law Center, CFPB Employee Association, and Pastor Eva Steege, in a lawsuit challenging the unlawful dismantling of the CFPB. We then filed a motion for a temporarily restraining order, asking the judge to block defendants from dismantling the agency. The parties then agreed to temporary relief, and the judge entered an agreed order barring the defendants from firing employees or sending out reductions in force notices, from destroying CFPB data or records, and from defunding the agency while the case proceeds. The Court also converted the plaintiffs’ motion to a preliminary injunction motion and set a hearing for March 3, 2025.