Joe Adler

Financial services companies and groups are increasingly willing to take the regulatory regime to court in an effort to fight back — and so far, they appear to be succeeding.

Nearly 40 current and former congressional Democrats — including the namesakes of the Dodd-Frank Act — challenged the notion that Congress may not dictate the organization of federal agencies.

The Trump administration was set to release an executive order Friday calling for a review of the Dodd-Frank Act, but the immediate questions about the order focused on what authority the White House has to enact real change.

The agency may finally be reaching resolution on whether Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac will allow principal reductions, two years into Director Mel Watt's tenure as agency director and nearly a decade after the mortgage bubble burst.

Comptroller of the Currency Thomas Curry said banks could consider loan-to-value ratios above 90% to help revitalize areas hurt by the housing crisis.

Banks that sold faulty mortgage-backed securities right before the crisis have suffered a string of legal defeats over the timing of government lawsuits, but some experts believe the industry may still have a shot in the Supreme Court.

Despite some silver lining, analysts say the Supreme Court decision upholding "disparate impact" in fair-lending disputes will only embolden activists and regulators to bring more cases.

In a huge win for housing advocates and a setback for the banking industry, the Supreme Court on Thursday upheld the use of "disparate impact" in a Texas case alleging housing-related discrimination.