Assistant General Counsel

We’re hiring:
Assistant General Counsel, Consumer & Small Business Banking | Valley Bank

Your next move could put you at the center of how a bank helps small businesses grow.

Valley Bank is seeking an experienced lending attorney to join its legal team as Assistant General Counsel, Consumer & Small Business Banking. This role focuses on small business lending, with additional responsibilities supporting private banking, consumer lending, and residential mortgage.

This is a hands-on opportunity for someone who enjoys working directly with business leaders, solving lending challenges, and helping transactions move forward.

• Serve as a key legal partner to small business lending and credit teams on term loans, revolving credit facilities, and other secured and unsecured lending products.
• Draft, review, and negotiate loan agreements, notes, guaranties, security agreements, amendments, and waivers.
• Advise on collateral structures, UCC Article 9, lien priority, perfection, and enforcement.
• Support private banking credit products, including securities-based lending and premium finance.
• Advise consumer and residential mortgage teams on origination, servicing, collections, and applicable lending regulations.
• Partner with credit, risk, operations, and lending teams to provide practical legal guidance.
• Improve standardized loan documents and templates to support consistency and efficient execution.

• A JD from an accredited law school and active bar membership in good standing in at least one U.S. jurisdiction.
• At least six years of relevant attorney experience, including in-house experience at a financial institution. Eight-plus years is preferred.
• Substantial experience in small business or commercial lending, ideally in a current legal role at a bank.
• Strong loan documentation skills and a working knowledge of secured lending and bank regulatory requirements.
• Familiarity with consumer and mortgage lending laws, including TILA, RESPA, ECOA, FCRA, and UDAAP.
• Sound judgment, attention to detail, and the ability to turn complex legal issues into clear, actionable advice.