Chava Brandriss

Chava represents financial institutions against claims by consumers, advocates during government enforcement actions and investigations, and navigates clients through the maze of federal and state laws regulating consumer financial services.

An experienced litigator, Chava has handled hundreds of lawsuits in the consumer financial services space, including class actions; large portfolios of defensive mortgage litigation; and other complex litigation against banks, credit unions, lenders, loan servicers, and fintechs through trial and appeal. As an appellate litigator, Chava has crafted over 100 appellate briefs and arguments.

Through her highly specialized expertise, Chava positions clients to avoid future risk and minimize potential exposure. Beyond litigation, Chava advises financial services clients on issues that span the product development, banking, lending, and servicing lifecycle, from fair lending, fair and responsible banking, and fair housing, to disclosures, fees, advertising and marketing, UDAAP, credit reporting, and debt collection. When supervisory matters escalate, Chava guides clients through their interactions with regulators, providing sensitive and strategic advice in investigations and enforcement actions before the CFPB, FDIC, OCC, HUD, state financial services regulators, and attorneys general.

Chava leads the mortgage and home lending practice within our banking and financial services group. Drawing from her career-long focus on the residential mortgage lending and servicing industry following the 2008 financial crisis and rise of the CFPB, she brings to her clients a deep knowledge of issues ranging from fair lending, fair housing, and fair servicing, to default servicing and loss mitigation, investor and agency rules, and the TILA/Regulation Z, RESPA/Regulation X, and other requirements unique to residential mortgage lending and servicing.

Passionate about pro bono service, Chava is particularly committed to combatting housing segregation, which she strongly believes underlies the entrenched racial inequality that persists in our society. A highlight of Chava's pro bono work includes successfully trying, through appeal, a long-running fair housing lawsuit challenging policies that perpetuate residential segregation in the New York suburbs, an important victory for fair and affordable housing with nationwide impact. Chava serves on the firm's Pro Bono Committee and, in recognition of her pro bono work, received the firm's Willard J. Wright Award (2021), which recognizes a partner who has shown outstanding commitment to community and civic activity.