Tarpley Law PLLC
Sophisticated regulatory and compliance counsel for financial services companies — from product launch through examination.
Practice Areas and Expertise
Consumer Financial Law & Regulatory Strategy
Stay compliant and build compliance management strategies that reduce risk, prevent violations, and protect your reputation.
I help financial institutions, fintechs, and money service businesses navigate the full arc of consumer financial regulation — from pre-launch product analysis through ongoing supervisory relationships. With direct experience at federal financial regulators, I bring examiner-level insight to compliance program design, risk assessment, and regulatory strategy. Whether you're building a compliance framework from scratch or managing a relationship with a state or federal regulator, I provide counsel grounded in how regulators actually think.
Examination Readiness & Supervisory Support
Prepare for regulatory scrutiny before it arrives and navigate examinations with confidence when it does. SPACE SPACE SPACE
Regulatory examinations are high-stakes — and the institutions that fare best are the ones that prepare before the examiner arrives. I provide end-to-end examination support: assessing the strength of your compliance management system, identifying gaps before regulators do, managing document requests and internal coordination during an exam, and drafting responses to findings. I also conduct mock examinations and exam stress-testing exercises to ensure your team is ready when it matters most.
Privacy, Data Security, & Technology Law
Stay ahead of evolving privacy and data security obligations with practical legal guidance that satisfies regulators and protects your customers.
As a Certified Information Privacy Professional (CIPP/US), I help regulated entities comply with the GLBA Safeguards Rule, state privacy laws, and emerging data governance obligations. From vendor agreement review and TPRM documentation to breach response frameworks and AI governance, I provide practical legal guidance that satisfies regulatory expectations without slowing down operations.
Contracts, Agreements, & Regulatory Documentation
Protect your business with well-drafted agreements, clear consumer disclosures, and regulatory documents built to withstand scrutiny.
I draft and negotiate the agreements that financial services companies depend on — user agreements, consumer disclosures, fintech partnership agreements, BaaS and program agreements, MSAs, NDAs, and vendor contracts. I also prepare regulatory submissions, legal opinions, and compliance memoranda for client-facing and examiner-facing use.
Services
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For companies that need senior legal expertise without in-house overhead. I serve as an embedded legal partner — advising on compliance strategy, contracts, regulatory risk, privacy, and product development. I bring over a decade of financial services experience, including federal regulatory roles and in-house work at a leading credit union, to every engagement.
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I advise entrepreneurs and founders on entity formation, governance documents, and the regulatory considerations that come with operating in financial services and other heavily regulated spaces. Whether you're launching a fintech, a financial services firm, or a regulated small business, I help you build the legal foundation that supports long-term growth.
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Getting licensed is the beginning, not the end. Newly licensed money transmitters, bank charter holders, and fintech operators face immediate regulatory expectations they may not be equipped to meet. I help companies build the compliance infrastructure — policies, procedures, controls, and documentation — that regulators expect to see from day one of supervision.
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A CMS assessment evaluates your full compliance infrastructure against examination standards — board oversight, program design, complaint management, and audit function. For more targeted needs, I also conduct issue- and product-specific legal reviews: assessing whether a particular product, agreement, or practice meets applicable regulatory requirements. Both start with the same question: where do you actually stand?
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I assess your compliance management system against regulatory standards, identify vulnerabilities before an examiner does, and work with your team to close gaps. For companies preparing for first examinations or heading into a known supervisory review, I conduct mock examinations and stress-testing exercises that simulate the real thing.
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I develop and deliver training for state financial regulators and institution compliance teams on consumer financial law, UDAP/UDAAP, payments regulation, exam fundamentals, and emerging products including BNPL and digital assets. Training is available as live instruction, custom curriculum development, or subject matter expert engagements.
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I draft and negotiate user agreements, consumer disclosures, fintech partnership agreements, BaaS agreements, vendor contracts, and MSAs. I also prepare regulatory submissions and policy documents for internal and external audiences.
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I provide formal written legal opinions on regulatory applicability, product compliance, and supervisory risk — designed to be relied upon by boards, partners, investors, and regulators.
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