Wisner, Robert R. - Crain Caton & James

Overview

Robert R. Wisner practices in the areas of banking and financial services, real estate, corporate, and business transactions.

Rob crafts creative solutions for banks and other financial service providers ranging from community banks to large multi-state holding companies, and finance companies. His advice and unique expertise on consumer and commercial lending forms, policies, and procedures are sought not only by financial institutions, but also by forms companies, other lawyers, and regulators.

Since Rob’s entire professional career has been devoted to representing financial service providers, he has a unique ability to draft and negotiate documents that protect his client’s interests. He constantly develops and refines forms to efficiently deliver documents customized to each transaction.

Rob frequently publishes articles, presents seminars, and conducts training on Texas and federal consumer compliance and lending. Since first published in 1992, Mr. Wisner’s book, Usury and Texas Credit Laws, is the “go to” treatise on lending and compliance in Texas; preview the Table of Contents here, or place an order here.

Affiliations

State Bar of Texas, member
Texas Bar Foundation, Sustaining Life Fellow
Southwest Association of Bank Counsel, member
College of the State Bar of Texas, fellow
Endowment Fund Scholar of State Bar College
Texas College of Real Estate Attorneys, member
Conference on Consumer Finance Law, member
Houston Bar Association, member
Houston Bar Foundation, life fellow
American Bar Association, member
- Business Law Section – Committee on Consumer Financial Services
- Business Law Section – Subcommittees on Truth in Lending, Housing Finance and RESPA
- Business Law Section – Committee on Commercial Financial Services
- Business Law Section – Committee on Banking Law
- Business Law Section – Subcommittees on Commercial and Real Estate Lending; and Retail Banking and Consumer Law
- Business Law Section – Committee on Uniform Commercial Code
- Business Law Section – Subcommittee on Secured Transactions
- Real Property, Probate and Trust Law Section Real Estate Division

Community & Civic

Chairman of the Board of Cherish Our Children, Inc., whose programs serve middle school and high school students in Houston experiencing the trauma of parental incarceration.
Led and participated in foreign mission trips for St. Luke’s United Methodist Church in Houston, Texas, served as a trustee of the permanent endowment fund of Christ United Methodist Church in Sugar Land, Texas, raised funds and built homes for Habitat for Humanity in Fort Bend County, served as a volunteer at Covenant House, served on a grant committee for Fort Bend Cares, and served as a Director of Child Advocates of Fort Bend

Honors & Awards

AV Preeminent® Rating, Martindale Hubbell
Best Lawyers in America, Banking and Finance Law, BL Rankings, 2020-2025
Houston Lawyer of the Year – Banking and Finance Law, BL Rankings, 2023
Texas Super Lawyers, Thomson Reuters, 2003, 2007-2010, 2018-2019
Top Lawyers, Houstonia Magazine, 2013-2019
Texas Super Lawyers – Business Edition, Thomson Reuters, 2011

Publications & Presentations

Usury and Texas Credit Laws, author, First (1992) through Fifteenth (2020) Editions, published by the Independent Bankers Association of Texas, 1992 and 1994, and published by Mr. Wisner, 1996, 1999, 2001, 2004, 2006, 2008, 2010, 2012, 2014, 2016, 2018 and 2020. Preview the Table of Contents here, or place an order here
Texas Mortgage Lending Law & Practices Deskbook, co-author, Second Edition, Published by the Texas Mortgage Bankers Association, Chapters: Retail Installment Contracts and Executory Land Contracts, 2006
Residential Real Estate Lending: Applicability of Common Federal Disclosure Requirements, author, Consumer Finance Law Quarterly Report, published by the Conference on Consumer Finance Law, 1986
The Texas Credit Code – 1993 Legislation, author, Consumer Finance Law Quarterly Report, published by the Conference on Consumer Finance Law, 1994
New Texas Predatory Lending Law, author, Consumer Finance Law Quarterly Report, published by the Conference on Consumer Finance Law, 2002
New Texas Consumer Loan Laws and Issues, author, Consumer Finance Law Quarterly Report, published by the Conference on Consumer Finance Law, 2002
Manufactured Home Developments in Texas, author, Consumer Finance Law Quarterly Report, published by the Conference on Consumer Finance Law, 2002
Real Estate Transactions in Texas, author, Consumer Finance Law Quarterly Report, published by the Conference on Consumer Finance Law, 2002
Pre-Payment Penalties and Due-On-Sale Restrictions in Texas Consumer Transactions Under State and Federal Laws, author, in the Consumer Finance Law Quarterly Report, Vol.60, No. 4, 2006
Truth in Lending – A Whirlwind Year, author, The Business Lawyer, published by the Business Law Section of the American Bar Association, 1996
Update on Truth in Lending: Legislation, Regulation and Litigation, author/speaker, 1995 Banking Law Institute, Co-Sponsored by Southern Methodist University School of Law, Oklahoma City University School of Law, The Conference on Consumer Finance Law, In Cooperation With The Centre for Commercial Law Studies, University of London, 1995
Usury and Texas Credit Code Developments, author/speaker, Texas Association of Bank Counsel, 20th Annual Convention, 1996
Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act, author/speaker, 1996 Texas Land Title Institute, 1996
Simplifying the Consumer Credit Code for the Real Estate Practitioner, author/speaker, State Bar of Texas, 8th Annual Advanced Real Estate Drafting Course, 1997
Truth-in-Lending, Regulation Z, author/speaker, Texas Bankers Association’s Ninth Annual Compliance School, 1997
Recent Changes Under RESPA, author/speaker, Conference on Consumer Finance Law, 1997 Banking Law Institute, 1997
Truth in Lending – Regulation Z, author/speaker, Conference of State Bank Supervisors – National Compliance School, 1998
Lending Tricks and Traps Thanks to the 75th Legislature, author/speaker, 24th Annual Legal Conference hosted by the Texas Savings and Community Bankers Association and Independent Bankers Association, 1998
Truth in Lending and RESPA, author/speaker, Texas Bankers Association’s Compliance School and Lending Compliance Update, author/speaker, Texas Bankers Association’s Compliance Update School, 1998, 1999
Usury and Texas Credit Code Developments, author/speaker, Texas Association of Bank Counsel, 22nd Annual Convention, 1998
Usury and Texas Credit Laws, author/speaker, presented by IBAT, 1999
Usury, author/speaker, State Bar of Texas, 22nd Annual Advanced Real Estate Law Course, 2000
Plain Language Forms, author/speaker, 28th Annual Legal Conference hosted by the Texas Savings and Community Bankers Association and IBAT, 2002
Manufactured Housing Issues and Finance, author/speaker, Auto Sales and Finance (Cars, Trains, Boats and Planes – and Manufactured Housing) hosted by the Conference on Consumer Finance Law, 2003
Prepayment Penalties and Due on Sale Restrictions on Consumer Transactions, author/speaker, 2006 Advanced Real Estate Drafting Course, presented by the State Bar of Texas, 2006
Negotiating Commercial Construction Loans – The Big Sticking Points, author/speaker, Houston Bar Association, Real Estate Section Monthly Meeting, 2007
Subprime and Predatory Lending (New Developments, Disclosures, etc…), author/speaker, Texas Association of Bank Counsel, 31st Annual Convention, 2007
Homestead and Home Equity Lending Update, author/speaker, Houston Bar Association CLE program, 2008
Negotiating Land Development Loan Documents, author/speaker, Real Estate Development from Beginning to End, presented by Lorman Education Services, 2008
Negotiating Commercial Construction Loans, author/speaker, 32nd Annual Convention of the Texas Association of Bank Counsel, 2008
Usury Law Changes, author/speaker, State Bar Collections and Creditors’ Rights Course 2009, San Antonio, 2009
Residential Mortgage Lending Update, author/speaker, 36th Annual Texas Bankers Association Legal Conference, San Antonio, 2010
Usury Law Changes, author/speaker, State Bar Collections and Creditors’ Rights Course 2010, San Antonio, 2010
Tricks and Traps in Texas Usury Law, author/speaker, Houston Bar Association, 2011 What the General Practitioner Needs to Know – Civil Day, Houston, 2011
Consumer Mortgage Lending Compliance Update, author/speaker, TBA Compliance Alliance Webinar, 2013
Identifying and Curing Usury, author/speaker, State Bar Collections and Creditor’s Rights Course 2013, Dallas, 2013
Mortgage Lending Tsunami: Dodd-Frank, CFPB and Beyond, author/speaker, Texas Land Title Institute, San Antonio, 2013
Dodd-Frank: Consumer Home Lending Disclosures, Regulations Z, X and B, author/speaker, State Bar of Texas 36th Annual Advanced Real Estate Law Course, San Antonio, Texas, 2014
So How Do You Comply with the Texas Disciplinary Rules of Professional Conduct and the Texas Lawyer’s Creed, author/speaker, (Creating a Context for Compliance and a Life of Grace and Ease)” Texas Association of Bank Counsel 40th Annual Convention, Austin, Texas, 2016
Opportunities to Serve Your Community, author/speaker, Texas Association of Bank Counsel 41st Annual Convention, Bastrop, Texas, 2017
Representing Financial Institutions, author/speaker, Houston Bar Association, Houston, Texas 2019
Texas Usury Law, author/speaker, State Bar Collections and Creditors’ Rights Course, San Antonio, Texas 2020
Ethics: Mindfulness – Presence Amid Chaos, Author/Speaker, Southwest Association of Bank Counsel 44th Annual Convention, 2020
Ethics: Mindfulness – Presence Amid Chaos, Author/Speaker, Southwest Association of Bank Counsel 45th Annual Convention, 2021
Ethics: Mindfulness – Presence, Happiness and Mindfulness Author/Speaker, Southwest Association of Bank Counsel 46th Annual Convention, 2022
Ethics: Mindfulness – Presence Through Embodiment Author/Speaker, Southwest Association of Bank Counsel 47th Annual Convention, 2023