NAACP resolves dispute with Wells Fargo over lending practices

Law.com:

The NAACP has scored its first victory in a series of discrimination lawsuits against major financial institutions, but that win didn't come in court. Rather, the organization dropped its lawsuit against Wells Fargo & Co. after the bank agreed to a series of changes intended to eliminate racial discrimination in lending and improve financial literacy, credit access and sustainable homeownership in minority communities.

"Wells Fargo is the first bank ever, to my knowledge, to adopt the NAACP's Banking Principles on Fairness and Lending," said attorney Brian Kabateck, who represents the NCAAP in its lawsuits against banks and other lenders. "This sends a message to the other banks that haven't been willing to sit down with the NCAAP and come up with solutions."

In July 2007, the NCAAP sued 15 banks (some of which are no longer in existence), alleging racial discrimination and violations of the Fair Housing and Equal Credit Opportunity acts. The suits alleged that the defendants steered black homeowners toward higher-cost loans. In March 2009, the NAACP filed two additional federal lawsuits against Wells Fargo and HSBC.