2015 Consumer Rights Litigation Conference Featured Speakers Richard Alembik Richard S. Alembik is the Principal at the Law Offices of Richard S. Alembik, PC, in Decatur, Georgia. Since 1991 he has focused his practice on real-estate-related and commercial litigation. Alembik has been recognized as a leading authority on foreclosure defense, and an advocate for victims of wrongful foreclosure. Listed in SuperLawyers since 2012 (since 2006 as a Rising Star ), Alembik has won multi-million dollar jury verdicts and has litigated, arbitrated, and mediated hundreds of legal disputes to successful resolution. He has first-chaired more than 60 jury trials and arbitration proceedings in state and federal courts, and arbitration forums. Alembik earned his J.D. from the University of Georgia School of Law, where he was elected to the position of Executive Editor of the Georgia Journal of International and Comparative Law. He regularly lectures on various legal topics (generally involving real-estate-related litigation) at continuing legal education seminars, and to other non-legal organizations. He has made TV appearances as a legal commentator and provided consultation on state legislation to Georgia legislators and study groups. Alembik is admitted to practice before all trial and appellate courts of the State of Georgia, the U.S. Supreme Court, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Judicial Circuit, and all three U.S. District Courts in Georgia. He is an active member of the National Association of Consumer Advocates, Georgia Trial Lawyers Association, DeKalb County Bar Association, Lawyers Club of Atlanta, and the Real Estate Section of the State Bar of Georgia. Outside of work, Alembik enjoys raising his two daughters, masters swimming competition, and studying military history. Justin Baxter Justin Baxter is an AV rated trial lawyer with Baxter & Baxter, LLP, in Portland, Oregon. His national practice focuses on credit reporting and unlawful debt collection cases. In 2007, he obtained a $200,000 verdict against Equifax under the Fair Credit Reporting Act. In 2010, he obtained a $95,000 verdict against TRS Home Furnishings under the Oregon Unlawful Debt Collection Practices Act, and a $100,000 verdict against a debt buyer and collection law firm under the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act. In 2013, he obtained a verdict against Equifax for $18.5 million. Paul Bland F. Paul Bland, Jr. is Executive Director of Public Justice, overseeing its docket of consumer, environmental and civil rights cases. He has argued or co-argued and won more than 25 reported decisions from federal and state courts across the nation, including cases in six of the federal Circuit Courts of Appeal and at least one victory in nine different state high courts. He has been counsel in cases which have obtained injunctive or cash relief of more than $1 billion for consumers. He was named the Vern Countryman Award winner in 2006 by the National Consumer Law Center, which honors the accomplishments of an exceptional consumer attorney who, through the practice of consumer law, has contributed significantly to the well-being of vulnerable consumers. In 2013, he received the Maryland Consumer Rights Coalition s Legal Champion award. In 2010, he received the Maryland Legal Aid Bureau s Champion of Justice Award. In the late 1980s, he was Chief Nominations Counsel to the U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee. He graduated from Harvard Law School in 1986, and Georgetown University in 1983.
Daniel Blinn Daniel Blinn is the Managing Attorney of Consumer Law Group, located in Rocky Hill, CT. He handles both individual claims and class actions, and most of his cases involve auto dealer fraud and warranty claims, debt collection abuse, and unfair business practice claims. Dan is a former chair of the CT Bar Association s Consumer Law Section, and he is currently a member of the Board of Directors of the National Association of Consumer Advocates. He also serves as NACA s treasurer and is currently the chair of its Connecticut chapter. Dan regularly blogs regarding auto dealer fraud at www.gamesdealersplay.com. In addition to his legal practice, Dan is active in secular and Humanist organizations and practices as a Humanist Celebrant. Bernard Brown Bernard Brown studied as an undergraduate at St. John s College in Annapolis, Maryland (a Great Books school), received his B.A. from the University of Toronto (in Toronto, Ontario), his law degree from the University of Kansas, and has been in private practice in Kansas City since 1980. Since 1983 his practice has focused on consumer fraud cases, particularly relating to car sales and finance practices. His cases have resulted in many notable jury verdicts and settlements, and in a sizable number of published court decisions of significance in consumer law. He has worked regularly with the National Consumer Law Center for many years, as well as with many other national consumer advocacy groups. He has written or contributed to many items relating to consumer law, and has served as an adjunct law school professor teaching consumer protection law. Mr. Brown is a founding member of the National Association of Consumer Advocates ( NACA ), was one of its two original Co-chairs, has twice served on the NACA board, and currently serves as chair of its Ethics Committee. He often is consulted by members of local and national media regarding car industry consumer issues, and has appeared in stories on 60 Minutes and ABC s 20/20. He currently serves on a Department of Justice Advisory Board that is dedicated to building the National Motor Vehicle Title Information System ( NMVTIS, a/k/a vehiclehistory.gov ). In 2008 he received the Countryman award from the National Consumer Law Center. Carolyn Carter Carolyn Carter is the Director of Advocacy at NCLC who has specialized in consumer law issues for over 30 years. From 1974 to 1986 she worked for the Legal Aid Society of Cleveland, first as a staff attorney and later as law reform director. From 1986 to 1999 she was co-director of a legal services program in Pennsylvania. She was the 1992 recipient of NCLC s Vern Countryman Award. She is admitted to the Pennsylvania bar. From 2005 to 2007 she was a member of the Federal Reserve Board's Consumer Advisory Council. She is a graduate of Brown University and Yale Law School. She is co-author of NCLC's Truth in Lending, Unfair and Deceptive Acts and Practices,Collection Actions and Consumer Warranty Law and is a contributor to a number of other NCLC treatises.
Hyung S. Choi Hyung S. Choi is a partner of Choi & Fabian, PLC, with offices in Chandler and Flagstaff, Arizona. Mr. Choi has handled hundreds of successful consumer protection cases including class action lawsuits against car dealers and finance companies. Mr. Choi s efforts have resulted in the following groundbreaking published decisions favoring consumers: Howell v. Midway Infiniti., 362 F.Supp.2d 1158 (Ariz. 2005) (forgery and FCRA inaccuracy claims); Uhlig v. Berge Ford, 257 F.Supp.2d 1228 (Ariz, 2003) (FCRA impermissible access claim); Garden Lakes Community Association v. Madigan, 204 Ariz. 238, 62 P.2d 983 (App. 2003) (HOA residents rights to install solar panels); and Winkler v. DTE, Inc., 205 F.R.D. 235 (Ariz. 2001) (odometer rollback class action against lender based on the FTC Anti-Holder Rule). Mr. Choi received his J.D., cum laude, from the Arizona State University College of Law in 1993. Mr. Choi immigrated to the United States in 1978 at the age of fourteen. As an immigrant who benefitted immensely from the opportunities and freedom to achieve provided by this great country, Mr. Choi strongly believes in social justice and fights to promote it. Alys Cohen Alys Cohen is a staff attorney at the National Consumer Law Center s Washington office, where she advocates before Congress and federal regulatory agencies on predatory lending and sustainable homeownership issues. Ms. Cohen also trains and consults with attorneys and other advocates nationwide on mortgage lending matters. She is a co-author of Stop Predatory Lending, and a contributing author to the Center s Cost of Credit, Credit Discrimination and Truth in Lending treatises. Prior to joining the NCLC staff, Ms. Cohen served as an attorney in the Federal Trade Commission s Bureau of Consumer Protection, Division of Financial Practices, where she focused on predatory lending and discrimination matters. Ms. Cohen is a graduate of the University of Pennsylvania Law School. Thomas A. Cox Thomas A. Cox joined National Consumer Law Center as Of Counsel in 2013 and focuses on foreclosure and mortgage issues. Tom is credited with exposing the national foreclosure "robosigning" mortgage lenders' scandal and has more than 30 years of private practice experience in residential and commercial loan documentation and litigation matters. Tom also has significant experience training other attorneys in residential foreclosure defense and litigation practices, and acted as a consultant to Maine's Pine Tree Legal Assistance in managing the litigation strategies of its foreclosure prevention program. He has testified before the U.S. House Judiciary Committee and is the recipient of numerous awards. Tom received his J.D. from the Boston University School of Law. Joanna K. Darcus Joanna K. Darcus is a Staff Attorney in the Homeownership and Consumer Rights Unit at Community Legal Services, Inc. of Philadelphia (CLS). She joined CLS as an Independence Foundation Fellow. Through her fellowship, Joanna implemented an economic justice project designed to protect consumers from predatory debt collection practices. Joanna represents lowincome consumers who have been sued by debt collectors or who are struggling to repay their student loans. She also seeks to increase the availability of self-help materials and counsel for consumers, and pursues policy reform. Joanna is a graduate of Williams College and Duke University School of Law.
Charles Delbaum Charles Delbaum is a staff attorney focusing on litigating class actions around the country. He is also co-author and editor of NCLC's Consumer Class Actions manual, joint coordinator of the annual NCLC National Consumer Class Action Symposium, a contributing author to the litigation chapters of NCLC's Fair Debt Collections, Fair Credit Reporting and Credit Discrimination manuals, and a frequent presenter at NCLC and other conferences. Immediately prior to joining NCLC in 2005, Charles was the Director of Litigation and Advocacy at New Orleans Legal Assistance for thirteen years. In 2000, he was the recipient of the Louisiana State Bar Association Pro Bono Publico Career Service Award. Prior to his work in New Orleans, Charles had been a federal law clerk in Pennsylvania, a staff attorney in the law reform division of the Cleveland Legal Aid Society, and a founding partner of Stege, Delbaum and Hickman, a firm of former Legal Aid attorneys in Cleveland, Ohio. In the latter two positions, he specialized in nursing home patient rights litigation. He is a 1971 graduate of Harvard Law School and a 1968 graduate, cum laude, of Amherst College. Robert W. Doggett Robert W. Doggett is General Counsel at Texas Rio Grande Legal Aid (TRLA). Robert has been with TRLA since 2001 and prior to that he worked for two other legal aid organizations in Dallas, Texas. Although he has represented clients across many areas, his primary focus has been housing work since becoming a lawyer in 1990. Robert is a native Texan but was forced by prenuptial agreement to move to Austin. He is married to a criminal defense attorney (but she prosecutes at home and their two daughters are alleged to be following in their mother's footsteps). E. Michelle Drake E. Michelle Drake is a partner at Nichols Kaster, PLLP in Minneapolis. Ms. Drake has served as lead class counsel in over fifty consumer and employment class actions and has achieved over $150 million in recoveries for her clients. Michelle serves on the Board of the National Association of Consumer Advocates, is a member of the Partner s Council of the National Consumer Law Center, and is as an At-Large Council Member for the Consumer Litigation Section for the Minnesota State Bar Association. She was named as a Super Lawyer by her peers in both 2013 and 2014 and was appointed to the Federal Practice Committee in 2010 by the United States District Court for the District of Minnesota. Ms. Drake is a graduate of Harvard College, Oxford University, and Harvard Law School. Ms. Drake began her career as a public defender in Georgia where she defended death penalty cases at the trial court level. She has never lost her desire to engage in high stakes litigation and to fight for the little guy.
Judith Fox Judith Fox is a Clinical Professor of Law at the Notre Dame Law School, where she teaches and practices consumer law. She joined the faculty in 1997 and teaches courses in consumer law and negotiation. Ms. Fox directs the Economic Justice Project, a low income clinic specializing in foreclosure and debt collection defense. Judy graduated from Notre Dame Law School, magna cum laude in 1993, where she was the articles editor of the Notre Dame Law Review. Ms. Fox s advocacy and research focus on issues of predatory lending and debt collection. She is a member of the National Association of Consumer Advocates, the Indiana Mortgage Foreclosure Task Force and co-chairs the AALS Clinical Section s Standing Committee on Lawyering in the Public Interest. She has received numerous awards for her advocacy, including the Rodney F. Ganey, Ph.D. Faculty Community Based Research Award for her research on foreclosure issues in Indiana and the Grenville Clark Award for voluntary activities that advance the cause of peace and human rights. Ms. Fox provides trainings and seminars across the country on issues related to mortgage foreclosure and debt collection and, most recently, as a trainer for the new Consumer Financial Protection Bureau s toolkit, Your Money Your Goals, to assist low income consumers gain financial literacy. James Francis James Francis he has focused his practice in consumer protection litigation, with a particular concentration in fair credit reporting, fair debt collection practices and consumer class actions since 1998. He was ranked a Top 100 Pennsylvania Superlawyer in 2008, 2012, and 2014, and has been regularly ranked one of the Top 100 Superlawyers in Philadelphia since 2004. He has lectured and spoken extensively on the FCRA and currently serves on the Board of Directors of the National Association of Consumer Advocates (NACA). Chantal Hernandez Chantal Hernandez is a staff attorney at the National Consumer Law Center whose focus includes mortgage servicing and foreclosures. Previously, she was a staff attorney in the Foreclosure Prevention Project of MFY Legal Services in New York. At MFY, she defended homeowners sued in foreclosure through state trial and appellate litigation, representation at court-supervised settlement conferences, preparation of pro se pleadings, and negotiation of loan modifications. During law school, she was an intern for the Federal Trade Commission and U.S. Department of Justice and also represented clients at the Janet R. Spragens Federal Tax Clinic in Washington, D.C. She also served a member of the American University Law Review. Chantal is a member of the New York Bar. She graduated cum laude from Boston University and American University, Washington College of Law.
Scott R. Kaufman Scott R. Kaufman is far from the traditional attorney and his firm is far from a traditional firm. Scott graduated from the University of South Florida in 1981 with a degree in Speech Communication. He went on to follow his dream of becoming an entrepreneur by selling hot dogs from a hot dog cart in Southern CA. He later began his own small business teaching tennis, also in Southern CA. After a dozen years of "living the dream" Scott went off to law school and earned his JD from Willmatte University College of Law in in 1997. Once again, Scott's entrepreneurial spirit had him starting and running his own business. A few years in, facing mounting bills, Scott took a job with Consumer Legal Services, PC, out of Michigan, opening and running their California Lemon Law office. Dissatisfied with the way this firm operated, Scott opened California Lemon Lawyers in 2003. Mr. Kaufman focused on a smaller practice, dedicated to helping consumers, not just his own bottom line. This smaller firm approach has been directly responsible for putting millions of dollars back in to the pockets of California Consumers since 2003. Scott now has three dedicated consumer attorneys working at his office on Auto Fraud and Lemon Law matters. Mr. Kaufman has appeared on Radio and Television multiple times in his capacity as a Consumer Protection attorney. Mr. Kaufman been active with the National Association of Consumer Advocates since 2005 and currently serves with Bob Brennan as California co-chair for NACA. While his legal focus remains on Lemon Law and Auto Fraud matters, he regularly attends conferences for FDCPA, FCRA, and other consumer law areas in order to hone and his consumer advocate skills. Mr. Kaufman co-hosted NACA's semi-annual Auto Fraud conference in San Diego in 2014 and is again on that committee for 2016. He also teaches Mandatory Continuing Legal Education classes in the areas of lemon law and auto fraud, nationwide, in order to further the cause. Kristi C. Kelly Kristi C. Kelly focusses her practice on advocating for individuals in state and federal courts in Virginia, District of Columbia and Maryland, with a focus on credit reporting inaccuracies and mortgage servicing abuses. Described by her peers as someone who takes- and wins- the cases others won t touch, she was selected as a Virginia Leader in the Law for the Class of 2014. Ms. Kelly is also regularly selected as a Super Lawyer. Prior to starting her law firm in 2014, Ms. Kelly was a shareholder at Surovell Isaacs Petersen & Levy where her practice focused on consumer rights litigation in state and federal courts in the Washington, D.C. area. In May 2010, she received a $686,600 jury verdict and her attorney fees from a foreclosure rescue scammer. After graduating law school, Ms. Kelly worked for Legal Services of Northern Virginia as a housing and consumer law attorney. In that position, she co-founded the Foreclosure Legal Assistance Program (FLAP) to provide legal advice and housing counseling to prevent foreclosures. Ms. Kelly is a regular speaker on credit reporting and mortgage servicing issues. She graduated from University of Richmond TC Williams School of Law. At graduation, she received the Nina R. Kestin award for her extraordinary contributions to the school, community and profession. Ms. Kelly received her degree cum laude from Dickinson College, where she was a four year varsity soccer player. Ms. Kelly is a board member of the Virginia Poverty Law Center and on the Advisory Committee of the Legal Aid Justice Center. She lives in Oakton, VA with her husband Matt and two sons, Joey and Charlie.
April Kuehnhoff April Kuehnhoff is a staff attorney at the National Consumer Law Center whose focus includes fair debt collection. From 2009 to 2010 she was a Skirnick Public Interest Fellow at the Cambridge and Somerville Legal Services office of Greater Boston Legal Services. From 2010 to 2012 she was a law clerk for the Honorable Justice Gary Katzmann at the Massachusetts Appeals Court. From 2012 to 2014 she was an associate at Shapiro Haber & Urmy LLP. Prior to law school, April worked as a member of the Project on Global Working Families at the Harvard School of Public Health and at the Wellesley College Center for Work and Service. April is a graduate of Wellesley College and Harvard Law School. Roger L. Mandel Roger L. Mandel is a nationally known class action lawyer who has been lead and liaison counsel in class action cases across the country which have collectively recovered hundreds of millions of dollars for injured consumers. He successfully tried one of the only two class actions known to have been tried to a jury verdict in the Texas state courts. He is a frequent author and lecturer on class action topics. He has been named as a Texas Super Lawyer in the Class Action/Mass Torts category by Texas Monthly Magazine since the inception of the ratings in 2003, as a Top 100 Trial Lawyer in the Class Action category by The National Trial Lawyers since the inception of the honor in 2013, and as one of the Best Lawyers in Dallas in the Class Action category by D Magazine since the inception of the category in 2014. Toby Merrell Toby is a Clinical Instructor at the Legal Services Center of Harvard Law School, where she founded and directs the Project on Predatory Student Lending. The Project represents low-income student loan borrowers in predatory lending cases against for-profit and occupational schools. She teaches and supervises law students in the Center s Predatory Lending Clinic. Toby is also a lecturer at Harvard Law School, where she teaches a class on Student Loan Law. She is a member of the advisory council on Private Occupational Schools to the Massachusetts Division of Professional Licensure, and has represented legal aid providers and their clients in the US Department of Education's two most recent negotiated rulemaking sessions, by which the Department promulgates new student loan regulations. Toby joined the Center in 2012 as a Skadden Fellow. She received her J.D. cum laude from Harvard Law School. She clerked for the Honorable Janet C. Hall of the United States District Court for the District of Connecticut. Before attending law school, Toby worked for an education non-profit in New York City. She holds a B.A. from Yale, with distinction.
Adam S. Minsky Adam S. Minsky founded the first law office in Massachusetts devoted entirely to assisting student loan borrowers, and he is one of the only attorneys in the country practicing exclusively in this area of law. Attorney Minsky provides counsel, legal assistance, and direct advocacy for borrowers on a variety of student loan-related matters, including repayment management, default resolution, and servicing troubleshooting. He has been interviewed by major national publications including The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, Bloomberg News, and The Chronicle of Higher Education, and was recently featured on the front page of the Boston Business Journal. Attorney Minsky regularly speaks to students, graduates, and advocates about the latest developments in higher education financing, and he maintains a nationally recognized blog on student loan-related topics at www.bostonstudentloanlawyer.com. He has recently published two handbooks on student loan-related topics: Student Loan Debt 101, and The Student Loan Guide for Parents and Cosigners. His upcoming book, The Student Loan Handbook for Law Students and Attorneys, will soon be released by the American Bar Association. Attorney Minsky is also a contributor to the National Consumer Law Center s manual on Student Loan Law. Attorney Minsky is a graduate of Boston University and Northeastern University School of Law. Willard Ogburn Willard Ogburn has been the Executive Director of the National Consumer Law Center since 1987. The National Consumer Law Center is a low-income advocacy organization, publisher of the major treatises on consumer law, a support center for legal aid programs, and sponsor of the annual National Consumer Rights Litigation Conference. NCLC's advocates are sometimes called 'the nation's consumer law experts.' Mr. Ogburn has presented and written widely on consumer law. He has served as Deputy Commissioner of Banks in Massachusetts; in the Executive Office of the President; with Congress' Legislative Reference Service; in the Law Reform Unit of Cleveland Legal Aid; as a member and Chair of the Federal Reserve Board Consumer Advisory Council; on Senator Elizabeth Warren's Judicial Screening Committee; on the transition team for Massachusetts Attorney General Maura Healey; and on the Boards of Directors of Americans for Fairness in Lending; the Consumer Federation of America (President); the National Association of Consumer Advocates (Executive Committee); the Center for Legal Aid Education (President); and Consumer Reports. He was awarded the National Association of Consumer Advocates' Lifetime Achievement Award; the William J. Proxmire Lifetime Achievement Award by the American College of Consumer Financial Services Lawyers; and the Lifetime Achievement Award of the Massachusetts Bar Association. Dennis D. Parker Dennis D. Parker is the Director of the ACLU National Office's Racial Justice Program (RJP). Concentrating on issues of the school-to-prison pipeline which funnels children of color from the educational system into the criminal justice system, racial profiling, affirmative action, indigent representation and felon enfranchisement, the RJP seeks to remove barriers to equal opportunity for communities of color through litigation, public education, community organizing and legislation. Prior to joining the ACLU, he was the Chief of the Civil Rights Bureau of the Office of the New York State Attorney. Mr. Parker also worked for fourteen years at the NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund litigating and supervising the litigation of scores of cases involving elementary and secondary education, affirmative action in higher education and equal educational opportunity. Other positions included work at the employment firm of Vladeck, Waldman, Elias and Engelhardt and the New York Legal Aid Society, Criminal Defense Division in Brooklyn, New York. He has published a book and numerous chapters and articles on a range of civil rights issues including housing discrimination, educational equity, and affirmative action and testing. Mr. Parker lectures extensively on civil rights issues and is an adjunct professor at New York Law School. He is a graduate of Middlebury College and Harvard Law School.
Andrew Pizor Andrew Pizor is a Staff Attorney in the National Consumer Law Center's Washington, DC office where he works on issues related to mortgage financing and defending homeowners from foreclosure. He is a contributing author to Foreclosures, Truth In Lending, and a co-author of Mortgage Lending and Consumer Credit Regulation. Andrew also serves as an expert witness on mortgage origination and servicing issues. He was previously an attorney at the Connecticut Fair Housing Center, the Consumer Law Group, LLC, and Legal Services Corp. of Delaware. He is a graduate of Georgetown University and Fordham University School of Law. Katherine Porter Professor Porter specializes in commercial and consumer law, including bankruptcy, mortgage foreclosure, and credit cards. Her research focuses on empirical studies of consumer bankruptcy and has been published in journals including the Texas Law Review, the Georgetown Law Journal, the American Bankruptcy Law Journal, and the Cornell Law Review. She is currently Professor of Law at the University of California Irvine School of Law, where she is Director of the Transition to Practice program. She has conducted several original empirical studies and is a principal investigator in the ongoing Consumer Bankruptcy Project, the most comprehensive study of people in bankruptcy. She has testified several times before Congress and is a frequent speaker at judicial education and continuing legal education programs. She blogs about credit and debt issues at www.creditslips.org. In March 2012, Professor Porter was appointed by California Attorney General Kamala Harris to be the state s independent monitor of banks in a nationwide $25 billion mortgage settlement. As Monitor, she oversaw the banks implementation of the settlement reforms and conducted extensive community outreach and education. Under her leadership, the California Monitor Program handled over five thousand homeowner complaints, conducted more than four dozen outreach or education events, and issued six policy reports. Her work has garnered several awards: the InnovAction Award by the College of Law Practice Management, recognizing innovation and ingenuity in the delivery of legal services, academic recognition for the best article in the American Bankruptcy Law Journal, practice excellence by selection as one of the top 100 lawyers in California by the Daily Journal, and advocacy merit with the Champion of Consumer Rights honor by the National Association of Consumer Bankruptcy Attorneys. Professor Porter previously was on the faculty at the University of Iowa College of Law and has been a visiting professor at Harvard Law School, UC Berkeley Law, the University of Illinois College of Law, and the UNLV Boyd School of Law. She practiced bankruptcy law in Portland, Oregon, and clerked for the Honorable Richard S. Arnold of the Eighth Circuit. She earned her J.D. from Harvard Law School and her B.A. from Yale University.
John Rao John Rao is an attorney with the National Consumer Law Center, Inc. Mr. Rao focuses on consumer credit and bankruptcy issues and has served as a panelist and instructor at numerous bankruptcy and consumer law trainings and conferences. He has served as an expert witness in court cases and has testified in Congress on consumer matters. Mr. Rao is a contributing author and editor of NCLC's Consumer Bankruptcy Law and Practice; and a co-author of NCLC s Foreclosures and Bankruptcy Basics. He is also a contributing author to Collier on Bankruptcy and the Collier Bankruptcy Practice Guide. Mr. Rao served as a member of the federal Judicial Conference Advisory Committee on Bankruptcy Rules from 2006 to 2012, appointed by Chief Justice John Roberts. He is a conferee of the National Bankruptcy Conference, fellow of the American College of Bankruptcy, vice-president of the National Association of Consumer Bankruptcy Attorneys, member of the editorial board of Collier on Bankruptcy, and former board member for the American Bankruptcy Institute. Joseph Rebella Joseph Rebella is a Staff Attorney in MFY Legal Services, Inc. s Foreclosure Prevention Project and represents homeowners in foreclosure and in affirmative litigation. Joseph practices in both state and federal court, recently arguing an important foreclosure standing case before the Appellate Division, Second Judicial Department. He co-created and manages MFY s FHA Waterfall Worksheet and HAMP and GSE Waterfall Worksheet, both of which are nationally prominent resources among homeowners advocates. Because of his knowledge of FHA loss mitigation rules and HAMP regulations, Joseph has served as an expert in federal and state cases alleging violations of FHA or HAMP rules. Before joining MFY Legal Services, Inc., he served as an Equal Justice Works AmeriCorps Legal Fellow for the Consumer Law Project of the Public Counsel Law Center in Los Angeles, California. Mr. Rebella is a graduate of University of California, Berkeley and Harvard Law School. Stuart Rossman Stuart Rossman is a staff attorney at the National Consumer Law Center (NCLC) and has served as director of litigation since 1999. Stuart is the co-editor of NCLC s Consumer Class Actions and coordinates NCLC's annual Consumer Class Action Symposium. Stuart currently is the co-chair of the National Association of Consumer Advocates (NACA) Board of Directors. Since 1992, he has been a member of the adjunct faculty at the Northeastern University School of Law where he teaches courses in Civil Trial Advocacy and was appointed the 2010 Givelber Distinguished Lecturer on Public Interest Law. He also is a member of the adjunct faculty at the Suffolk University School of Law. Previously, he was a private trial attorney in Boston and served as Chief of the Trial Division and Chief of the Business and Labor Protection Bureau at the Massachusetts Attorney General's Office. Stuart has received numerous honors and awards, including the Thurgood Marshall Award by the Rainbow/PUSH Coalition. He is a 1975 graduate of the University of Michigan, summa cum laude and graduated from Harvard Law School, cum laude in 1978.
Richard J. Rubin Richard J. Rubin is a private attorney in Santa Fe, New Mexico, whose federal appellate practice is limited to representing consumers in federal consumer credit protection cases, including credit reporting and debt collection abuse litigation, and to consulting for other consumer rights specialists around the country. The United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit has acknowledged Mr. Rubin as a "nationally known consumer-rights attorney" (Bass v. Stolper, Koritzinsky, Brewster Neider, S.C., 1997 U.S. App. LEXIS 41397, *5 (June 6, 1997)). He and his solo practice were the subject of a profile published in the January 1993 ABA Journal. Mr. Rubin is the past chair of the National Association of Consumer Advocates and in 2000 was the recipient of NCLC s Vern Countryman Award. In 2006 he was named to Lawdragon 500 Leading Plaintiffs' Lawyers in America. Mr. Rubin has taught consumer law at the University of New Mexico School of Law, is a regular contributor to the Consumer Credit and Sales Legal Practice Series manuals published by NCLC, and presents continuing legal education and attorney-training programs nationally in the areas of consumer credit, warranty law, and debt collection abuse. Jane Santoni Jane Santoni has been a practicing litigator since 1988 and has been practicing consumer law since 2002. She has successfully tried and settled automobile fraud, mortgage fraud, warranty, illegal repossession, insurance denials and debt collection cases in state circuit, district, and appellate courts and in federal court. She has handled both individual and class cases. Ms. Santoni has been interviewed and quoted on consumer issues by major news sources, including the New York Times, Fox, CBS and NBC, The Baltimore Sun, The Daily Record, The Baltimore Business Journal, and the Scripps Howard news. She has taught consumer law and personal injury seminars locally and nationally. She is on the board of directors of Civil Justice, Inc., and is the past Maryland state chair of the National Association of Consumer Advocates. She is a member the Maryland Consumer Rights Coalition and the Baltimore County Bar Association. She has been named a Super Lawyer in Maryland repeatedly and in 2013 was named as one of the Daily Record s Leaders in the Law for her work in consumer protection and personal injury law. She is grateful to be part of this heroic organization and to be able to practice an area of law which helps people obtain justice. Lauren Saunders Lauren Saunders is Associate Director at NCLC's Washington, DC office and serves as its Managing Attorney. She directs NCLC's federal legislative and regulatory work. Lauren regularly speaks, writes and testifies in areas including the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, prepaid cards, mobile payments, small dollar loans, credit cards, bank accounts, and preemption. She contributes to NCLC legal treatises, including Consumer Banking and Payments Law, Consumer Credit Regulation, and Fair Credit Reporting, and has authored several reports and white papers. She previously directed the Federal Rights Project of the National Senior Citizens Law Center; was Deputy Director of Litigation at Bet Tzedek Legal Services; and was an associate at Hall & Phillips. She graduated magna cum laude from Harvard Law School and was an Executive Editor of the Harvard Law Review, and holds a Master s in Public Policy from Harvard's Kennedy School of Government and a B.A., Phi Beta Kappa, from Stanford University.
Margot Saunders Margot is currently of counsel to the National Consumer Law Center, after serving as Managing Attorney of the Center s Washington office from 1991 to 2005. Margot has testified before Congress on dozens of occasions regarding a wide range of consumer law matters, including predatory lending, payments law, electronic commerce, and other financial credit issues. She is a co-author of NCLC s Consumer Banking and Payments Law and a contributor to numerous other manuals. Margot regularly serves as an expert witness in consumer credit cases, providing opinions on predatory lending, electronic benefits, servicing, and credit math issues. Prior to joining NCLC she was the consumer law specialist for North Carolina Legal Services. In 1991, Margot was the second recipient of the Vern Countryman Award. She is a graduate of Brandeis University and the University of North Carolina School of Law. David Seligman David Seligman is a staff attorney at the National Consumer Law Center whose focus includes forced arbitration, alternative payment systems, and auto finance. Previously, he was a Harvard Law School Irving Kaufman Fellow at NCLC. David served as a law clerk for Judges Robert D. Sack and Susan L. Carney of the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit and Judge Patti B. Saris of the United States District Court for the District of Massachusetts. He has worked for Make the Road New York and a union-side labor law firm in San Francisco. Before law school, he was a New York City Urban Fellow in the New York City Police Department. David is a graduate of the Harvard Law School. Steven Sharpe Steven Sharpe is a Senior Attorney in the Hamilton office of the Legal Aid Society of Southwest Ohio, LLC, where he represents borrowers facing foreclosure and children in child protective services cases. He has been active in national efforts to address problems with the servicing of FHA-insured and USDA-guaranteed mortgage loans. Harry Shulman Harry Shulman is an experienced consumer attorney in San Francisco. He learned the trade in 15 years at Holland & Hart in Colorado, where he was a partner for eight years and led the litigation practice in one of the firm s branch offices. He moved to California in 2000, where he began focusing on consumer class actions. He has participated in, and led, many class actions since then including Klussman v. Cross Country Bank (class action against predatory credit card lender), Boltz v. Buena Vista Home Entertainment (class action against DVD manufacturers for DVDs without closed captioning), and Amador v. California Culinary Academy (class action against Le Cordon Bleu culinary school). Harry formed Shulman Law in 2010, where he now focuses on litigation and arbitration against for-profit schools. He has successfully arbitrated and litigated cases against UEI schools, Kaplan schools, Art Institute schools, and other miscellaneous schools since then. He is a graduate of Dartmouth College (1980, cum laude) and University of Virginia Law School (J.D. 1985). He is admitted in California and Colorado, the federal district and circuit courts in those states, and pro hac vice in many jurisdictions.
Lisa Sitkin Lisa Sitkin is Managing Attorney at Housing and Economic Rights Advocates (HERA) in Oakland, CA. She has been practicing law since 1997. Prior to joining HERA, Ms. Sitkin litigated civil rights, media law and intellectual property cases and provided advice and counseling to reporters, publishers, businesses and individuals. At HERA, Ms. Sitkin counsels individual clients, serves as a consumer advocate with lenders, loan servicers and legislative bodies, and assists with mortgage servicing, predatory and unfair lending litigation. Since joining HERA, Ms. Sitkin has conducted numerous workshops and trainings regarding mortgages, foreclosures, loan modification and foreclosure rescue scams, including programs produced by the Practicing Law Institute and the National Consumer Law Center. Ms. Sitkin has also testified several times before the California State Legislature and other governmental bodies regarding mortgage servicing and foreclosure. She was one of the original drafters of the bill that ultimately became the California Homeowner Bill of Rights. Larry Smith Larry Smith is the founding and managing partner at SmithMarco, P.C. in Chicago, Illinois which focuses on consumers rights matters ranging from FDCPA and FCRA to Lemon Law and UDAP cases. Larry has been practicing law since 1993, and has turned his focus solely to consumers rights since 1998. Larry earned his undergraduate degree from the University of Illinois in Urbana-Champaign and his law degree from The John Marshall Law School in Chicago. Larry has handle numerous jury trials in the area of auto fraud, and has successfully argued a number of appeals leading to some pro-consumer decisions, such as Miller v. William Chevrolet (Illinois Appellate 2nd District - holding that representing a vehicle as a single owner vehicle while failing to disclose its prior rental history is fraud); Vassilkovska v. Woodfield Nissan (Illinois Appellate 1st District defeating dealership arbitration agreement and holding that separate agreement not supported by consideration is void); and Stone v. Clifford Chrysler (Illinois Appellate 1st District holding that facts remain as to cost of repairs to new vehicle being sold as new so as to require disclosure of any pre-sale damage); Larry also successfully tried federal cases under the FCRA and FDCPA. Particularly, Larry successfully handled a FCRA case against the United States Department of Agriculture at both trial and appeal to the Seventh Circuit (Talley v. U.S. Dept. of Ed, 07 C 0705 N.Dist. IL holding that the United States government is not entitled to immunity under the FCRA). Larry is admitted to the Seventh and Eighth Circuit Appellate Courts, and currently serves as a NACA state chairman for the state of Illinois. Robyn Smith Robyn Smith currently works as half-time Of Counsel with the National Consumer Law Center, where she concentrates on student loan and for-profit school issues. She also works half-time on these issues as a staff attorney at the Legal Aid Foundation of Los Angeles. Prior to this, Ms. Smith worked at the California Attorney General's office where she investigated and prosecuted businesses engaged in consumer fraud and unlawful business practices. Ms. Smith also represented low-income consumers in a wide range of consumer law matters as the Directing Attorney of the Consumer Law Project at Public Counsel in Los Angeles and as the Managing Attorney of the Windward Branch of the Legal Aid Society of Hawaii on the island of Oahu. She received her J.D. from University of Southern California
Amy E. Tabor Amy E. Tabor likes nothing better than getting fair compensation for people who have been wronged and holding abusive companies responsible for their actions. She has represented consumers and small businesses against some of the largest companies and law firms in the United States. She has experience in complex cases, including class actions, commercial litigation, and antitrust matters involving the automotive, technology, energy, construction, and airline industries. She also has extensive experience in Fair Credit Reporting Act ( FCRA ) matters. She has appeared for clients in state and federal court in both Texas and California, before arbitral tribunals, and at the Texas Court of Appeals. Ariana J. Tadler Ariana J. Tadler specializes in securities fraud and consumer class action litigation as well as complex litigation and is an elected member of the Executive Committee of Milberg LLP. Ms. Tadler is widely recognized as one of the nation s leading authorities on electronic discovery and chairs Milberg s E Discovery Practice Group. She serves on the Board of Directors, is Chair Emeritus and a member of the Steering Committee of The Sedona Conference s Working Group 1 on Electronic Document Retention and Production. Ariana Tadler also serves on the Advisory Boards of Georgetown University Law Center s Advanced E-Discovery Institute, Cardozo Data Law Initiative, and Bloomberg BNA s ediscovery Board. Tara Twomey Tara Twomey is currently Of Counsel to the National Consumer Law Center and the Project Director for the National Consumer Bankruptcy Rights Center. She has previously been a Lecturer in Law at Stanford, Harvard and Boston College Law Schools. Tara is a former Clinical Instructor at the Hale and Dorr Legal Services Center of Harvard Law School where her practice focused, in part, on sustainable homeownership for low- and moderate-income homeowners. She is a contributing author of several books published by the National Consumer Law Center, including Foreclosures and Bankruptcy Basics. Dominic Valerian Dominic Valerian is a partner of Gallo LLP in San Rafael, California, where his practice focuses on representing consumers and employees in class, mass, and other complex actions involving fraud, breach of contract, and statutory violations. He regularly represents victims of the for-profit education industry, including thousands of defrauded culinary students in lawsuits and arbitrations against three for-profit culinary schools, fifteen licensed vocational nursing students in individual arbitrations against their nursing program, and a class of Sallie Mae student loan borrowers who were assessed excessive 25% collection charges upon default.
John Van Alst John Van Alst is a staff attorney at the National Consumer Law Center whose focus includes deceptive practices law, automobile fraud, rural issues, warranty, and manufactured home issues. Prior to joining NCLC John was an Attorney with Legal Aid of North Carolina. He was also the Chair of the North Carolina Consumer Law Task Force. He spent one year as a Visiting Clinical Supervisor at the University of North Carolina School of Law's Civil Clinical Program supervising law students representing low-income clients. He is a graduate of the University of North Carolina School of Law. He is co-author of NCLC's Automobile Fraud, Consumer Warranty Law, and Repossessions. Jennifer S. Wagner Jennifer S. Wagner is Managing Attorney at Mountain State Justice, a non-profit, public interest law firm in West Virginia. Jennifer litigates on behalf of low-income consumers, focusing on combatting predatory mortgage lending and abusive mortgage servicing. Jennifer also engages in other consumer and civil rights litigation, including access to appropriate medical care, worker's health and safety, and the humane treatment of prisoners. She has given numerous trainings on consumer litigation. Prior to joining Mountain State Justice, Jennifer clerked on the U.S. Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals and worked at the Partnership for the Homeless and in city government in New York City. She graduated with honors from New York University School of Law and Harvard College. Geoffry Walsh Geoffry Walsh is a staff attorney at the National Consumer Law Center (NCLC) who focuses on foreclosure prevention, consumer bankruptcy, and other consumer credit issues. He has provided written testimony and engaged in policy advocacy at the federal and state levels on the topic of foreclosure mediation. He has served as a panelist and instructor at trainings and legal education seminars on foreclosure prevention and bankruptcy topics, and is an active member of the National Association of Consumer Bankruptcy Attorneys. Walsh is co-author of Foreclosures, Consumer Bankruptcy Law and Practice, Foreclosure Prevention Counseling, Student Loan Law, and Credit Discrimination. Walsh previously worked as an attorney with Vermont Legal Aid, Inc. in Springfield, Vt. from 1991 to 2008, specializing in housing, consumer, and bankruptcy areas. From 1980 to 1991, he worked as a staff attorney with Community Legal Services, Inc. in Philadelphia, Pa., where he also specialized in housing and consumer litigation. Walsh earned his B.A. from University of Michigan and is a graduate of Temple University Law School.
Odette Williamson Odette Williamson has been a staff attorney at NCLC since July, 1999. Prior to this she was an Assistant Attorney General in the Massachusetts Office of the Attorney General where she concentrated on civil enforcement actions against individuals and businesses for violation of consumer protection and other laws. As an AAG she also served on the Elder Law Advocates Strike Force to combat unfair and deceptive acts against elderly citizens. She attended Tufts University and Boston College Law School where she was a staff writer and editor for the Uniform Commercial Code Reporter-Digest. She is also admitted to the Massachusetts bar. She is co-author of NCLC's Foreclosures, and Foreclosure Prevention Counseling. Chi Chi Wu Chi Chi Wu has been a staff attorney at NCLC for over a decade. Chi Chi focuses on consumer credit issues at NCLC, including legislative, administrative, and other advocacy. Chi Chi's specialties include fair credit reporting, credit cards, refund anticipation loans, and medical debt. Before joining NCLC, Chi Chi worked in the Consumer Protection Division at the Massachusetts Attorney General's office and the Asian Outreach Unit of Greater Boston Legal Services. Chi Chi is a graduate of Harvard Law School and The Johns Hopkins University. Chi Chi is co-author of the legal manuals Fair Credit Reporting Act and Collection Actions, and a contributing author to Consumer Credit Regulation and Truth in Lending.