| BENJAMIN M. KAHRL | PRINCIPAL |
| The Wisconsin Building | Commercial Litigation |
| 4435 Wisconsin Avenue, NW - Suite 100 | Consumer Finance Litigation |
| Washington, DC 20016 | Regulatory Compliance |
| TEL (202) 374-3475 • FAX (866) 581-9302 | |
| BKahrl@kw-llp.com |
Benjamin Kahrl is a commercial litigator whose practice focuses on representing depository and non-depository mortgage lenders, as well as mortgage loan servicers, mortgage loan investors, and other consumer lending industry participants. Benjamin represents the lending industry as a litigator, and as regulatory compliance counsel.
Benjamin has successfully litigated a broad array of commercial disputes in federal and state courts, in matters involving real estate, intellectual property, government contracts, employment law, international trade, civil rights, and insurance coverage. He has been victorious in actions in trial courts, appellate courts, and administrative agencies.
Prior to joining the firm, Benjamin served as Senior Counsel for MERSCORP, Inc., the parent company of MERS. He played a critical role in defending MERS from legal challenges to its ability to record security instruments, its standing in foreclosure and bankruptcy matters, and its exposure to federal and state lending statutes. Benjamin oversaw hundreds of cases for MERS, provided guidance to in-house lawyers for leading companies in the mortgage banking industry, and drafted briefs and other pleadings for outside counsel around the country.
Benjamin is a frequent speaker on legal and technology issues for the mortgage banking industry, having given presentations to the American College of Mortgage Attorneys, the American Legal and Financial Network, the USFN, the Federal Trade Commission and the annual membership conferences hosted by MERS. He is the co-author of "Can Reckless Mortgage Underwriting Practices Constitute a Defect in Title?," 16 Business Torts Journal 3 (Spring 2009). He was a featured lecturer for the American Bar Association teleconference "Title Insurer v. Lender Amidst the Foreclosure Crisis," and has co-taught a CLE to title lawyers for the Rhode Island Bar. He teaches real property law for the Institute for U.S. Law at George Washington University Law School, and has appeared as a guest legal expert on the "Tomorrow's Business" radio program in Washington, D.C.
Benjamin received his Juris Doctor from the University of Pennsylvania Law School, where he competed for the school's successful teams in the National Trial Competition and the Jessup Cup International Law Moot Court Competition. He received his undergraduate degree from the University of California at Los Angeles, graduating summa cum laude. Benjamin is a member of the Mortgage Bankers Association, the American Bar Association, and the Conference on Consumer Finance Law.
He is licensed to practice in the District of Columbia, Maryland, New Jersey and New York. He is admitted to practice in several federal courts, including the United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit, the United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit, the United States District Court of Maryland, the United States District Court of New Jersey, and the Court of Federal Claims.