The NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund (LDF) has appointed Coty Montag, an experienced civil rights attorney, as Deputy Director of Litigation.
Coty Montag is a graduate of the Georgetown University Law Center and the University of Florida. Prior to joining LDF, Coty served as Deputy Chief of the Housing and Civil Enforcement Section of the Civil Rights Division at the United States Department of Justice. Prior to her service at the Department, Coty was an Associate at Robbins Geller Rudman & Dowd LLP in San Diego, California, where she focused on fair lending, consumer protection, and antitrust class action litigation on behalf of individual and institutional plaintiffs.
As part of the Housing Section’s Fair Lending Unit at the Department of Justice, Coty investigated and litigated matters arising out of the Fair Housing Act (FHA) and Equal Credit Opportunity Act (ECOA). Her cases include United States v. Ally Financial Inc. and Ally Bank (E.D. Mich. 2013), the government’s largest-ever auto discrimination settlement; United States v. Synchrony Bank, f/k/a GE Capital Retail Bank (D. Utah 2014), the government’s largest-ever credit card discrimination settlement; and United States v. Wells Fargo Bank (D.D.C. 2012), a major fair lending investigation resulting in a $234.3 million settlement. During Coty’s tenure, the Fair Lending Unit obtained nearly $1 billion in relief for individual borrowers and impacted communities in settlements under the FHA and ECOA. In 2013 Coty received the Attorney General’s Distinguished Service Award, the second highest award for Department employees. In 2012 and 2014 she received the Assistant Attorney General’s Distinguished Service Award.
“It is a true privilege to join LDF as Deputy Director of Litigation,” said Ms. Montag “As we all know, civil rights challenges endure, and recent events across the country have brought into stark focus the issues of injustice, exploitation, and unfairness faced by countless communities. I am honored to serve on behalf of the nation’s premier civil and human rights organization in the ongoing fight toward a more inclusive and just society.”
“As Deputy Director of Litigation, Coty will play a critical role in advancing LDF’s mission on the broad fronts that impact so many people in our country who have been shut out of the American Dream,” said Sherrilyn Ifill, President and Director-Counsel of LDF. “Coty brings unique expertise in matters of economic justice and has already demonstrated the talent and capacity needed to take on complex cases and score important victories. Her experience will strengthen LDF’s ability to continue elevating the public’s consciousness on issues of race and discrimination.”
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The NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund, Inc. (LDF) is not a part of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) although LDF was founded by the NAACP and shares its commitment to equal rights. Since 1957, LDF has been a completely separate organization. Please refer to us in all media attributions as the “NAACP Legal Defense Fund” or “LDF”.
