By Chris Bruce

A federal judge June 2 blocked Ocwen Financial Corp.’s bid to test the constitutionality of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau in the early stage of a closely watched enforcement case ( Cons. Fin. Protection Bureau v. Ocwen Fin. Corp. , S.D. Fla., 17-cv-80495, 6/2/17 ).

The ruling by Judge Kenneth Marra of the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida allows the CFPB to proceed unimpeded with its April lawsuit alleging that Ocwen violated consumer protection laws in servicing loans of distressed borrowers.

Ocwen sought an early case conference on the constitutional question, saying it should be settled before allowing the CFPB to go further. Marra disagreed, saying that would depart from settled procedural rules and might delay the case. He said Ocwen may still make its constitutional…