Eversheds Sutherland combines regulatory knowledge, industry familiarity and courtroom skill to provide seamless consumer financial services representation.
Today many consumer financial services companies find themselves the target of unprecedented regulatory action and legislative attention, as well as individual and class actions. The Dodd-Frank Act and newly formed Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) transformed the regulatory landscape and presents the industry with new challenges.
Defending consumer financial services litigation requires not only mastery of the substantive law—with its interrelated statutes and regulatory regimes—but also a command of subjects including class action defense, removal, arbitration and appealability. Eversheds Sutherland’s team has deep and extensive experience in these areas. Our renowned litigation practice has extensive experience in consumer financial services law; many of the cases we handle are complex class actions and bet the company litigation. We litigate, among other things, fair lending claims, enforcement of consumer arbitration provisions and related class action waivers, truth-in-lending compliance, unfair trade practices and investigations/examinations by the CFPB and other governmental entities.
Our litigators have a national reputation for successful courtroom outcomes and out-of-court resolutions. We also have extensive experience arbitrating matters before all major arbitration service providers. Nearly one-quarter of the firm’s attorneys are litigators and have appeared in state and federal courtrooms around the country, including the U.S. Supreme Court. In the past decade we have defended consumer financial services class actions and other financial services related cases in state and federal courts across the country.
Why Eversheds Sutherland
Ahead of trends. We closely monitor new developments that could impact consumer finance companies such as actions by the CFPB and evolving state and federal regulatory priorities, working proactively without clients to avoid potential lawsuits.
Leadership. Our consumer financial services litigation attorneys frequently lecture on topics involving consumer finance litigation and related areas. Eversheds Sutherland (US) Partner B. Knox Dobbins and Special Counsel Jason D. Stone recently published “The Consumer Financial Protection Act of 2010 - An Annotated Guide.” Additionally, we maintain CFPAguide.com to provide updates to our clients on issues as they develop in the wake of the Consumer Financial Protection Act of 2010.
Litigators with institutional memory. Consumer financial services litigation requires knowledge of how the business works and how it is and has been regulated. Eversheds Sutherland’s litigators bring that institutional memory to new problems.
Crisis management. We are accustomed to high profile litigation and working with the client’s public relations and media experts when clients are targeted for criticism in connection with litigation or enforcement actions. For more information on our crisis management experience visit sutherlandcrisismanagement.com.
Nuts and Bolts
Our attorneys cover the full range of matters involving consumer financial services litigation, including:
- Automobile lending and leasing
- Enforcing consumer arbitration provisions and class action waivers
- Insurance and ancillary products sold in connection with consumer loans
- Fair lending, including the Equal Credit Opportunity Act
- Service Members Civil Relief Act
- Truth-in-lending compliance
- State unfair trade practice laws
- Credit Repair Organizations Act
- Fair Debt Collection Practices Act
- Fair Credit Reporting Act
- So-called predatory or subprime lending
- Bankruptcy discharge and other class actions
- State attorney general enforcement actions
- Remedies under the Uniform Commercial Code and state retail finance statutes
- Consumer Financial Protection Bureau
Take Action
When consumer financial services companies are threatened with lawsuits, regulatory actions or investigations, they can turn to the experienced team at Eversheds Sutherland to set a path toward resolution.
