| Biography | Carl Fornaris is Co-Chair of the firm's National Financial Institutions Group. He concentrates his practice on the representation of financial services firms in all aspects of their business. In particular, he represents U.S. and non-U.S. firms on finance and corporate matters, and provides supervisory and compliance counseling for institutions regulated by the Federal Reserve, OCC, FDIC, Florida Office of Financial Regulation and other state supervisory authorities. Carl actively advises banks, their holding companies, investment advisers, securities broker dealers, money services businesses and other financial institutions on capital-raising transactions, critical examination reports and enforcement proceedings, FIRREA issues, and compliance with the Dodd-Frank Act, FATCA, USA PATRIOT Act and OFAC regulations. He also regularly defends former officers and directors of failed banks in connection with administrative and civil claims. Carl is the current General Counsel of the Florida International Bankers' Association. Previously, he served as the Head of Legal and Compliance for the Latin America region of Barclays Bank PLC, with responsibility for managing legal and compliance matters throughout the Latin America region. He began his legal career in Washington, D.C. with the law firm of Arnold & Porter LLP. Areas of Concentration · Banking and financial services law, regulation and compliance · Commercial lending · Latin America cross-border transactions · Anti-money laundering and OFAC compliance Significant Representations · Counseled for domestic and non-U.S. banks, bank holding companies, financial holding companies, savings associations, Edge corporations, broker dealers, trust companies, mortgage companies, and money services businesses in a wide range of corporate transactions and regulatory/compliance matters. Experienced in the formation and licensing of these entities, as well as their expansion, merger, acquisition and divestment before the OCC, Federal Reserve, FDIC, OTS, and state supervisory authorities, including the Florida Office of Financial Regulation and New York State Banking Department. · Represented numerous banks (and their officers and directors) in connection with critical examination reports and/or threatened enforcement actions relating to capital, asset quality, management, compliance and other issues, including Dodd-Frank and FIRREA. · Advised banks, broker dealers, money services, businesses and other financial institutions in respect to OFAC compliance and the USA PATRIOT Act amendments to the Bank Secrecy Act generally and the implementation by the United States Department of the Treasury of the PATRIOT Act's enhanced due diligence, information sharing, correspondent bank certification, customer identification program, and anti-money laundering program provisions in particular. · Experienced in other Federal banking laws and regulations, including the Dodd-Frank Act, Gramm Leach Bliley Act, Bank Holding Company Act and Reg Y, National Bank Act, Federal Reserve Act, Federal Deposit Insurance Act (including the FIRREA and FDICIA amendments thereto), International Banking Act, Foreign Bank Supervision Enhancement Act and Reg K. · Represented financial institutions and borrowers in domestic and Latin America financing transactions of all types, including secured and unsecured bilateral and syndicated credit facilities, with an emphasis on project financings, asset-based loans, acquisition financings, bridge loans and letter of credit-backed financings. Professional & Community Involvement · General Counsel, Florida International Bankers Association · Member, American Bar Association · Director, South Florida Banking Institute (2007-2010) · Team Captain, American Diabetes Association, South Florida Tour de Cure (2009-2011) Awards & Recognition · Listed, "South Florida's Top Lawyers," South Florida Legal Guide (2011 and 2012) · Team Member, Chambers and Partners, "Corporate & Finance - Law Firm of the Year (Florida-Based)," Chambers Latin America Awards (2010 and 2011) · Listed, "Chambers Global," Chambers and Partners (2009 and 2011) · Member, team ranked as the No.1 corporate law firm in Miami, as selected by corporate directors in the annual "Legal Industry Research Study" by Corporate Board Member magazine and FTI Consulting Inc. (2002-2009, 2010; 2010 study did not include rankings by city.) · Team Member, Chambers and Partners for "Focus on Latin America - Law Firm of the Year (Florida-Based)," Chambers Latin America Inaugural Awards for Excellence (2009) · Selected, Chambers and Partners Latin America, Corporate M&A (2009) · Listed, The Best Lawyers in America® (2008-2012) · Selected, Super Lawyers magazine (2007-2011) · Listed, Who's Who Legal Florida (2008) · Listed, "Legal Elite," Florida Trend magazine (2006-2008) · Ranked, Banking & Finance, Chambers and Partners USA Guide, an annual listing of the leading business lawyers and law firms in the world (2005-2011) · Awarded, "Pro Bono Service Award," Dade County Bar Association (2005) Articles, Publications, & Lectures Articles · Co-Author, "The Millennium Bug: The Legal Liabilities Looming in the Year 2000," Noticias, Spring 1998 · Co-Author, "USA PATRIOT Act--Final and Proposed Customer Due Diligence Regulations Applicable to Banks, Broker Dealers, Futures Commission Merchants and Mutual Funds," Electronic Banking Law and Commerce Report, March 2006 Books · Quoted, The Fundamentals of Hedge Fund Management by Daniel A. Strachman, p. 48, 2007 · Update Author, Federal Bank Holding Company Law 11th ed., 1995 Lectures · Panelist, FATCA Seminar, FEBRABAN - Federaçño Brasileira de Bancos, Sño Paulo, Brazil, November 9, 2011 · Panelist, FATCA Compliance, Citibank Financial Institutions Forum, Miami, FL, June 10, 2011 · Moderator, 11th Annual FIBA AML Compliance Conference, Miami, FL, February 25, 2011 · Moderator, 10th Annual FIBA AML Compliance Conference, Miami, FL, February 19, 2010 · Moderator, "Bank CEO Panel," South Florida Banking Institute, Miami, FL, May 20, 2009 · Panelist, 7th Annual Offshore Alert Financial Due Diligence Conference, Miami Beach, FL, April 27, 2009 · Panelist, 9th Annual FIBA AML Compliance Conference, Miami, FL, February 19, 2009 · Moderator, "Examination Issues from the Bank's Perspective," Institute for International Bankers' U.S. Regulatory and Compliance Orientation, New York, NY, July 17, 2008 · Panelist, "New Legislative and Regulatory Initiatives," Financial Markets Association's 17th Annual Securities Compliance Seminar, Fort Lauderdale, FL, April 30, 2008 · Moderator, "Anti-Money Laundering," FMA's Annual Securities Compliance Seminar, Fort Lauderdale, FL, April 30, 2008 · Panelist, "Money Laundering in Brazil," Brazilian-American Chamber of Commerce of Florida, Miami, FL, April 18, 2008 · Panelist, "M & A Update," National Association of Corporate Directors Bank Director Workshop, Fort Lauderdale, FL, April 8, 2008 · Moderator, "A Regulatory Panel," South Florida Banking Institute, Miami, FL, May 23, 2007 · Panelist, The First Conference of the United States - Latin America Private Sector Dialogue on AML/CFT, Bogota, Colombia, April 2007 · Lecturer, "Coping with Regulatory & Compliance Issues," National Association of Corporate Directors Bank Director Workshop, Fort Lauderdale, FL, March 29, 2007 · Lecturer, "Financial Institution Business Continuity/Disaster Recovery: Legal And Compliance Primer," Terremark Worldwide, Inc. Conference, Miami, FL, November 2005 · Lecturer, "The New U.S. Bank Secrecy Act Anti-Money Laundering Examination Manual: What You Need To Know Now," Offshore Alert Annual Due Diligence Conference, Miami, FL, November 2005 · Lecturer, "The Law: Risk and Liability," Offshore Alert's 3rd Annual Financial Due Diligence Conference, Coral Gables, FL, October 2004 · Lecturer, "New Threat of Russian Mob's Money Laundering," ACAMS, January 15, 2004 · Lecturer, "Offshore Banking" 3rd Annual Bear Stearns Central American/Caribbean Conference, Key Biscayne, FL, September 2003 · Lecturer, USA PATRIOT Act Update, International Bank Operations Association, Miami, FL, March 2003 Miscellaneous · Quoted, "Tale of the Texas Ratio: Two Banks that Failed," Daily Business Review, July 2010 · Guest Headnote, "FDIC Poised To Sue Former Directors and Officers of Failed Banks," The Banking Law Journal at 97, February 2010 · Quoted, "USA PATRIOT Act: SEC Brings First-Ever Enforcement Action Against Broker-Dealer for Noncompliance," Derivatives Financial Products Report, November 2006 · Quoted, "Revised BSA Examiners Manual Less Vague, Adds Details on Risk, Insurance," Moneylaundering.com, July 28, 2006 · Quoted, "New Rules May Cost Banks Some Business," South Florida Business Journal, January 3, 2006 · Quoted, "Feeling the Squeeze: Correspondent Banking," Latin Finance, May 2005 · Quoted, "Bankers Are Learning To Live With PATRIOT Act Headaches," Miami Today, March 17, 2005 · Quoted, "Foreign Bankers Rediscover South Florida," Miami Daily Business Review, February 15, 2005 · Quoted, Congressional Quarterly, March 2, 2004 · Quoted, Latin American Advisor, January 2004 · Interviewed, "All Things Considered," National Public Radio, December 2003 · Quoted, Kiplinger's Personal Finance, September 2003 · Quoted, "Treasury Proposes Tougher Money-Laundering Rules," Corporate Legal Times, July 2003 · Quoted, "Banks Dig In Along the War's Front Line in a High Stakes Bid To Stop Money Laundering," Bank Technology News, March 2003 · Quoted, Latin America Advisor, November 25, 2002 · Quoted, "The Very Long Arm of US Law," Latin Finance, June 2002 · Quoted, "How Will New Financial Privacy Laws Impact Your Ancillary Services?" Fee Income Growth Strategies, June 2000 · Quoted, "Observations on Financial Modernization Law," Community Bank President, March 1, 2000 (Also at Washington, D.C. Office) |