I have been involved in advising lenders on the operation of various credit regimes since the mid 1990s. I was, by invitation, a member of a Commonwealth Treasury Stakeholder Consultation Group which provided assistance to Treasury during the years leading up to the enactment and commencement of the National Consumer Credit Protection Act 2009.
I was the in-house counsel for a national credit provider for 10 years until 2010, and since then have represented a wide range of lenders operating under the National Consumer Credit Protection Act. These lenders have come from all states of Australia, New Zealand, the United States, and Europe.
I have acted in all areas relating to lending including:-
- making applications for Australian Credit Licences;
- making application for variation of Australian Credit Licences;
- dealing with ASIC in relation to investigations and enquiries on behalf of lenders;
- appeals (up to and including Full Court of the Federal Court of Australia) relating to decisions relating to ASIC;
- negotiating on behalf of lenders with ASIC in respect to enforcement activity against lenders;
- drawing documents (including contracts, statutory notices and standard form letters) for lenders;
- advising lenders in relation to compliance issues relating to the National Consumer Credit Protection Act, the Privacy Act, the Anti-money Laundering and Counterterrorism Financing Act, and other relevant codes, practices and regulations;
- assisting lenders in matters relating to interaction with EDR schemes, consumer representatives and a range of regulators, including the ACCC and state Offices of Fair Trading;
- conducting compliance audits (including as an external compliance consultant pursuant to an enforceable undertaking or licence condition, and
- providing business advice of a general nature of the lenders.
I was actively involved in the formation of an association of lenders which eventually became the National Credit Providers Association Ltd, of which I was a founding director. I resigned my directorship in January 2017.
I am the author of a number of guides provided by the National Credit Providers Association to its members, and have spoken at a number of conferences in relation to legal aspects of lending.
I believe, therefore, that I have a wide range of experience which would be invaluable to lenders either looking to enter the market, or currently in the market and needing some guidance as to compliance.