General Counsel / Chief Legal Officer

Summary:

Responsible for overseeing all legal matters and ensuring the regulatory compliance of the Bank. Provides strategic legal advice on the Bank's business and operations, including Sutton Bank's growing payments line of business. Responsible for managing the Bank's legal team.

Qualifications:

Education: Doctor of Jurisprudence Degree.

Licenses/Certifications: Active license to practice law.

Experience: Minimum of 15 years' legal experience in commercial/transactional law, with at least 10 years in the Banking, payments, and/or FinTech sector – a mix of law firm and in-house experience preferred; knowledge of Banking operations, credit, debit, and prepaid card programs, as well as, Bank and technology contract laws and practices within the payments and Banking industry; and experience in dealing with federal and state Banking regulators.

Essential Functions:

A: Job Specific:

• Provides expert legal advice and strategic guidance to the Bank's executives, management, and the Board on a wide range of legal issues, including corporate governance, contracts, regulatory matters, and potential litigation. Some specific issues include but are not limited to:
  • innovative prepaid card and emerging and alternative payments programs,
  • legal and compliance issues involved in payments, and
  • new legislation and regulations
• Oversees the drafting, review, and negotiation of contracts and agreements to protect the Bank's interests and minimize risk. Negotiates, drafts, and reviews program management, services, licensing, and related agreements - individually and by working with other contract professionals, specialists, and/or outside counsel.
• Assists in review of third-party payment processing relationships, including management of due diligence activities.
• Engages appropriate internal partners with regards to contract negotiation.
• Exercises judgment in advising business clients on contract interpretation and other matters.
• Develops and revises standard template agreements for Sutton Bank's prepaid and emerging payments programs to maintain compliance with applicable rules and regulations.
• Develops and maintains in-depth knowledge of Sutton Bank's procedures, processes, and policies.
• Participates in other Bank activities including development of best practices and special projects.
• Analyzes and interprets law, rulings, and regulations that affect the business and provides practical advice in response.
• Works with others internally such as marketing, product management, product development, along with both in-house and external legal subject matter experts, to support new business initiatives and day-to-day product development and product management needs.
• Provides internal training on relevant contract and legal issues.
• Assigns and supervises all legal matters involving the Bank; advising Bank regarding transactions of business involving internal affairs, stockholders, directors, officers and Bank relations with general public.
• Provides risk-balanced legal guidance on financial services regulatory compliance, data security and privacy issues, and legal requirements of entering into new partnerships and geographic markets.
• Keeps management apprised of new legislation and regulations; building a trusted advisor relationship at all levels with the business and cross-functional support teams.
• Identifies preventative measures to avoid legal risks, conflicts and issues relevant to the business supported.
• Ensures the Bank's adherence to financial regulations and laws, assists in developing compliance programs.
• Identifies, assesses, and mitigates legal risks the Bank may encounter, and develops strategies to address them.
• Manages legal disputes and coordinates with external legal counsel when necessary.
• Leads and manages the Bank's legal team, potentially including other in-house counsel and legal staff.

Knowledge/Skills/Abilities:

• Strong understanding of emerging and virtual payments, including real-time payments.
• Deep knowledge and prior experience with the following regulations: Electronic Funds Transfer Act (EFTA)/Regulation E, Truth in Savings Act (TISA)/Regulation DD, Truth in Lending Act (TILA)/Regulation Z, and the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA)/Regulation V.
• Thorough knowledge of U.S. data privacy laws and major state regulatory schemes such as CCPA.
• Excellent communication skills with ability to negotiate at high levels.
• Strong writing skills and attention to detail.
• Ability to work under short deadlines and outside normal working hours with minimal advance notice and minimal supervision; self-sufficient and independent.
• Conceptual thinking in complex/completely new situations and ability to communicate ideas both internally and externally.
• Confidence in client- and customer-facing situations, presenting a positive and professional image.
• Excellent interpersonal skills.
• Technical writing, to include reports, procedure manuals, articles for publication.
• Ability to define problems, collect data, establish facts and draw valid conclusions. Ability to solve complex issues and deal with a variety of concrete variables in situations where only limed standardization exists. Ability to interpret a variety of instructions furnished in written, oral, diagram, or schedule form.
• Proven management and leadership skills.
• The ability to coach, counsel, develop, and motivate subordinates.

Sutton Bank is an Equal Employment Opportunity employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, age, national origin, sexual orientation, gender identity, pregnancy, disability or protected veteran status.