If you are motivated and believe in the credit union philosophy of "People Helping People," join our team!
The SVP – Litigation will lead SECU’s litigation function, overseeing all litigation and dispute-related matters across the enterprise. The role combines people leadership, strategic program development and sophisticated litigation management. Reporting to the EVP - Deputy Chief Legal Officer, the SVP – Litigation will manage a team of attorneys and legal support professionals while partnering closely with business leadership and second line functions to mature industry-leading litigation management practices.
- 35% Litigation leadership and strategy
- Lead all litigation strategy and execution across SECU’s litigation portfolio, including consumer finance and member disputes, complex litigation and class actions, bankruptcy matters, arbitration programs and general liability matters, employment litigation, commercial and vendor dispute
- Oversee hundreds of active matters annually through a combination of direct handling and outside counsel management
- Provide practical, risk-based legal advice to senior business leaders
- Serve as trusted internal client partner with strong executive presence and relationship management skills
- 35% Team leadership and development
- Directly lead and develop a team of two attorneys and two legal support professionals
- Foster a culture of mentorship, professional growth and collaboration
- 20% Function modernization and operational excellence
- In partnership with Legal Operations leadership, mature the litigation management function by:
- Building enhanced litigation tracking and reporting systems
- Implementing best-in-class outside counsel management
- Developing litigation KPIs, dashboards, and performance analytics
- Driving disciplined litigation spend management
- Standardizing early case assessment processes
- Advancing discovery governance and legal hold management programs
- Establishing scalable workflows
- In partnership with Legal Operations leadership, mature the litigation management function by:
- 10% Governance and enterprise partnership
- Partner closely with second line and business unit leaders on dispute prevention and risk mitigation
- Prepare litigation reporting for executive leadership and board-level oversight
- Support the enterprise in aligning with regulator and supervisory expectations
Required Education & Experience (Knowledge, Skills, & Abilities):
- Juris doctor (JD) from an accredited law school
- Licensed to practice in North Carolina
- 8 years of litigation experience
- Demonstrated experience leading or supervising legal teams or significant litigation programs
- Strong litigation judgment and strategic case management skills
- Proven ability to manage outside counsel effectively
- Excellent communication, client counseling and leadership presence
Preferred Education & Experience (Knowledge, Skills, & Abilities):
- In-house legal experience
- Financial services or consumer finance litigation experience
- Employment litigation experience
- Experience building or improving legal department processes or programs
- Experience operating in highly regulated environments
Job Environment & Physical Requirements:
- Primarily onsite with flexibility for occasional remote work
SECU provides equal employment opportunity to all qualified persons regardless of race, color, religion, age, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, genetic information, disability, veteran status, or other classification protected by law.
Disclaimer
State Employees' Credit Union reserves the right to fill this role at a higher/lower level based on business need.
Skills Required
- Juris doctor (JD) from an accredited law school
- Licensed to practice in North Carolina
- 8 years of litigation experience
- Demonstrated experience leading or supervising legal teams or significant litigation programs
- Strong litigation judgment and strategic case management skills
- Proven ability to manage outside counsel effectively
- Excellent communication, client counseling and leadership presence
- In-house legal experience
- Financial services or consumer finance litigation experience
- Employment litigation experience
- Experience building or improving legal department processes or programs
- Experience operating in highly regulated environments
SECU Compensation & Benefits Highlights
The following summarizes recurring compensation and benefits themes identified from responses generated by popular LLMs to common candidate questions about SECU and has not been reviewed or approved by SECU.
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Retirement Support — Immediate 100% vesting and a 200% employer match on employee 401(k) contributions from 1–5% of pay (up to a 10% employer match) stand out. This level of support is described as unusually rich among financial‑services employers.
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Leave & Time Off Breadth — 11 paid holidays plus 16 floating‑holiday hours, paid parental and caregiver leave, bereavement and volunteer time, and PTO that can reach 32 days per year with carryover up to 280 hours. These provisions provide predictable time off and flexibility across life events.
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Healthcare Strength — Medical (PPO or HDHP) with HSA/FSA options, dental including a minor‑child orthodontia option, and vision are available for employees and eligible dependents. Employer‑paid basic life/AD&D and short‑term disability, with subsidized long‑term disability, add robust income protection.
SECU Insights
What We Do
Even though we're North Carolina's largest credit union, we're still just "people helping people." We currently serve over 2.6 million members through more than 270 branch offices - and growing! Members have 24/7 access to account services from over 1,100 ATMs, as well as via phone, our website, and the SECU Mobile App. Since 1937, we've provided financial services to employees of the State of North Carolina, public boards of education, and employees of associations formed for the benefit of State employees, as well as their immediate family members. We are the trusted provider of financial services for millions of members. And, according to Forbes Magazine, we're the best credit union in North Carolina. State Employees' Credit Union (SECU) is an Equal Housing Opportunity lender and federally insured by NCUA. SECU provides equal employment opportunity to all qualified persons regardless of race, color, religion, age, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, genetic information, disability, veteran status, or other classification protected by law.
