Financial Services Enforcement and Litigation
Practice Leaders: Richard P. Eckman, Timothy R. McTaggart, Ivan B. Knauer, and Travis P. Nelson
Pepper Hamilton’s Financial Services Enforcement & Litigation Group represents banks, insurance companies, mortgage lenders and servicers, investment advisors, and other lenders and consumer and commercial financial services companies in the full range of regulatory, enforcement and litigation matters.
In our enforcement practice, we counsel and defend institutions in connection with the negotiation of supervisory agreements, cease-and-desist orders, prohibition actions and civil money penalties pertaining to institutions, their directors, officers, major shareholders and third-party service providers. We have assisted clients with high-profile matters, including subprime lending, nontraditional banking products, BSA/anti-money laundering compliance, safety and soundness examinations, change-in-control issues, alleged insider misconduct, and alleged violations of federal and state unfair or deceptive acts or practices (UDAP) laws. Our enforcement attorneys, many of whom have substantial experience as federal and state prosecutors and regulators, have litigated enforcement actions involving federal and state regulators in courts across the country, and before agency administrative law judges.
As former regulators, our enforcement attorneys also help institutions address ongoing compliance concerns, regulatory examinations, product development, regulatory filing requirements, and in conducting internal investigations, so as to avoid problems before they trigger an enforcement action.
Our litigators have represented financial services companies in a wide variety of matters, including defense of class actions and individual actions alleging violations of federal and states laws, such as the Equal Credit Opportunity Act, Truth-in-Lending Act, Fair Credit Reporting Act, state unfair trade practices acts and usury laws, as well as common law claims alleging lender liability, fraud, breach of contract, defamation, negligence and violations of the Uniform Commercial Code. We are familiar with the panoply of issues that arise in litigation, such as e-discovery, spoliation, data preservation, the Class Action Fairness Act, federal court removal, and arbitration clause enforcement. We also represent financial services companies in commercial disputes with other companies. All of our litigation partners have extensive first-chair trial experience and are as comfortable making a closing argument to a jury as briefing class certification.
In the current climate, lawmakers are under tremendous pressure to proactively address the financial crisis. With the massive proposals that have been and will continue to be made, Congress will conduct high-profile investigations and hearings. For those that are called to testify, a Congressional investigation may provide an opportunity to influence reforms;, however, it can also pose substantial personal and business risks. These highly politicized and often fact-intensive investigations can place financial services professionals and their companies under tremendous public scrutiny. Pepper’s litigation, white collar defense and financial services professionals, including several former Congressional staff members, a former counsel to the U.S. Senate Banking Committee, and several former Assistant U.S. Attorneys, provide our clients with the strategies and preparation to navigate the potential pitfalls of dealing with Congressional investigations.
In today’s enforcement environment, companies often face simultaneous scrutiny from multiple legislative, regulatory, and law enforcement agencies, which – sometimes regardless of the outcome of the investigation – are often followed by civil litigation. Pepper is well-equipped to counsel and defend clients in these parallel proceedings.
Representative Matters
- representing a leading automobile finance company in class action litigation alleging racial discrimination
- representing a national bank in class action lawsuits involving gift card disclosures and fees
- representing a group of private equity investors in an enforcement action regarding a financial services holding company change in control proceeding
- representing a former bank executive in an enforcement action before the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency regarding safety and soundness issues
- representing a national bank in litigation alleging unlawful credit card disclosures
- representing a national bank in an enforcement action involving legal lending limit violations
- representing a state-chartered bank in enforcement actions brought by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation and state regulators regarding alleged violations of the Federal Trade Commission Act and state UDAP laws
- representing agents for state-chartered banks in enforcement actions brought by state regulators based on the agents’ marketing activities and state licensure requirements
- representing federal and state-chartered banks in class action lawsuits alleging violation of state UDAP laws
- representing parties before the Office of Foreign Assets Control in an enforcement action involving the Iranian Transactions Regulations.
