Paul Hastings has added a former high-ranking regulatory official to its global banking and payment systems practice in Washington.
Gerald Sachs, who previously worked as an attorney for the Federal Trade Commission's Southeast Region Office, as an assistant United States attorney for the Northern District of Georgia and, most recently, as a senior counsel of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, is now a partner in the law firm's office in the capital. Sachs advises clients in the realms of auto finance and payment systems on how changing regulations are affecting or will affect their business.
In an interview with IFLR1000, Sachs described his role as a challening one because of innovation within the financial services sector coupled with ongoing changes to consumer financial protection laws.
"The CFPB has indicated that it has taken a different look at regulations. It won't issue laws and then not touch them for ten years, as others have done in the past, but will frequently evaluate regulations to determine what changes should be made," Sachs said. "Companies have to be innovative in their products, but also have to keep track of the law and how their products are in compliance," he added.
Sachs described the CFPB as taking a "very forward-looking view" on industry trends, attempting to anticipate problems and issues that will emerge in the marketplace. "If there is potential harm to consumers, the CFPB will look at that quicker than other regulators have in the past," he commented.
V. Gerard Comizio, chair of the global banking practice at Paul Hastings, said, "Gerald will be a huge asset to our global banking and payments practice. He has had first-hand experience assisting the Bureau's mortgage servicing, consumer compliance and payment systems rules, implementation teams, and working on a variety of high-level projects."