- Represented mortgage lenders, automobile lenders, and credit card issuers in federal and state agency investigations and enforcement actions brought under the Equal Credit Opportunity Act (ECOA).
- Represented mortgage lenders and appraisal management companies in federal investigations brought under the Fair Housing Act.
- Assisted clients with CFPB examinations and best practices for compliance with federal consumer financial laws.
- Counseled financial institutions on a variety of regulatory issues, including fair lending, licensing, compensation, disclosures, lead generation, financial privacy, anti-money laundering, and advertising.
- Assisted clients with rolling out new financial products and services, such as credit monitoring, overdraft protection, and mobile wallet access, in compliance with financial regulatory requirements.
Counsel,
- Phone: +1 202 239 3731
- Email: melissa.malpass@alston.com
Financial services clients rely on and trust Melissa’s guidance when it comes to regulatory compliance and enforcement matters that may arise from their mortgage lending and mortgage servicing activities.
Melissa Malpass advises financial institutions on compliance with federal and state consumer financial laws. She regularly counsels mortgage lenders on loan origination, including disclosures, loan originator compensation, ability-to-repay standards, and other requirements imposed by the Truth in Lending Act (TILA), Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act (RESPA), and Title XIV of the Dodd–Frank Act. Melissa also advises mortgage servicers on compliance with federal and state regulations governing loss mitigation and foreclosure.
Melissa has extensive experience counseling financial institutions on fair lending matters, specifically with developing internal policies and procedures for compliance monitoring and training. She has advised financial institutions on regulatory compliance with federal consumer financial laws such as the prohibition on unfair, deceptive, and abusive practices. In particular, she provided financial technology companies with regulatory guidance on emerging payment systems and requirements under the Electronic Funds Transfer Act (EFTA).
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Speaking Engagement May 14–17, 2025MBA’s 2025 Legal Issues and Regulatory Compliance ConferenceNanci Weissgold, Anoush Garakani, and Melissa Malpass speak during this conference sponsored by the Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA).Speaking Engagement May 14–17, 2025MBA’s 2025 Legal Issues and Regulatory Compliance ConferenceNanci Weissgold, Anoush Garakani, and Melissa Malpass speak during this conference sponsored by the Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA).
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Blog Posts April 30, 2025The End of Disparate Impact Liability?
On April 23, 2025, President Trump signed an Executive Order entitled “Restoring Equality of Opportunity and Meritocracy,” which seeks to “eliminate the use of disparate-impact liability in all contexts to the maximum degree possible.” This sweeping eradication of the disparate impact theory is not surprising. Indeed, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) under the first […]
The post The End of Disparate Impact Liability? appeared first on Of Interest.
Blog Posts April 30, 2025The End of Disparate Impact Liability?On April 23, 2025, President Trump signed an Executive Order entitled “Restoring Equality of Opportunity and Meritocracy,” which seeks to “eliminate the use of disparate-impact liability in all contexts to the maximum degree possible.” This sweeping eradication of the disparate impact theory is not surprising. Indeed, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) under the first […]
The post The End of Disparate Impact Liability? appeared first on Of Interest.
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Blog Posts February 4, 2025DEI in Lending: Are Special Purpose Credit Programs About to DIE?
For the last several years, federal agencies, including the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (“CFPB”), have been strongly encouraging financial institutions to implement and offer targeted credit assistance to historically underserved communities as one way to remedy the effects of redlining. Not surprisingly, in accordance with the prior Administration’s Combatting Redlining Initiative, every one of the […]
The post DEI in Lending: Are Special Purpose Credit Programs About to DIE? appeared first on Of Interest.
Blog Posts February 4, 2025DEI in Lending: Are Special Purpose Credit Programs About to DIE?For the last several years, federal agencies, including the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (“CFPB”), have been strongly encouraging financial institutions to implement and offer targeted credit assistance to historically underserved communities as one way to remedy the effects of redlining. Not surprisingly, in accordance with the prior Administration’s Combatting Redlining Initiative, every one of the […]
The post DEI in Lending: Are Special Purpose Credit Programs About to DIE? appeared first on Of Interest.
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Blog Posts January 9, 2025FHFA Announces UDAP Compliance Expectations
What Happened? On November 29, 2024, the Federal Housing Finance Agency (“FHFA”) released Advisory Bulletin AB 2024-06 (the “Advisory Bulletin”), which sets forth FHFA’s expectations and guidance for Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac (the “GSEs”) and the Federal Home Loan Banks (collectively, the “Regulated Entities”) regarding compliance with the prohibition against unfair and deceptive acts or […]
The post FHFA Announces UDAP Compliance Expectations appeared first on Of Interest.
Blog Posts January 9, 2025FHFA Announces UDAP Compliance ExpectationsWhat Happened? On November 29, 2024, the Federal Housing Finance Agency (“FHFA”) released Advisory Bulletin AB 2024-06 (the “Advisory Bulletin”), which sets forth FHFA’s expectations and guidance for Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac (the “GSEs”) and the Federal Home Loan Banks (collectively, the “Regulated Entities”) regarding compliance with the prohibition against unfair and deceptive acts or […]
The post FHFA Announces UDAP Compliance Expectations appeared first on Of Interest.
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Blog Posts June 13, 2024CFPB Seeks Permanent Enforcement – Will this Further its Repeat Offender Agenda?
What Happened? On May 31, 2024, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) sued student loan servicer Pennsylvania Higher Education Assistance Agency (PHEAA) for illegally collecting on student loans that have been discharged in bankruptcy and sending false information about consumers to credit reporting companies, in violation of the Consumer Financial Protection Act (CFPA) and the […]
The post CFPB Seeks Permanent Enforcement – Will this Further its Repeat Offender Agenda? appeared first on Of Interest.
Blog Posts June 13, 2024CFPB Seeks Permanent Enforcement – Will this Further its Repeat Offender Agenda?What Happened? On May 31, 2024, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) sued student loan servicer Pennsylvania Higher Education Assistance Agency (PHEAA) for illegally collecting on student loans that have been discharged in bankruptcy and sending false information about consumers to credit reporting companies, in violation of the Consumer Financial Protection Act (CFPA) and the […]
The post CFPB Seeks Permanent Enforcement – Will this Further its Repeat Offender Agenda? appeared first on Of Interest.
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Speaking Engagement May 5–8, 2024MBA Legal Issues and Regulatory Compliance ConferenceMelissa Malpass will be speaking on the May 8 panel “Closing Super Session” at this conference sponsored by the Mortgage Bankers Association.Speaking Engagement May 5–8, 2024MBA Legal Issues and Regulatory Compliance ConferenceMelissa Malpass will be speaking on the May 8 panel “Closing Super Session” at this conference sponsored by the Mortgage Bankers Association.
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Blog Posts April 26, 2024Appraisal Bias Settlement: Potential Roadmap
What Happened? The lender and consumers reached a settlement in an appraisal bias case, Nathan Connolly and Shani Mott v. Shane Lanham, 20/20 Valuations, LLC, and loanDepot.com, LLC, filed in Maryland District Court, that gained the attention of the CFPB and DOJ. While some of the terms in the settlement are already industry standard, there appear to […]
The post Appraisal Bias Settlement: Potential Roadmap appeared first on Alston & Bird Consumer Finance ABstract.
Blog Posts April 26, 2024Appraisal Bias Settlement: Potential RoadmapWhat Happened? The lender and consumers reached a settlement in an appraisal bias case, Nathan Connolly and Shani Mott v. Shane Lanham, 20/20 Valuations, LLC, and loanDepot.com, LLC, filed in Maryland District Court, that gained the attention of the CFPB and DOJ. While some of the terms in the settlement are already industry standard, there appear to […]
The post Appraisal Bias Settlement: Potential Roadmap appeared first on Alston & Bird Consumer Finance ABstract.
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General Publications April 25, 2024“Bracing For the CFPB’s War on Mortgage Fees,” Law360, April 25, 2024.This article discusses how the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau's initiative to reduce fees charged by banks and other companies under its jurisdiction is not only continuing, but gathering momentum.General Publications April 25, 2024“Bracing For the CFPB’s War on Mortgage Fees,” Law360, April 25, 2024.This article discusses how the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau's initiative to reduce fees charged by banks and other companies under its jurisdiction is not only continuing, but gathering momentum.
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Speaking Engagement April 4, 2024The Intersection of Pricing Concessions and Fair LendingNanci Weissgold and Melissa Malpass will speak on “The Intersection of Pricing Concessions and Fair Lending” during this webinar sponsored by MBA.Speaking Engagement April 4, 2024The Intersection of Pricing Concessions and Fair LendingNanci Weissgold and Melissa Malpass will speak on “The Intersection of Pricing Concessions and Fair Lending” during this webinar sponsored by MBA.
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Blog Posts March 18, 2024CFPB’s War on Mortgage Fees Continues
What Happened? Immediately following President Biden’s State of the Union Address announcing plans to lower homebuyer and refinancing costs, the CFPB issued a blog post seeking public input on how mortgage closing costs impact consumers. The CFPB also announced that it will work to monitor closing costs and, “as necessary, issue rules and guidance to improve […]
The post CFPB’s War on Mortgage Fees Continues appeared first on Alston & Bird Consumer Finance ABstract.
Blog Posts March 18, 2024CFPB’s War on Mortgage Fees ContinuesWhat Happened? Immediately following President Biden’s State of the Union Address announcing plans to lower homebuyer and refinancing costs, the CFPB issued a blog post seeking public input on how mortgage closing costs impact consumers. The CFPB also announced that it will work to monitor closing costs and, “as necessary, issue rules and guidance to improve […]
The post CFPB’s War on Mortgage Fees Continues appeared first on Alston & Bird Consumer Finance ABstract.
Languages
- Spanish
- French
Bar Admissions
- District of Columbia
- Florida (Inactive)
Education
- Georgetown University (J.D., 2005)
- University of Miami (B.S., 2002)
Memberships
- American Bar Association
- Hispanic National Bar Association
- Women in Housing and Finance