Jim McGarry, a partner in the firm’s Litigation Group, specializes in complex commercial litigation, with an emphasis on the defense of financial institutions in consumer class actions and enforcement actions and complex business litigation.
WORK FOR CLIENTS
As a member of the firm’s Consumer Financial Services Litigation Practice, Mr. McGarry has defended against putative state and nationwide class actions and multi-district class actions around the country. These cases typically arise under the Truth in Lending Act (TILA), the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA), the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA), the Real Estate Settlement Procedure Act (RESPA), fair lending and anti-discrimination statutes such as the Equal Credit Opportunity Act (ECOA) and the Fair Housing Act (FHA), as well as state unfair and deceptive trade practices acts, the Bankruptcy Code and predatory lending statutes. He has also represented clients on a variety of business and transaction-related disputes, such as post-closing disputes, breach of fiduciary duty claims and enforcement of non-competition covenants and trade secret litigation.
Some of Mr. McGarry’s recent cases include representing national banks and mortgage lending companies in fair lending and predatory lending-based class actions, in private and state Attorney General lawsuits challenging subprime or “unfair” lending practices and in consumer class actions challenging a variety of loan servicing and loan modification practices and challenging the propriety of foreclosure documentation practices. He has represented national banks and lenders in lawsuits brought by various municipalities across the country based on a number of statutes and common law liability theories.
Mr. McGarry also recently represented a major search engine company in a class action alleging “click fraud.” In addition, he provides advice and litigation-avoidance counseling to a variety of nationwide banks, credit card issuers and other consumer and commercial lenders. Mr. McGarry has also been involved in various client internal investigations concerning potential securities violations and other purported fraud.
PROFESSIONAL ACTIVITIES
Mr. McGarry is a member of the American, Massachusetts and Boston Bar Associations. He is on the Board of Directors of the Massachusetts Appleseed Center for Law and Justice, and is actively involved with the Mortgage Banker’s Association.
MEDIA
Mr. McGarry has written and spoken on a variety of topics pertaining to financial services and class action litigation, including the Credit Card Accountability, Responsibility and Disclosure Act of 2009 (CARD), issues of federal preemption and the enforceability of arbitration provisions in the class action context.
PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE
Prior to joining Goodwin Procter in 1996, Mr. McGarry was an associate at Pepper Hamilton LLP, where he focused on general commercial litigation. He was senior litigation counsel to US Filter Corporation from July 2000 until he re-joined the firm in February 2002.
BAR AND COURT ADMISSIONS
Mr. McGarry is a member of the Massachusetts, Pennsylvania and New Jersey state bars. He is also admitted to practice before the U.S. District Courts for the District of Massachusetts, Eastern District of Pennsylvania, District of New Jersey and Eastern and Western Districts of Michigan, as well as the Courts of Appeal for the First, Third and Sixth Circuits. Mr. McGarry has been specially admitted to practice in state and federal courts across the country.