Commonwealth Servicing Group, LLC v. Dept. of Banking

Summary

The court affirmed the denial of the Department of Banking’s motion to dismiss, holding that the plaintiffs were not required to exhaust administrative remedies before seeking declaratory and injunctive relief concerning the Department’s statutory authority to regulate them. Because resolving the attorney-practice presumption required expertise concerning the practice of law rather than debt-negotiation regulation, the issue could be presented directly to the trial court. The Department may develop and present additional factual evidence in the trial court before a ruling on the merits.