Jonathan L. Pompan
Jonathan is deeply involved in the communities within which he practices, and is a frequent speaker and author on legal and regulatory issues of significance to providers of consumer financial products and services, advertisers and marketers, and nonprofit organizations.
Consumer Financial Products and Services
A substantial portion of Jonathan's work involves advising clients on how to minimize the legal risks related to providing, advertising, and marketing financial products and services to consumers under federal and state consumer protection laws, including laws and regulations under the jurisdiction of the CFPB and FTC. Jonathan's experience includes representing various companies in CFPB, FTC, state attorneys general, and state banking/financial institution department investigations and enforcement actions; conducting compliance audits; obtaining licenses; and assisting in the formation and development of new companies, products, and services. In addition, Jonathan regularly advises on the design of compliance management systems tailored to specific client needs and government expectations.
Advertising and Marketing
Jonathan is an experienced advertising attorney who regularly advises clients on consumer protection issues, specifically with regard to advertising and promotions, including digital media and lead generation, as well as consumer credit and financial services laws and regulations. He has extensive experience in the issues surrounding mobile marketing, target marketing, lead generation, affiliate marketing, social media, and user-generated content. Jonathan also defends clients in investigations and enforcement actions pursued by the CFPB, FTC, state attorneys general, and other state regulatory agencies, as well as advises in private litigation involving claims, such as false or misleading advertising or unfair, deceptive, or abusive acts and practices.
Nonprofit Organizations and Trade and Professional Associations
Jonathan has extensive experience counseling nonprofit organizations and trade and professional associations in consumer financial services and other regulated markets.
Prior Experience
Jonathan joined Venable after serving as in-house associate counsel at one of the nation's largest industry trade associations. His responsibilities included contracts, intellectual property (trademark and copyright), advertising, antitrust, general business/trade association matters, and counsel on federal and state regulatory advocacy. In this position, Jonathan worked on matters such as negotiating hotel and convention contracts; pre-publication review of literature, websites, and commercial advertising scripts; review of meeting minutes and agendas; the legal management of the association's trademark portfolio; the design and management of a contract management program; and numerous industry-specific issues.
Jonathan also has a significant amount of Washington regulatory and political experience in government. During law school, he served as a legal intern in the Office of Commissioner Michael Powell, at the Federal Communications Commission, and with the Enforcement Division of the Bureau of Consumer Protection at the FTC.
Jonathan also has previous law firm experience working on federal appropriations, legislative, and administrative law matters.
Prior to attending law school, Jonathan worked in the government relations office at The George Washington University, served as a congressional page, and worked on Capitol Hill.
Related Practices
Experience
Representative Matters
- Defends various financial services companies in complex, wide-scale non-public FTC and CFPB investigations involving allegations of unfair, deceptive, and abusive acts and practices (UDAAPs) and violations of other consumer financial law, including the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act, Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA), and Electronic Fund Transfer Act (EFTA), with many in crisis or "bet the company" situations.
For example, Jonathan was the lead counsel representing a leading debt buyer and debt collector in the appeal of a CFPB supervisory examination finding and referral to the office of enforcement concerning consumer authorizations for preauthorized electronic fund transfers (EFTs) from a consumer's account in payment of a debt involving compliance obligations under imposed by EFTA and Regulation E, and intersections between Regulation E and the E-Sign Act. Venable successfully achieved the withdrawal of the examination matter requiring attention and closing of the matter at the office of enforcement. Subsequently, the CFPB issued a compliance bulletin accepting our client's position and reaffirming longstanding banking agency and commonly understood interpretations of the relevant requirements under the law
- Advise leading online marketplace and personal lenders in connection with their compliance with federal consumer financial law and state lending laws, including in the design and implementation of their online loan applications, payment portals, and collections strategy. We have also been advising on obligations imposed by Truth-in-Lending Act, EFTA, Regulation E, and E-Sign Act
- Regularly assist clients in conjunction with the introduction of numerous innovative products and their obligations under consumer financial law on the federal and state level, including financial services related licensing. Jonathan has developed, drafted and reviewed payment portals, notices, forms, terms of service, etc. for credit cards, debit cards, stored value cards, mortgage loans, retail installment credit, debt collectors, and merchants. Jonathan often counsels clients on the intersection of EFTA, Regulation E, the E-Sign Act, business objectives, and consumer facing materials
- Representation of several top private equity firms in connection with regulatory due diligence of consumer financial services companies, including lenders and debt collectors, lead generators, and direct response marketers. We routinely assist with drafting deal documents to account for the evolving legal and regulatory landscape
- Serve as outside counsel to marketplace lenders, banks and direct investors, on consumer financial services law regulatory compliance, product development, state licensing, advertising and marketing, and receivables management strategy, including enforceability analysis of loans and banking relationships, "true lender," risk retention, and related matters
- Representation of numerous advertising and lead generation service providers to marketplace and small dollar, short term lenders, real estate professionals and mortgage lenders, and credit cards, including some of the largest and most popular websites and ubiquitous advertisers in each category, on legal and regulatory compliance, and in the development of compliance programs and transactional agreements
- We have assisted multiple financial institutions in connection with the acquisition of multiple debt portfolios, including diligence regarding collectability of loans, usury rates, licensing, and related issues, and transactional advisory services (various financial institution lenders and service providers)
- Serve as lead counsel on advising bank and nonbank consumer financial services providers and vendors on the design and/or enhancement of their compliance management systems, and policies and procedures, to meet CFPB expectations in preparation for supervisory examinations, including performing mock-CFPB exams
- Provides compliance counsel to high-net-worth startups and established companies in connection with nonbank regulatory matters before the CFPB and other government agencies
- Served as outside counsel to proprietary school association student recruitment task force, including assistance with development of a sector-wide self-regulatory program, and best practices materials on the Department of Education misrepresentation rule and third-party vendors
- Represent advertisers and marketers, including lead generators before the FTC, with regard to related compliance matters, and development of an industry self-regulatory program for internet advertising and marketing
- Assists various clients in regulated industries with comprehensive state licensing (e.g., money transmitter/money services businesses, debt adjusting, debt collection, credit services organizations, and mortgage broker and loan origination) strategy, obtaining licensing for nationwide operations, and the design of related compliance programs
- Settled multiple state investigations and enforcement actions on behalf of various nonprofit and for-profit clients concerning consumer protection issues and related allegations, including investigations brought by the West Virginia Attorney General, Maryland Department of Labor, Licensing, and Regulation, and New York attorney general
- Coordinated legislative and regulatory advocacy team for a financial education and counseling industry coalition and provides related strategic advice, including advocacy before the CFPB, and other federal agencies
Insights
Credentials
Education
- J.D. Washington University School of Law 2001
- B.A. The George Washington University 1998
- Recipient of the George Washington Award, 1998
Bar Admissions
- District of Columbia
- Maryland
Professional Memberships and Activities
- Member, American Bar Association, Section on Business Law and Nonprofit Committee
Recognition
- Legal 500
- Not-For-Profit, 2012 – 2014
- Financial Services: Regulatory, 2013 – 2014, 2018 – 2023
- Super Lawyers, Rising Stars, Consumer Law, Washington, DC, 2013 – 2015
Community
Volunteerism
- Former member, board of directors, George Washington University Alumni Association
- Member, Barcroft School & Civic League, Arlington, Virginia
- Former volunteer, Everybody WINS! elementary school reading program