Jill Miles Named Consumer Advocate of the Year
Charleston, W.Va. – The West Virginia Association for Justice has named Charleston attorney Jill Miles 2013 Consumer Advocate of the Year. Miles is the former Deputy Attorney General for the office’s Consumer Protection Division. She is now Enforcement Counsel for the West Virginia State Auditor’s Securities Division. The award will be presented Thursday, June 6 in conjunction with the West Virginia Association for Justice annual convention.
“For nearly 20 years, Jill Miles led one of the best consumer protection offices in the country. This was an office that fielded more than 11,000 complaints a year and successfully resolved more than two-thirds of them. It handled everything from complaints that affected a single consumer or West Virginia business to scams that affected thousands. Under her leadership, the Consumer Protection Division was able to return millions of dollars to West Virginians. In her new role in the auditor’s office, she will still be representing state consumer and small business interests. There is no one who deserves this award more than Jill Miles,” said Anthony Majestro, vice president of WVAJ.
“This award means the world to me. I enjoy wearing the white hat when I go into work every day, and working with people who want to do the right thing. To be recognized by my legal colleagues for the work that I have done is an incredible honor,” said Miles.
Miles began her professional career as a social worker after earning a B. S. in Social Work from West Virginia University.
“As a social worker, I saw firsthand the problems faced by so many West Virginians. There was an incredible need out there, and I believed that I could do more as an attorney. I didn’t go to law school to make more money or because my dad was a lawyer, but because I believed in social justice,” said Miles.
After graduating from the West Virginia University College of Law, she worked briefly in the Attorney General’s office before working as a clerk for the West Virginia Supreme Court of Appeals, including serving as Justice Thomas Miller’s personal clerk.
She returned to the Attorney General’s office in its Consumer Protection and Anti-Trust Division in February 1994. Although the Consumer Credit Protection Act had been law since 1974, little was being done in that area. As deputy of the division she had to “start from scratch” to build the office, which employed 31 people in 2012. In 1994, the office secured just $1 million in refunds, debt cancellation, civil penalties and other payments for consumers; in 2011, that amount had grown to more than $71 million. Her numerous successes in that division included prohibiting payday lending, regulating the pre-need funeral industry, investigating and eliminating unlawful direct mail and telephone solicitation scams, and regulating debt collection practices.
She began working for West Virginia State Auditor Glen Gainer earlier this year. As Enforcement Counsel, she is responsible for investigating and litigating security transactions, timeshare sales and resales and other areas.
“The Auditor is committed to protecting investors and promoting capital formation. I am proud to be part of the team he has dedicated to achieving those goals,” said Miles.
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