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Tim Butler helps companies thrive by developing tailored strategies to address their regulatory compliance challenges and vigorously defending them in government enforcement actions and bet-the-company lawsuits.

A former prosecuting attorney for the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and former senior official in the Georgia Attorney General’s Office, Tim has led the defense of dozens of government investigations and enforcement actions brought by the FTC, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB), and the various state attorneys general. Tim also regularly defends clients in bet-the-company lawsuits, including complex business disputes and consumer class actions alleging privacy, false advertising, and unfair or deceptive business practice claims.

Tim is an experienced guide for companies struggling with regulatory complexity. He offers clear advice that helps his clients meet the demands of the ever-growing set of laws and regulations governing data privacy and cybersecurity, advertising and marketing practices, and consumer financial products and services. Clients rely on Tim’s business-minded and practical strategies to address their most difficult regulatory compliance challenges.

A graduate of the University of Chicago and Stanford Law School, Tim is a prolific author and regularly speaks to industry and trade groups about the evolving privacy landscape, about cutting-edge issues affecting payments and fintech companies, and about developments at the FTC, the CFPB, and within the state attorneys general community.

On Nov. 7, 2023, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) released a proposed rule that would, if finalized in its present form, establish the CFPB’s supervisory authority over certain “larger

Continue Reading CFPB Unveils Plan to Supervise Big Tech Digital Wallet and Payment App Providers

On Nov. 1, 2023, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) issued a high-level overview of the topics covered in its proposed Personal Financial Data Rights rule: Fast Facts: Personal Financial

Continue Reading CFPB Issues ‘Fast Facts’ for Proposed Personal Financial Data Rights Rule

On Oct. 26, 2023, the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Texas issued a nationwide injunction prohibiting the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) from implementing or enforcing its

Continue Reading Court Issues Nationwide Stay of CFPB’s Section 1071 Small Business Lending Rule

On Oct. 19, 2023, the CFPB released a proposed rule that, if finalized in its present form, would require covered financial institutions to provide consumers and authorized third parties with

Continue Reading CFPB Issues Proposed ‘Personal Financial Data Rights’ Rule

On Oct. 3, 2023, the U.S. Supreme Court heard oral arguments in Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) v. Community Financial Services Association of America (CFSA) (Docket No. 22-448), a case that raises the question of whether the CFPB’s funding structure, by which it receives funding directly from the Federal Reserve rather than via a congressional appropriation, violates the U.S. Constitution’s Appropriations Clause and, if so, what the appropriate remedy should be.
Continue Reading Supreme Court Hears Oral Argument on Constitutionality of CFPB’s Funding

On Oct. 7, 2023, California Governor Gavin Newsom signed SB 478 into law. When it becomes effective July 1, 2024, the law will amend the CLRA to generally ban so-called

Continue Reading California Bans Hidden Fees, Effective July 1, 2024

In its continued focus on so-called illegal “junk fees,” the CFPB issued an Advisory Opinion on the obligations of large banks and credit unions. The CFPB’s actions arise at a

Continue Reading CFPB Issues Advisory Opinion on ‘Illegal Junk Fees’ By Large Financial Firms

On Aug. 1, 2023, the Maryland Office of Financial Regulation (OFR) published new guidance on Earned Wage Access (EWA) products, intending to provide clarity on how EWA products are viewed

Continue Reading Maryland Office of Financial Regulation Provides Guidance on Earned Wage Access Products