Online Roundtable: Auto Fraud in Legal Aid Setting

Angel Rose Kwaterski is the Consumer Law Priority Coordinator at Legal Action of Wisconsin and is currently based in their Oshkosh, Wisconsin office. Angel provides oversight, mentorship and training related to all consumer matters that the firm assists with. In addition to her role as Priority Coordinator, she is a staff attorney within the Elder Rights Project where she provides legal representation to Wisconsin residents aged 60 or older who are victims of crimes as it relates to housing, family, and consumer law issues. Angel specializes in consumer related issues such as auto fraud, financial exploitation, debt collection matters and bankruptcy. Angel received her Bachelor of Arts from Marquette University in 2013 and her Juris Doctor from The John Marshall Law School, now known as UIC John Marshall Law School in 2016.

Hilary Nat is the Assistant Managing Attorney of the Consumer Unit at Northeast NJ Legal Services.   She helps oversee the attorneys and paralegals in the unit.  Ms. Nat regularly practices in the area of Automobile Fraud.  She has created lectures on this topic for the public and for her organization to help everyone understand the issues involved in this area.   Ms. Nat also assists clients with debt collection, credit reporting, breach of contract, consumer fraud, and bankruptcy issues. Ms. Nat obtained her law degree at Thomas Cooley Law School and her undergraduate degree at State University of New York at Stony Brook.  

James A. Kowalski, Jr. has served as the President and CEO of Jacksonville Area Legal Aid since December 2012. A graduate of UC Berkeley and the University of San Francisco School of Law, Jim served as an Assistant State Attorney in the Fourth Judicial Circuit from 1989-1996 before moving into a civil trial practice; he has tried more than 60 civil and criminal jury trials to verdict. Jim was one of the first consumer lawyers in the nation to uncover the mortgage banking practice of “robo-signing” (the Wall Street Journal blamed him for causing the housing crisis) and in December 2010, he testified before the United States House of Representatives Committee on the Judiciary on the topic of “Foreclosed Justice: Causes and Effects of the Foreclosure Crisis.” Jim was named “Consumer Protection Lawyer of the Year” in 2011 by the Consumer Protection Law Committee of the Florida Bar. He is the recipient of the 2014 Haas Public Service Award from UC Berkeley and in June 2016, Jim received the Florida Bar Foundation President’s Award for Excellence. In October 2018, Jim was named the “Consumer Advocate of the Year” by the National Association of Consumer Advocates.