Heather Klein counsels financial services clients on complex regulatory and enforcement issues. Businesses and their legal departments regularly call upon Heather to support them in developing and marketing new products, launching and managing third-party relationships, and identifying and remediating risks in origination, servicing, and collections. She serves as a trusted business partner to help guide clients successfully through high-stakes matters, from state and federal regulatory examinations and investigations to multimillion-dollar acquisitions of financial services companies.
Heather assists companies that specialize in offering financial products and services to consumers and small businesses, including fintechs, banks, payment processors, and servicers. She also works closely with consumer product companies and educational institutions that provide financing to their customers or students.
Experience
Representative Matters
- Advises creditors on the creation of special purpose credit programs under the Equal Credit Opportunity Act, and drafts written plans documenting SPCPs
- Led financial services due diligence for a private equity firm’s $350 million acquisition of a commercial payments company
- Drafted the ISA and disclosures for the first ISA program at a major U.S. university
Professional Highlights
Professional Activities
American Bar Association, Business Law Section, Consumer Financial Services Committee; Co-Vice Chair, Truth in Lending Subcommittee; past Young Lawyer Liaison, Deposit Products and Payment Systems Subcommittee and Fair Access to Financial Services Subcommittee
National Council of Higher Education Resources (NCHER) Legal Committee
Speaking Engagements
"Is It Credit? Answering the Consumer Credit Industry’s Most Fundamental Questions under the Truth in Lending Act," ABA Business Law Section Spring Meeting, April 22, 2021
"State Student Loan Licensing & Servicing Law Update," Education Finance Council Annual Membership Meeting, April 2, 2021
"Consumer Financial Services in Turbulent Times," Ballard Spahr CLE Webcast Series, October 26, 2020 - January 11, 2021
Publications
Co-author, Chapter 9, "Billing Error Resolution," The Law of Truth in Lending 2018 Supplement, American Bar Association
"Fair Lending and UDAAP Issues in Credit and Marketing Models," Consumer Financial Services Committee Newsletter, American Bar Association, March 2016
Co-author, Chapter 9, "Billing Error Resolution," The Law of Truth in Lending 2015 Supplement, American Bar Association
"Guest Commentary: Testing the 'Effects Test' Is Not a Test for Fair Lending Enforcement," Consumer Financial Services Law Report, Vol. 17, Issue 12, December 10, 2013
Co-author, "Debt Collectors, Meet the New Cop on the Beat: Implications of CFPB's Supervision of Debt Collection Market," Bloomberg BNA's Banking Report, January 1, 2013
Credentials
Education
Georgetown University Law Center (J.D. 2011)
Staff Member, The Tax Lawyer
Cornell University (B.A. 2007, with distinction in all subjects)
Pauline and Irving Tanner Dean's Scholar
Admissions
Massachusetts
New York
Pennsylvania