Associate General Counsel

Description

Citizens is looking for an experienced growth-minded and problem-solving attorney to serve as Associate General Counsel supporting the Wealth Management Division of the Citizens Consumer Bank. The Associate General Counsel will report to the Senior Associate General Counsel, Head of Wealth Legal and will be responsible for providing commercial and comprehensive legal guidance to senior management and the business generally supporting the entirety of the Citizens Wealth Management business in partnership with the Head of Wealth Legal. 

Citizens Bank has grown to be a top fifteen consumer bank and deposit franchise and has embarked on a significant Wealth transformation initiative to scale its Private Wealth and Private Bank units. The Citizens Wealth Management business includes the Citizens Wealth Management and Private Wealth Management organizations together with the Bank’s Trust and fiduciary services and the newer Citizens Trust Company of Delaware.

Location: New York, NY; Boston or Westwood, MA; Stamford, CT; or Johnston, RI preferred but other areas where Citizens has significant offices will be considered. 

Primary Responsibilities will include:

• Advise senior management and other stakeholders on a wide range of legal and compliance issues concerning all aspects within the Bank’s full-service wealth management business, which includes RIA, Broker Dealer and Trust (including Delaware trust) offerings and services.

• Develop and support implementation of legal assessments, interpretations, recommendations, and opinions on laws, policies, and regulatory issues.

• Assist Compliance and Risk colleagues in responding to regulatory requests and examinations from applicable state and federal regulators, including the OCC, SEC, and FINRA, and with the submission of required regulatory filings.  

• Monitor and proactively advise other stakeholders on industry regulatory developments, and legislation that may affect business lines, including regulatory change management;

• Provide subject matter advice concerning investment management and related commercial agreements, business transactions, claim liability, advisability of prosecuting or defending lawsuits (in partnership with Citizens’ Litigation team), or legal rights and obligations.

• As needed, supervise Legal due diligence of potential Wealth Management acquisition targets. 

• As and where required, retain and manage external counsel.

Required Skills/Experience:

• 10+ years of legal experience with substantial experience in the RIA and Broker-Dealer space.

• Thorough familiarity with federal securities laws, including the Securities Act of 1933, the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, the Investment Advisers Act of 1940, relevant portions of ERISA and its parallel provisions under the Internal Revenue Code, the Investment Company Act of 1940 and applicable FINRA rules.

• Experience working with a range of issues affecting private wealth and institutional clients, with demonstrated experience advising on alternative investment matters.

• Demonstrated expertise on a wide arrange of investment-management related and general commercial transactional matters, including advanced drafting and negotiation skills, developed through sophisticated and substantial outside counsel or in-house transactional experience.

• Ability to handle and prioritize multiple high-profile projects, strong attention to detail, willingness to dig in and ability to thrive in a fast paced, dynamic work environment.

• Experience managing, coaching, and mentoring junior attorneys and/or Legal support staff in an in-house environment. 

Ideal Candidates would possess:

A collaborative approach in devising pragmatic and creative solutions across a variety of issues in a growth environment

• The ability to think strategically and tactically, with excellent judgment and decision-making skills to help the firm make the best risk-based decisions.

• The ability to see past the immediate question and understand the broader implication and wider strategy.

• A highly collaborative team player with a positive attitude, growth mindset, good sense of humor and ability to stay calm when the pressure is on.

Education/Certifications:

• JD or equivalent, strong academic credentials

• Admission to at least one U.S. bar required.

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Equal Employment Opportunity

Citizens, its parent, subsidiaries, and related companies (Citizens) provide equal employment and advancement opportunities to all colleagues and applicants for employment without regard to age, ancestry, color, citizenship, physical or mental disability, perceived disability or history or record of a disability, ethnicity, gender, gender identity or expression, genetic information, genetic characteristic, marital or domestic partner status, victim of domestic violence, family status/parenthood, medical condition, military or veteran status, national origin, pregnancy/childbirth/lactation, colleague’s or a dependent’s reproductive health decision making, race, religion, sex, sexual orientation, or any other category protected by federal, state and/or local laws. At Citizens, we are committed to fostering an inclusive culture that enables all colleagues to bring their best selves to work every day and everyone is expected to be treated with respect and professionalism. Employment decisions are based solely on merit, qualifications, performance and capability.