Professionals

Kobi Kennedy Brinson

Partner

Chair, Diversity and Inclusion Committee & Co-Chair, Financial Services Industry Group

Overview
Experience
Credentials
Insights & News

Drawing from prior experience managing complex litigation and regulatory enforcement matters at some of the nation’s largest financial institutions, Kobi offers clients invaluable business insight to help them navigate issues arising in government regulatory enforcement inquiries and investigations, as well as class action matters. Her extensive experience has led her to be recognized in both Chambers USA and The Best Lawyers in America^®.

Kobi defends financial services and other clients in government regulatory enforcement inquiries and investigations, as well as class action litigation. She has spent more than 20 years defending corporate clients as both in-house counsel for some of the nation’s largest financial institutions and as outside counsel to corporate clients nationwide.

Her heightened sensitivity to the business objectives and needs of her clients has led to Kobi's successful handling of regulatory and investigative matters on behalf of her global financial institution clients as well as smaller organizations undergoing governmental scrutiny. She has extensive experience dealing with the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) and continues to focus her practice on helping clients navigate that agency’s complex investigative process.

She has defended numerous clients against investigations by state Attorneys General and has provided advice and counsel for investigations and legal processes by the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC), Federal Trade Commission (FTC), and Department of Justice (DOJ).

In addition to her regulatory practice, Kobi represents clients in class action litigation with a concentration on consumer lending and retail banking issues, including a focus on issues related to alleged systemic bias in banking and lending practices and processes. She uses her in-depth knowledge of consumer banking and lending to dismantle plaintiffs’ claims, while obtaining favorable rulings on motions to dismiss and motions for summary judgment. As an attorney with deep experience in adverse litigation and investigatory matters, Kobi also counsels clients facing media and, in some cases, Congressional scrutiny.

Kobi is also a member of the Bank Receivership Task Force, created in March of 2023.

Prior to joining Winston, Kobi was Senior Vice President and Assistant General Counsel at both Bank of America and Wells Fargo, where she coordinated responses to consumer regulatory enforcement actions from prudential and other regulators, including the CFPB, DOJ, and state Attorneys General. She has directed responsive strategy for hundreds of individual and class action litigation matters.

Key Matters

Successfully avoided threatened federal regulatory enforcement action after conducting an internal investigation for a large financial institution.
Represents a large financial institution in nationwide internal investigations and threatened enforcement actions from multiple federal and state agencies.
Conducted an in-depth deposition ultimately leading to the dismissal of a California class action claim.
Obtained dismissal with prejudice of False Claims Act qui tam actions against three major financial institutions.
Successfully represented a nationwide foreclosure trustee in a state Attorney General investigation.
Successfully represented a large energy-related company in an FTC investigation.
Provides oversight and training for attorneys nationwide handling small claims trials for a major financial institution.