Photo of Gabriella E. Alonso

Gabriella Alonso advises clients on financial services matters, as well as corporate disputes. She prepares submissions for state and federal courts and helps clients as they progress through each stage of litigation.

In law school, Gabriella served as a student case worker for the Advanced Administrative Litigation Clinic, where she assisted coal miners and surviving family members pursue claims for Federal Black Lung benefits.

FDIC-insured depository institutions seeking CRA credit opportunities may be eligible to apply for funding to further impact the distressed communities they serve. On March 31, 2023, the Department of Treasury’s Community Development Financial Institutions Fund (CDFI Fund) opened its fiscal year 2023 funding applications for its Bank Enterprise Award (BEA) Program. This year’s program includes

CFPB Auto Finance Consent Order: A Sign of Things to Come for Add-On Products?On May 21, 2021, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) and 3rd Generation, Inc. d/b/a California Auto Finance entered into a Consent Order in which the CFPB alleged unfair acts or practices in connection with an auto finance add-on product.

What was the add-on product?

According to the Consent Order, 3rd Generation purchases and services

New York Clarifies Mortgage Loan Acceleration and De-Acceleration: Starting and Stopping the Limitations ClockOn February 18, 2021, the New York Court of Appeals’ consolidated resolution of four cases that answered two critical questions concerning the application of the statute of limitations in New York mortgage foreclosure actions: What constitutes a valid acceleration such that the six-year “clock” is started and what actions constitute a valid “de-acceleration” of a

Acting Director David Uejio Issues Warning: CFPB Will Take Aggressive Action with Regard to COVID-19 On January 28, 2021, Acting Director David Uejio of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) confirmed the CFPB’s new, aggressive approach to enforcement of COVID-19-related matters. Uejio’s statement, posted as a blog, addresses several areas of concern discovered during last year’s Prioritized Assessments, including:

  • Mortgage servicers providing inaccurate information about CARES Act forbearances, failing

OCC Proposes Clarification to True Lender DoctrineEarlier this week, the OCC released a proposed rule designed to address the “true lender” doctrine, a legal test utilized by courts and regulators to determine whether a bank or its non-bank partner is the actual lender in a credit transaction. This doctrine has led to uncertainty in the fintech and bank-partnership spaces, in large

Update on Texas Foreclosures Given Statewide Rise in COVID-19 CasesAs we previously reported in April, Texas’s initial approach to foreclosures in light of the coronavirus was “ad hoc” and the decision whether to halt foreclosures was left to the various counties in which the sales were conducted. Since that time, the state has begun reopening but has seen a rise in the number

A Good Day for Lenders: Texas Supreme Court Rules that Lenders Still Entitled to Equitable Subrogation for Non-compliant Home Equity LoansOn April 24, 2020, the Texas Supreme Court upheld a lender’s right to equitable subrogation for non-compliant home equity loans, ruling that lenders who fail to cure within the statutorily mandated 60-day period may recoup funds paid to satisfy prior liens. The court’s opinion in Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corp. v. Zepeda answered a certified

Foreclosure in the Times of COVID-19: Some Texas Counties Halt Foreclosures for April Amid Coronavirus ConcernsMany of Texas’ largest counties have suspended foreclosures for the month of April amid coronavirus (COVID-19) concerns, including the state’s two largest counties, Harris and Dallas. Texas Gov. Greg Abbott, however, has yet to issue an executive order or make a general proclamation cancelling all foreclosures statewide. Likewise, the Texas Supreme Court has also declined