General Counsel

REPORTS TO: CEO

LOCATION: Santa Fe, NM, On-site

Position Summary:

We are seeking a highly skilled and experienced attorney to join our team. This role combines regulatory advisory responsibilities with legal support for lending operations, deposit operations, and special assets and other departments. The successful candidate will serve as a key liaison with federal and state banking regulators, provide legal counsel on a wide range of regulatory and transactional matters, and act as a strategic partner to senior leadership and business units across the bank.

Key Responsibilities:

• Serve on a team of Regulatory Relations professionals managing relationships with the Federal Reserve, CFPB, FDIC, and other state or federal banking departments.
  
• Collaborate with Risk Management to manage all verbal and written communications with regulators, including during continuous supervision and formal examinations.
  
• Provide legal guidance on regulatory, risk, compliance, and governance matters affecting the bank�s operations and strategic initiatives.
  
• Identify and communicate key regulatory themes, trends, and updates across the organization especially for legal ramifications and implications.
  
• Draft comprehensive, high-quality legal analyses and materials for internal and external stakeholders, including regulators and executive leadership.
  
• Maintain effective reporting and communication routines to ensure enterprise-wide understanding of regulatory issues for legal ramifications and implications.
  
• Provide legal support to management committees, business units, and senior leadership on regulatory and legal risks.
  
• Provide day-to-day legal support for Commercial, Consumer, and Community Lending teams, including loan structuring, documentation, lien perfection, and third-party agreements.
  
• Advise on all deposit products (commercial and consumer), including treasury management services and deposit account control agreements.
  
• Support the Special Assets team on loan workouts, foreclosures, receiverships, and bankruptcies.
  
• Draft and review forbearance agreements, loan modifications, demand/default letters, and manage outside counsel relationships.
  
• Assist with complex lending transactions, including tax credit deals, bond transactions, and loan syndications.
  
• Identify opportunities to improve efficiency through standardized documentation and legal processes.
  
• Assist the bank and collaborate with division managers and other for miscellaneous legal issues such as subpoenas, security issues, fraud issues, internal investigations, etc.
  
• Assist, if necessary, in litigation and court proceedings
  
• Other duties as assigned or as needed
  

Qualifications:

• J.D. from an ABA-accredited law school.
  
• Active member in good standing with a state bar (preferably New Mexico and Texas).
  
• Minimum of 7-10 years of legal experience in a financial institution, major law firm, or U.S. banking regulator.
  
• Demonstrated experience with federal banking laws and regulations, including exposure to federal banking agencies.
  
• Experience with litigation and court proceedings
  
• Strong understanding of commercial and consumer loan and deposit documentation, secured transactions, and regulatory compliance including collateral, UCC, etc.
  
• Experience with privacy, cybersecurity, payments, wealth management, and/or fintech is a plus.
  

Key Competencies:

• Exceptional written, oral, and interpersonal communication skills.
  
• Executive presence and ability to build trusted relationships with regulators and senior leadership.
  
• High integrity, sound judgment, and discretion in handling sensitive matters.
  
• Strong legal analysis and practical business judgment.
  
• Ability to manage multiple complex issues simultaneously and work cross-functionally.
  
• Strong organizational skills and attention to detail.
  
• Ability to lead and coordinate cross-functional legal projects and manage internal and external legal resources.
  

This job description in no way implies that these are the only duties to be performed by the employee occupying this position. Employees will be required to perform any other job-related duties assigned by the supervisor. All requirements are subject to possible modification to reasonably accommodate individuals with disabilities.

As a bank employee, you are responsible for following established policies and procedures related to the Bank Secrecy Act (BSA), Anti-Money Laundering (AML), OFAC, and the USA Patriot Act. This includes attending required training, reporting all suspicious activity to the BSA Compliance Officer, and following policy/procedure as it pertains to your job responsibilities. Failure to follow established BSA/AML policies and procedures will result in disciplinary action that may include termination.

Century Bank is an Equal Employment Opportunity/Affirmative Action employer and does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion, gender, gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, national origin, genetics, disability, age or veteran status.