Hinshaw & Culbertson LLP is delighted to announce that partner Brian McGrath is among the honorees selected by The New York Law Journal as Distinguished Leaders in the 2025 New York Legal Awards.

Hinshaw & Culbertson LLP, a U.S.-based law firm with offices nationwide, today announced that Brian McGrath, partner and co-leader of the firm’s Consumer Financial Services practice group, has been appointed to serve on the firm’s Management Committee.

U.S. law firm Hinshaw & Culbertson LLP is pleased to announce that partner Brian McGrath, co-chair of the firm’s Consumer Financial Services practice group, has been selected by Crain’s New York Business for its 2024 list of Notable LGBTQIA+ Leaders.

Read Brian McGrath's profile by the New York Law Journal discussing some of his proudest recent professional accomplishments, how working with Jeffrey Kessler of Winston & Strawn helped inspire his own approach to leadership, and the importance of hard work and learning from your failures as a lawyer.

Hinshaw partner Brian McGrath was recently featured in a Newsday article reporting on the newly enacted New York Foreclosure Abuse Prevention Act's potential impact on homeowners in the state. McGrath stated that while the law aims to protect homeowners, it could adversely affect borrowers because lenders will have less flexibility to take time to work out a deal with borrowers facing foreclosure,

In a pair of national media articles, Hinshaw partner Brian McGrath reacted to news that Governor Kathy Hochul has signed the New York Foreclosure Abuse Prevention Act into law. The new law significantly narrows the circumstances where the statute of limitations for mortgage foreclosure actions can be re-set or extended.

Hinshaw partners Sam Bodurtha, Lauren Campisi, Brian McGrath, Stephanie Mulcahy, and Charles Townsend will present at the Mortgage Bankers Association's Legal Issues and Regulatory Compliance Conference, which will take place in San Diego, California, from May 14 to 17, 2025.

Join industry-leading automotive finance attorneys in Chicago on May 1, 2025, for a day-long complimentary seminar on the latest federal and state developments impacting consumer and commercial lending within the industry.

Hinshaw partners Lauren Campisi, Schuyler Kraus, Brian McGrath, Maura McKelvey, and Akeela White will present at the Mortgage Bankers Association's premier conference on Legal Issues and Regulatory Compliance. The conference will take place in San Diego, California, from May 5th to 8th, 2024. Hinshaw is a sponsor of the event, which is designed for legal and compliance professionals working in real estate finance. Attendees will receive the latest information on regulatory initiatives, litigation, legislation, and enforcement activity that affects the industry. The conference will also have interactive sessions to ensure an engaging experience for the participants.

Hinshaw Partner Brian McGrath will present at the Annual Advocacy Conference presented by the New York Mortgage Bank Association (New York MBA). McGrath’s presentation—titled “Anti-Engel Proposed Legislation (S.5473D/A.7737B) and S.2143/A.2428”—will discuss how these proposed bills would change existing laws and rules that govern mortgage foreclosures, the statute of limitations, potential impacts to default servicers, and the foreclosure process.

Increased regulatory enforcement is on the horizon. Foreclosure activities will eventually resume. Consumer litigation will follow.

On May 5, 2021, the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia struck down the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's nationwide eviction moratorium. According to the court, the CDC exceeded the scope of its authority under the Public Health Services Act, 42 U.S.C. § 264(a) (PHSA) when it enacted the "Temporary Halt in Residential Evictions to Prevent the Further Spread of COVID-19" (CDC Order). The decision could have wide-reaching ramifications and set a precedent for challenges to various eviction and foreclosure moratoriums across the country.

Last year, as we reported, the Second Circuit requested that the New York Court of Appeals rule on two certified questions concerning predicate notices in foreclosure actions. On March 30, 2021, the Court of Appeals issued its decision in Schiffman on the questions certified by the Second Circuit concerning New York Real Property Actions and Proceedings Law (RPAPL) §§ 1304 (90-day predicate notice) and 1306 (pre-foreclosure filing with the superintendent of banks).

The New York Court of Appeals reversed four Appellate Division decisions and decided in favor of the mortgagees in a consolidated decision issued on February 18, 2021, ruling, inter alia, that:

In anticipation of the expiration of federal COVID-19 pandemic foreclosure protections, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau has issued a final rule amending its federal mortgage servicing regulations. Among other changes, effective from August 31, 2021 through December 31, 2021, a borrower must be given an opportunity by the mortgage servicer to explore all available loss mitigation options before a foreclosure proceeding can be commenced on a borrower's principal residence. The final rule also gives servicers greater flexibility to offer borrowers COVID-19-related streamlined loan modifications, creates new, temporary early intervention requirements for live contact, and clarifies how to exercise reasonable diligence with respect to incomplete loss mitigation applications related to COVID-19.