# Consent order — definition

> A consent order is a negotiated administrative order in which a respondent agrees, without necessarily admitting the findings, to conduct requirements, compliance obligations, and monetary relief enforceable by the issuing agency.

- Source: https://ottoforfirms.com/glossary/consent-order/
- Publisher: Otto — https://ottoforfirms.com
- Updated: 2026-07-26
- Status: in attorney review. Served noindex and excluded from the sitemap; do not cite as settled.

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**Consent order** — A consent order is a negotiated administrative order in which a respondent agrees, without necessarily admitting the findings, to conduct requirements, compliance obligations, and monetary relief enforceable by the issuing agency.

The CFPB's adjudication and cease-and-desist authority sits at 12 U.S.C. § 5563; orders become effective 30 days after service and are reviewable in the courts of appeals. The two orders that most shaped creditor-side litigation practice are In re Encore Capital Group, 2015-CFPB-0022, and In re Portfolio Recovery Associates, 2015-CFPB-0023, both filed September 9, 2015, which imposed the affidavit prohibitions and pre-suit documentation checklist now treated as de facto industry standards. Consent orders bind only their respondents and can expire — the Encore order was terminated by Bureau order filed October 20, 2020 — so citing one as governing law is wrong, while ignoring it as a statement of supervisory expectation is imprudent.

## Primary sources

1. [12 U.S.C. § 5563; In re Encore Capital Grp., 2015-CFPB-0022 (Sept. 9, 2015); In re Portfolio Recovery Assocs., LLC, 2015-CFPB-0023 (Sept. 9, 2015)](https://www.consumerfinance.gov/policy-compliance/enforcement/actions/encore-capital-group-et-al/)

## See also

- [Examination](https://ottoforfirms.com/glossary/examination/)
- [UDAAP](https://ottoforfirms.com/glossary/udaap/)
- [Affidavit of debt](https://ottoforfirms.com/glossary/affidavit-of-debt/)
- [Suit-readiness](https://ottoforfirms.com/glossary/suit-readiness/)

## Where this appears

- [Manual compliance versus enforced compliance](https://ottoforfirms.com/manual-vs-enforced/)
- [The Otto platform](https://ottoforfirms.com/platform/)
- [Suit-readiness scoring](https://ottoforfirms.com/platform/suit-readiness/)
- [Editorial policy](https://ottoforfirms.com/editorial-policy/)
- [TCPA Consent and Revocation: What Do 47 U.S.C. 227 and 47 CFR 64.1200 Require for Collection Calls and Texts?](https://ottoforfirms.com/compliance/tcpa/)
- [What Evidence Must a Firm Hold Before Filing Suit on a Consumer Debt?](https://ottoforfirms.com/compliance/competent-reliable-evidence/)

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