Dr. Patricia Wolfe

Dr. Patricia Wolfe covers the legal and regulatory landscape for TribalInstallmentLoans.com, with a specific focus on the doctrine of tribal sovereign immunity and how it applies — and doesn't apply — to consumer lending. Her articles walk readers through the arm-of-the-tribe test, the Military Lending Act's 36% APR cap, and the federal statutes (TILA, EFTA, FDCPA) that continue to govern tribal lenders regardless of sovereignty.

She is particularly attentive to rent-a-tribe arrangements and the warning signs consumers can use to distinguish a genuine tribal lending operation from a storefront using tribal affiliation as a regulatory shield.