First Citizens Bank Looking for Legal Counsel – Credit Card/Payments/Merchant Services at Whitehouse Station, New Jersey Full Time

Overview: In this role, you will be part of the Bank Operations legal support team, which provides counsel to the Bank’s general bank franchise, which includes over 500 full-service branches in 22 states and a wide array of business and industry financial services. The primary focus of your role as the Counsel – Credit Card/Payments attorney will be to provide legal advice for credit card products, payments products, digital platforms and related transactions and initiatives. The successful candidate must have (1) strong business experience, preferably in commercial banking, technology, and payments transactions, (2) well-developed communication and creative problem-solving skills and (3) the ability to work in a fast paced environment collaboratively with innovative business teams. This is a dynamic role involving a mix of several types of transactions, legal issues, and initiatives, including banking, payments processing, ACH, wires, cards (acquiring and issuing), money services/money transmission and digital technologies. Experience working for a financial institution or other regulated business is a plus.

You will be reviewing and commenting on all the business documents, including ancillary and collateral documents, and negotiating with our commercial customers, their external attorneys, and other financial entities in payments, cards, and merchant services transactions. You will also work on other Bank Operations team projects as the need arises that may include, for example, consumer deposit matters, commercial deposit and lending matters, support of industry-specific initiatives, and wealth management/private banking matters. You will be expected to be a “go to” person who develops and maintains a strong knowledge of best practices and related laws, regulations, and business operations. You will be a company leader located in the bank’s Legal Department, a high-energy group of legal professionals dedicated to exceptional client service, value, and trustworthy advice to enable the bank’s business.

Hybrid work schedule; 3 days a week in office located in Raleigh, NC or Morristown, NJ

Responsibilities:

• Provide legal and regulatory support for credit cards, payment products, digital channels (online, mobile, etc.) and related services as well as emerging areas (e.g., merchant services).
• Work collaboratively with internal clients, primarily in the Payments Solutions, Card and Digital Channels teams.
• Coordinate with internal stakeholders, including, Risk, Compliance, Operations, Technology and Relationship Management teams to assist internal clients in exploring new initiatives.

• Draft and review commercial contracts, presentations, and other bank materials (e.g., marketing and advertising ads).

• Support new product development and implementation, including drafting agreements, templates and negotiating commercial contracts and merchant services agreements.

• Maintain a strong working knowledge of federal laws and regulations applicable to cards/payments space including the Truth in Lending Act, the Equal Credit Opportunity Act, the Fair Credit Reporting Act, the Military Lending Act, and the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act.

• Lead projects to develop or refresh bank ‘form or shelf documents,’ commercial credit manuals, and standard operating policies and procedures.

• Advise business line partners on matters relating to customer correspondence (complaints, fee disputes, regulatory matters).

• Interact successfully with all functions and levels of associates, including senior management.

• Partner with other business leaders to resolve problems, develop solutions, and deliver team results across organizational borders. Manage outside counsel.

Qualifications: Juris Doctor Degree from accredited institution and at least six (6) years of card (acquiring or issuing) or payments legal experience in a law firm, in-house legal department, or a combination thereof.

Preferred Qualifications:

• A solid understanding of laws and regulations impacting credit cards, payments, and financial services, including third party risk management and federal and state money transmission laws.
• Knowledge of card network rules a plus (VISA, Mastercard and/or American Express).
• Superior writing and verbal communication and presentation skills.
• Strong commercial and legal judgment; ability to apply legal knowledge towards practical business solutions.
• Independent, diligent, well organized, and able to prioritize and manage numerous projects simultaneously under deadline pressures.
• Willingness to work on a broad range of legal matters/topics and to learn new areas; strong growth mindset.
• Experience working in support of high-level, strategic leaders.
• Strong academic credentials.

Additional Requirements:

• Active membership and good standing in your state bar.
• Must work well under pressure.
• Ability to work independently and exercise independent judgment and discretion.
• Must be able to manage successfully multiple and varied projects simultaneously.
• Excellent interpersonal and written communication skills.
• Strong personal organizational skills.
• Problem solving skills.
• Collaborating with others in a team-first environment.
• Strong Microsoft Office capabilities and ability to implement and learn new software applications.

License or Certification Type: Must be licensed to practice law in at least one of the states in which the Bank is located Required