The nation's consumer financial watchdog shuffled its staff on Monday as a top official departed for the private sector.
Leonard Chanin, a senior lawyer who oversaw regulation at the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, will join the law firm Morrison & Foerster. In turn, the bureau announced that Kelly Thompson Cochran, one of Mr. Chanin's deputies, will take his spot.
The bureau on Monday also filled top legal positions, the latest roster changes at the two-year-old federal agency. Deepak Gupta, an enforcement official at the agency, recently departed. And in January, President Obama used a Congressional recess to appoint Richard Cordray as the agency's leader, ending a contentious battle with Republican lawmakers who opposed the nomination.
“I am pleased to announce these new additions and updates to the C.F.P.B. leadership team,†Mr. Cordray said in a statement on Monday. “We look forward to welcoming them as we continue to work on behalf of th e American consumer.â€
A cornerstone of the Dodd-Frank regulatory overhaul, the bureau is responsible for rooting out wrongdoing in the mortgage industry, credit card business and in other financial products. The agency oversees big Wall Street banks as well as the darker corners of the financial industry, like payday lenders.
The personnel changes at the bureau follow Mr. Chanin's departure, which Morrison & Foerster announced last week. It will be his second stint with the firm. At the bureau, Mr. Chanin was tasked with writing dozens of consumer protection rules for the financial industry.
“Leonard will return to us with important insights and broad experience on consumer regulation, having been at the center of regulatory developments in a time of great change in this important area,†Rick Fischer, co-head of the financial services practice at Morrison & Foerster, said in a statement last week.
In addition to naming Ms. Thompson Cochran as his replacement, the bureau said on Monday that it had hired Chris Lipsett as senior counsel in the Office of the Director. He joined the agency from the law firm Wilmer Cutler Pickering Hale & Dorr, where he was a partner.
The bureau also promoted Stephen Van Meter, currently a lawyer for the bureau, to deputy general counsel, and named Delicia Reynolds Hand the new staff director for the Consumer Advisory Board and Councils. She was previously the legislative director for the National Association of Consumer Advocates.
