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Posted July 05, 2022

General Counsel

America First Finance
Dallas, TX Full Time

What makes an AFF General Counsel: The General Counsel is responsible for leading key functions of the American First Finance, LLC (AFF) Legal...

What makes an AFF General Counsel:

The General Counsel is responsible for leading key functions of the American First Finance, LLC (AFF) Legal & Compliance Department. The General Counsel partners with all business units to ensure compliance with applicable laws, regulations, and requirements and to provide legal advice and regulatory support. This key contributor will support a wide array of functions and create and present reporting to senior management and the board level regarding existing and emerging legal and compliance risks and trends. An effective, results-focused leader with specialized industry and product knowledge, a proven track record of being a collaborative problem-solver, consistently strong work product, and a comprehensive legal and regulatory background would be an ideal candidate.

What we offer:

Competitive Salary + Bonus!

Flexible Time Off and Market Leading Benefits or Paid Time Off, Paid Holidays and Market Leading Benefits!

High-growth organization with advancement opportunities!

Diverse, Collaborative, & Fun Work Environment!

Roles and Responsibilities:

Lead and manage a team of attorneys, paralegals, and compliance professionals who conduct enterprise-wide oversight.

Oversee and coordinate legal and compliance processes and activities covering a wide array of responsibilities, including furnishing legal advice and regulatory support to all aspects of AFF’s regulatory compliance programs and consumer-facing communications.

Provide legal advice regarding current, proposed, and anticipated business activities and consumer products, balancing business-oriented goals with legal risks.

Identify, escalate, and resolve legal, regulatory, and reputational risks.

Anticipate and proactively develop strategies to address existing and upcoming regulatory requirements.

Assess business processes and controls, developing a legal and compliance risk profile to recommend enhancements and best practices.

Protect AFF’s intellectual property, including AFF’s proprietary loan management system credit scoring model.

Provide advice in connection with development of new technology and new products so that AFF can innovate to deliver consumers and businesses better, legally-sound solutions that meet their needs.

Review, and advise in connection with, the electronic delivery of products through the company’s various digital channels.

Design, build, and lead strategic partnerships with banks who originate credit products that AFF sub-services.

Monitor proposed legal and regulatory changes as well as regulatory opinions and guidance, and translate into layman’s terms how the changes would affect the company

Advise on consumer privacy issues such as data permissions, sharing, and brokering, and draft privacy policies.

Advise on data security issues such as data mapping, data segmentation, access controls, security breaches, and retention/destruction.

Represent the company with regulatory agencies and external auditors and lead governmental affairs strategy.

Ensure operational policies, procedures, training, and payment processing practices comply with applicable laws.

Review employment policies, procedures, compensation plans, and performance management plans, and assist with employee disputes, grievances, and claims against the company.

Proactively participate in and guide various committees and governance structures.

Oversee and supervise the activities of outside counsel as appropriate, including ensuring timely and professional advice delivery in a cost-effective manner.

Lead AFF’s regulatory change management program by providing instruction and oversight regarding regulatory updates that impact AFF’s business lines.

Understand and communicate applicable regulatory requirements related to a Compliance Management System.

Present and prepare compliance reporting, including data and context, to all levels of the organization, including in quarterly Compliance Committee meetings.

Conduct legal research and present actionable analysis and observations to senior management.

Review policies, procedures, consumer-facing communications, and other control documentation for regulatory compliance with applicable requirements.

Collaborate with business lines to implement practices and processes that mitigate legal, compliance, and reputational risks.

Monitor enforcement actions, industry news, and regulatory guidance for emerging trends.

Collaboratively share analyses and observations with the business and develop action plans as needed.

Empower the Legal and Compliance Department to serve as trusted business advisors who are sought out to proactively help the business develop solutions.

Continually review Legal and Compliance Department staffing and structure to make recommendations supporting continued scalability and effectiveness.

Qualifications:

Bachelor’s degree

Juris Doctor and active license to practice law in at least one U.S. jurisdiction

7 or more years of relevant work experience

Demonstrated ability to successfully manage a centralized enterprise Legal and Compliance Department

CRCM strongly preferred

Strong, effective verbal and written communication skills with the ability to credibly represent AFF internally and externally

Deep knowledge of consumer compliance regulations (e.g., UDAAP, Servicemembers Civil Relief Act, Truth in Lending Act, Regulation Z, Fair Credit Reporting Act and Regulation V) is required

Ability to communicate effectively with all company levels

Demonstrated track record of success interpreting and applying federal and state laws and regulations and guidance

Ability to manage and oversee multiple engagements and work streams with various departments 

Experience working in a highly-regulated environment

Advanced knowledge of Microsoft Office tools including Word, Excel, and PowerPoint

Our Core Values

Servant Heart: There’s no place for egos here. Customers and colleagues come first. Serving their needs and driving their engagement is our success.

Embrace Change: That’s not fear, that’s excitement. We see change as core to our survival and our ability to manage change as a prerequisite to new opportunities that can allow us to learn, grow, and do more.

Walk the Talk: We do what we say we are going to do and maintain the highest standards of performance for ourselves and others, at all times, always doing the right thing.

Dare to be Different: We are adaptable, creative, and courageous, like entrepreneurs willing to take the necessary risks to innovate and make things better. We challenge the status quo. We seek out different ideas and perspectives as a means of expanding our ability to think and do more.

Get Stuff Done: We do whatever it takes to get the job done right. We inspect what we expect, take ownership of our actions, and operate with a sense of urgency in everything we do.

No Drama: We control the things we can control with a mindset to find solutions while minimizing complaint. We are all here for the same purpose, empowered to be the best we can be so that our purpose to deliver great products and services to more customers can be fulfilled.

Please note this job description is not designed to cover or contain a comprehensive listing of activities, duties or responsibilities that are required of the employee for this job. Duties, responsibilities and activities may change at any time with or without notice.

This listing expired on Sep 03. Applications are no longer accepted.

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