About the Role
The Legal and Compliance Program Manager serves as an advisor to Baird Trust, providing both legal counsel and compliance support for the trust company’s fiduciary, regulatory, and business objectives. This role goes beyond advisory compliance guidance to include the delivery of legal advice, drafting and negotiation of agreements, statutory and regulatory interpretation, and direct engagement with auditors and regulators in all aspects of an exam. Working closely with business leadership, Risk, and Legal colleagues across Baird, this role helps ensure the trust company operates in a compliant, well‑governed, and risk‑aware manner while supporting strategic business initiatives.
This role may require some travel and is expected to be in-office a minimum of 3 days per week in either our Louisville, KY or Milwaukee, WI office.
The Impact You’ll Make
Provide compliance and legal advice to the trust company and business partners on fiduciary, regulatory, and securities matters
Draft, review, and negotiate agreements, including trust‑related contracts, vendor agreements, and regulatory documents; develop and maintain standard templates
Review and implement new and existing statutes, rules and regulations
Assist with audits and regulatory exams including both compiling responsive documentation and engaging in legal analysis, position‑taking, and interpretation of applicable laws and regulations
Partner with business leadership to identify, assess, and mitigate compliance, legal and regulatory risk while enabling business objectives
Oversee and enhance the trust company’s compliance framework, policies, and procedures in alignment with legal requirements
Compliance monitoring including account reviews, marketing reviews and general oversight.
Collaborate with enterprise Legal, Risk, and Compliance teams to ensure consistent interpretation and application of regulatory standards
Support governance activities, including board and committee materials, regulatory filings, and internal reporting
Act as a trusted advisor to leadership on complex or high‑risk issues affecting trust operations and strategy
What You'll Bring to Baird
Juris Doctor (J.D.) degree
Active license to practice law
At least 1 year of experience in legal, compliance, or regulatory roles within financial services, trust companies, banking, or fiduciary environments
Demonstrated experience providing legal advice and interfacing directly with regulators
Key Skills / Qualifications
Knowledge of trust, fiduciary, and financial services regulations strongly preferred
Proven ability to draft, review, and negotiate complex agreements
Strong statutory and regulatory interpretation skills with sound legal judgment
Experience leading regulatory responses and examinations from a legal perspective
Ability to communicate complex legal concepts clearly to non‑legal stakeholders
Strong partnership mindset with the ability to balance risk management and business enablement
High level of professionalism, integrity, and discretion
#LI-TA1
Baird is committed to diversity and provides employment opportunities to all employees and applicants for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, pregnancy, citizenship, national origin, age, disability, military service, veteran status, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, genetic information, or any other status protected by law.
Skills Required
- Juris Doctor (J.D.) degree
- Active license to practice law
- At least 1 year of experience in legal, compliance, or regulatory roles
- Knowledge of trust, fiduciary, and financial services regulations
Baird Compensation & Benefits Highlights
The following summarizes recurring compensation and benefits themes identified from responses generated by popular LLMs to common candidate questions about Baird and has not been reviewed or approved by Baird.
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Retirement Support — Retirement offerings are positioned as a major strength, including a strong 401(k) with matching and profit-sharing contributions, plus access to financial planning support. Long-term wealth building is further reinforced through employee ownership and stock purchase opportunities.
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Leave & Time Off Breadth — Time-off benefits are framed as generous, including unlimited PTO in some descriptions, paid holidays, and paid volunteer time. Flex time and work-from-home options are also included as part of the broader work-life package.
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Healthcare Strength — Health coverage is described as comprehensive, spanning medical, dental, vision, and mental health support, alongside wellness programs and HSA/FSA options. Preventive care and employer contributions toward HSA/deductibles are highlighted as part of the design.
Baird Insights
What We Do
Founded in 1919, Baird has guided families, businesses, communities and institutions toward their financial goals for a century. Today employee-owned Baird offers wealth management, investment banking, asset management, institutional sales and trading, equity research, public finance and private equity services through more than 160 offices in the United States, Europe and Asia. Baird manages and oversees more than $305 billion in assets for clients around the world and employs more than 4,600 associates. Baird has been one of FORTUNE’s 100 Best Companies to Work For® since 2004, and is committed to policies and practices that provide equal employment opportunity at all times. These non-discriminatory practices apply to all areas of employment including: hiring, promotions, terminations, compensation, benefits and educational opportunities. “Baird” is the marketing name for Robert W. Baird & Co., Incorporated and subsidiaries and affiliates worldwide. For more information, please visit www.rwbaird.com.
