A class action lawsuit [CNN report] was filed on Friday in a US District Court in Utah against Wells Fargo [corporate website] by customers alleging invasion of privacy, fraud, negligence, and breach of contract. Over the past five years, Wells Fargo has opened millions of fake bank and credit card accounts for customers in hopes of earning extra fees from the customers and artificially inflating sales figures. The customers are seeking damages for identity theft, anxiety, emotional distress, and legal fees. This is the first lawsuit against the banking giant for the fraudulent accounts, but it appears that further legal action may come as the US Department of Justice [official website] has already begun an investigation into the matter, and the US House Financial Services Committee [official website] announced [press release] on Friday it would be opening an investigation into the bank and would hold a hearing sometime in the upcoming weeks.

Over the past several years, Wells Fargo has been the subject of various administrative and judicial action. Earlier this month, the Consumer Protection agency fined [JURIST report] Wells Fargo $100 million for various violations, including the opening of fraudulent accounts. In 2014, a US District Court approved a $62.5 million settlement [JURIST report] between the bank and large institutional clients who lost money in a securities lending program. In 2013, a federal judge imposed a $203 million penalty [JURIST report] against the bank in a class-action suit alleging the bank misled customers and charged excessive overdraft fees.