Class Action Litigation
Credit Reporting and Collection Practices Litigation
Commercial-Lender Liability Defense
Commercial-Lending Fraud Protection and Extraordinary Remedies
Complex Residential Foreclosure Litigation
Government Enforcement & Internal Investigation Assistance
Industry Experience
Industry Legislative and Public Assistance
Lending Discrimination Claims
Mortgage Origination and Servicing Litigation
Repurchase Issues
Short-Term Loan Products

For more than 80 years, Stradley Ronon has represented financial institutions in their business dealings. Today, lawyers in our Mortgage and Lending Litigation Group and our related practice groups routinely handle consumer and commercial lending litigation matters. Some of our experience includes:

Residential Mortgage Origination and Servicing Litigation
We regularly handle litigation arising from disclosures in connection with the origination or servicing of residential mortgages, including consumer credit products including mortgage, credit card, auto, secured credit and other unsecured credit, advances or similar loan products, involving origination, servicing, reporting and collection matters, including those relating to the Truth-in-Lending Act (TILA) and Regulation Z, Home Ownership and Equity Protection Act of 1994 (HOEPA), Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act (RESPA) and Regulation X, state credit services acts, state mortgage broker laws, state home improvement finance acts, the Fair Credit Extension and Uniformity Act (FCEUA), state unfair trade practices and consumer protection laws (UDAP), and state consumer fraud statutes.

Consumer Credit Reporting and Collection Practices Litigation
Our attorneys have handled litigation involving the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) and the federal Fair Debt Collection Practices Act and states’ versions of it and related claims, as well as the Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA) and related state collection activity laws. Likewise, we handle claims arising from mortgage satisfactions and their corresponding statutory compliance.

Complex Consumer and Commercial Foreclosure Litigation
Stradley Ronon’s attorneys get involved in matters involving complex foreclosure proceedings and difficult ejectments and have dealt with applicable state fair foreclosure laws. We have successfully resolved some of the more intractable problems in connection with foreclosures and resultant ejectments. We are also involved in issues and disputes concerning property title, lien priority and title insurance matters.

Lending Discrimination Claims
Our attorneys appear before the federal and state commissions and courts concerned with claims of lending discrimination based on race and other protected classes, including those arising from state and federal Fair Housing Acts, and have dealt with discrimination claims arising from both consumer and commercial loans. We also defend claims brought under the Equal Credit Opportunity Act (ECOA) and Regulation B arising from denials of credit, such as a dismissal in Pettineo v. Harleysville National Bank and Trust Company in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania. We have successfully defended numerous claims of alleged “predatory lending” discrimination and “reverse redlining” before the Pennsylvania Human Relations Commission.

Class Action Litigation
Our attorneys have litigated class action disputes in many contexts of federal and state class courts, including matters involving lending practices. Many of our class action engagements have also involved federal multidistrict litigation. For example, we defended a major servicer in connection with class action allegations in federal court alleging mortgage-foreclosure violations, and defended in state court claims arising from loans to municipalities. Likewise, we defended financial institutions in a class action involving mortgage loans purchased to finance home repairs by allegedly unscrupulous home contractors. Similarly, we obtained a resolution of a class action dispute involving the assessment of late fees on defaulting promissory notes after acceleration in O’Neill v. Beneficial Mut. Savings Bank in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania.

Short-Term Loan Products
Our attorneys are familiar with various short-term loan products, including products commonly referred to as “payday lending,” tax-refund advances and other similar products, and understand their unique characteristics and issues. We have handled matters in various courts involving such unique products.

Repurchase Issues
Stradley Ronon attorneys are well-equipped to represent clients with issues related to all aspects of the repurchase process, including any litigation that may ensue. Many institutions have invested in residential mortgage backed securities (RMBS) or other structured products that have incurred losses as a result of higher default rates in this type of investment. Alternatively, institutions may have sold mortgage or other loans to other parties either within or outside of a securitization structure. In either case, Stradley Ronon attorneys are in a position to assist in efficiently analyzing the potential remedies and defenses available with respect to contractual claims that may arise from these transactions in order to preserve or enhance the bank’s finances. Indeed, Stradley Ronon’s Structured Finance/Securitization Practice Group is experienced with the numerous complex issues associated with planning and executing sophisticated structured finance transactions, including ABS, RMBS, CBOs, CLOs, CDOs, and synthetic and structured derivatives.

Commercial-Lending Fraud Protection and Extraordinary Remedies
Stradley Ronon has the depth and resources to handle any dispute involving commercial finance-related issues, regardless of size or complexity. We have handled various litigation matters arising out of troubled loans, enforcement of personal property and real estate liens, intercreditor disputes, and pursuit of extraordinary remedies such as temporary restraining orders and other protections in the context of fraud and related matters. For example, we represented a mortgagee against the mortgagors’ depositary bank to recover for conversion by accepting a check and crediting mortgagors’ account without endorsement by mortgagee in Sovereign Bank v. United National Bank in the Superior Court of New Jersey. On a moment’s notice, we have obtained restraining orders to preserve collateral and prevent dissipation of assets. Our lawyers understand the importance of fast action and how to secure the relief that lenders need to protect themselves.

Commercial-Lender Liability Defense
One area of long-standing expertise is our commercial lender-liability defense practice. Matters in this area have arisen in connection with alleged fraudulent conveyances, alleged wrongful denial of credit, environmental exposures, asset recovery and foreclosures, and allegations of discrimination in lending. In addition, we have handled various claims falling under the general category of “lender liability,” including claims for fraud in the inducement, breach of fiduciary duty, tortious interference with contractual relations, conversion, breach of contract, and negligent misrepresentation. Our attorneys have been involved in many different theories against lenders, including the successful defense through judgment and appeal of claims of improper underwriting criteria for a commercial loan, and claims of bad-faith negotiations during loan workouts.

Government Enforcement & Internal Investigation Assistance
Lawyers in Stradley Ronon’s Washington, D.C. office have extensive experience in conducting internal investigations in the financial services industry. We assist clients with inquiries, investigations and enforcement actions by both federal and state regulatory bodies, including the SEC, DOJ, state Attorneys General, local district attorneys offices, and federal and state banking and securities regulators among others. We regularly conduct internal investigations in advance of or in connection with government action or private lawsuits. We recently led, for example, an independent investigation into alleged financial improprieties at a subsidiary of a NASDAQ-listed financial services firm.

Industry Legislative and Public Assistance
We are aware of the pressures that lenders face in the public realm arising from their businesses. In addition to appearing in court, we also have the resources to appear before legislative and regulatory bodies throughout Pennsylvania, New Jersey and Delaware as well as in Washington, D.C. Our Government and Public Affairs Practice Group provides strategic advice in the areas of legislative and executive branch lobbying, business development, procurement, issues management and business-to-government outreach. We handle a variety of government and public affairs efforts, including regulatory actions, crisis management, and public-sector financing, at all levels of government, and group members have worked on complex financial legislative initiatives such as those against predatory lending. In today’s environment, the critical cross-disciplinary service that we provide can be of significant value.

Other Industry Experience
In addition to our Mortgage and Lending Litigation Group’s experience, Stradley Ronon provides specific and broad assistance to the commercial and consumer financial services industry. Our Banking Practice Group attorneys are equipped to handle any issue in the course of a bank or other financial service provider’s organization and operation as a private or public company, whether licensed or chartered under federal or state law. Our nationally recognized Structured Finance Practice Group includes lawyers from diverse disciplines with sophisticated capabilities in securities law, corporate law, finance, tax matters, ERISA and investment company regulation. Our Finance and Restructuring Practice Group is dedicated to representing lenders in all matters relating to commercial finance transactions, loan documentation, restructurings, workouts and bankruptcy, and the enforcement of creditors’ rights and remedies.