Financial companies can no longer make you sign away your legal rights or free speech

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau is proposing to ban certain clauses in financial contracts. This means banks and lenders cannot make customers give up their legal rights or their ability to speak freely.

Financial companies have long included clauses in contracts that stripped consumers of their legal protections. This proposal means consumers will retain their full legal rights when dealing with banks, lenders, and other financial service providers. It also stops companies from silencing customers who complain.