Rose et al. v. Bank of America

Case Updates

The court held that California's Unfair Competition Law provides a private right of action to enforce the provisions of the Truth in Savings Act.

The U.S. Chamber urged the California Supreme Court to affirm a ruling that California’s Unfair Competition Law (“UCL”) does not provide a private right of action to enforce alleged violations of the federal Truth in Savings Act (“TISA”). This appeal arises out of a class action brought under the UCL alleging the defendant bank violated TISA by failing to disclose a $3 fee for enclosing cancelled checks with banking statements. If the plaintiffs’ theory were adopted, plaintiffs could simply “plead around” express Congressional prohibitions against private rights of action, exposing businesses operating in California to vexatious litigation that Congress sought to foreclose. The Chamber's brief also explains that subjecting banks to overlapping and often contradictory private enforcement of TISA interferes with the complex regulatory scheme enacted by Congress and administered by the Federal Reserve Board.