Bill Heller founded and chairs Akerman’s Consumer Financial Services Practice Group, among the largest national legal teams supporting consumer financial service providers. Bill leads a team of more than 100 lawyers—some former in-house and Consumer Financial Protection Bureau attorneys—with a platform for big stakes and high volume national litigation, federal and state examination, investigation and enforcement support, as well as regulatory compliance in all 50 states. A recognized authority and frequent speaker on litigation and compliance issues relating to loan origination, servicing and foreclosure process enhancements, Bill is ranked by Chambers USA, Benchmark Litigation, and Best Lawyers in America for financial services law.
As a litigator, Bill has extensive experience partnering with industry leaders and the largest institutions defending lawsuits involving debt origination, servicing and investment. This includes individual and class consumer claims arising under federal laws—the Truth in Lending Act, Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act, Fair Credit Reporting Act, Equal Credit Opportunity Act, Fair Housing Act, Telephone Consumer Protection Act, and Fair Debt Collection Practices Act—as well as state fair lending, collection, and deceptive trade practice laws. Bill and his team have built and managed all-state rapid response projects, providing risk management, issue escalation and direct case handling for loan and credit card servicers. Bill is an experienced jury trial and appellate lawyer. Bill also established a team for investigating and recovering from mortgage fraud, litigating title-related disputes, and pursuing foreclosure process abuse claims.
As a compliance lawyer, Bill advises financial services clients on operationalizing federal and state origination and servicing requirements, industry standards and best practices, court rules and local customs for origination, servicing, and foreclosure. He has vast experience reviewing and implementing internal procedures, including conducting 50-state foreclosure process reviews, sworn document and notice updates and enhancements.
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