SVP, Deputy General Counsel (Head of Asset Resolution Department)
World Business Lenders · Remote · $150,000 (stated in the posting)
About World Business Lenders
- At World Business Lenders (WBL), we provide flexible, short-term commercial loans backed by real estate to help small and medium-sized businesses across the United States — particularly those facing difficulties with traditional financing. We're a fast-moving, results-driven organization that takes security seriously as we continue to grow.
Role Overview
- Provide executive leadership and legal oversight for the Company’s Asset Resolution Department function, directing nationwide default litigation and other legal recovery strategies, overseeing Asset Resolution counsel, managing outside counsel relationships, and supporting portfolio performance and operational execution for non-performing commercial business loans secured by real estate.
Key Responsibilities & Achievements
- Lead comprehensive legal recovery strategies across foreclosure (judicial and non-judicial), bankruptcy, lawsuits involving breach of note and guaranty, title claims, receivership, loan workouts, deed-in-lieu transactions, judgment enforcement, and collateral liquidation.
- Provide executive oversight and direction to the Asset Resolution legal team, currently consisting of 10 Asset Resolution counsel and 6 support staff, while maintaining accountability for legal strategy, workload distribution, performance, and consistency of execution.
- Oversee the legal management of an active portfolio of approximately 342 Asset Resolution cases, with each Asset Resolution counsel managing an average of approximately 35 active matters.
- Oversee nationwide outside counsel by setting litigation strategy, managing legal spending, monitoring performance, reviewing legal invoices, coordinating payment of law firm invoices, and ensuring alignment with Company objectives and applicable legal and regulatory requirements.
- Manage relationships with existing outside law firms and identify, evaluate, retain, and oversee new law firms to represent WBL in foreclosure, bankruptcy, litigation, title, and other Asset Resolution matters.
- Partner with Executive Leadership, Credit, Servicing, Finance, Compliance, and Operations to assess portfolio risk, prioritize recovery strategies, and maximize returns on distressed assets.
- Provide legal oversight of preservation, insurance compliance, lien protection, title matters, and disposition strategies for commercial real estate securing business loans.
- Oversee complex enforcement matters involving deficiency judgments, guarantor collections, fraudulent transfers, bankruptcy proceedings, and contested foreclosure actions without directly managing individual cases.
- Negotiate and oversee settlements, restructurings, loan modifications, discounted payoffs, and other resolution strategies that balance recovery objectives, litigation risk, and cost discipline.
- Support submissions to the Asset Resolution Committee and Executive Leadership, including settlement proposals and bidding instructions associated with foreclosure sales, in coordination with designated Asset Resolution Committee representatives.
- Develop executive reporting and portfolio analytics that deliver actionable insight into recovery performance, legal expenditures, asset aging, recoveries, charge-offs, litigation trends, and portfolio performance.
- Establish policies, procedures, performance metrics, and accountability standards that strengthen operational consistency, reporting accuracy, portfolio visibility, legal risk management, and outside counsel performance.
- Advance workflow automation, reporting enhancements, and operational standardization to improve efficiency, strengthen legal oversight, and support continued portfolio growth.
Leadership
- Lead, mentor, and develop a team of 10 Asset Resolution counsels and 6 support staff responsible for the nationwide management and legal resolution of approximately 342 active distressed commercial loan matters.
- Provide strategic direction and oversight rather than direct case management, ensuring Asset Resolution counsel has clear legal strategy, appropriate resources, consistent standards, and effective external legal support.
- Promote a culture of accountability, collaboration, strategic problem-solving, and client-focused decision-making while maintaining strong relationships with internal stakeholders and external legal partners.
Requirements
Legal Qualifications
Education:
- Candidates must hold a Juris Doctor (J.D.) from an accredited U.S. law school and maintain an active license to practice law in at least one U.S. jurisdiction in good standing.
Professional Experience
- Demonstrated experience managing or overseeing a high-volume litigation portfolio, including the ability to establish priorities, allocate resources, identify risk, monitor deadlines, and maintain consistent quality across hundreds of active matters.
- 10 + years of substantive legal experience with proven experience overseeing multi-state foreclosure and default litigation, with a strong understanding of varying state foreclosure procedures, court requirements, timelines, lien priority, title issues, and applicable creditor/debtor laws.
- Substantial experience with bankruptcy proceedings, breach of note and guaranty claims, title disputes, deficiency claims, receiverships, judgment enforcement, contested litigation, and other creditor recovery matters.
- Experience managing, supervising, and developing attorneys and legal support personnel, including establishing performance expectations, reviewing work, allocating caseloads, and providing strategic legal direction.
- Demonstrated experience selecting, retaining, managing, and evaluating outside counsel, including monitoring litigation strategy and performance, reviewing legal budgets and invoices, and managing legal spend.
- Experience developing and implementing litigation, settlement, and recovery strategies consistent with business objectives, risk tolerance, and portfolio economics.
- Demonstrated ability to review and analyze settlement proposals, foreclosure sale strategies, and bidding instructions and communicate recommendations to executive leadership and/or the Asset Resolution Committee.
- Demonstrated ability to analyze large volumes of case and portfolio data and use legal case-management systems, litigation tracking platforms, Microsoft Office/Excel, reporting tools, and legal research platforms.
- Experience developing legal department metrics, dashboards, reporting, KPIs, budgets, and portfolio analytics is strongly preferred.
- Strong judgment and demonstrated ability to identify litigation risk, evaluate recovery alternatives, make commercially sound recommendations, and balance legal risk against recovery objectives and cost.
- Demonstrated ability to operate effectively in a high-volume, deadline-driven environment while maintaining accuracy, responsiveness, confidentiality, and professional judgment.
- Experience working directly with C-suite executives, senior business leaders, committees, and cross-functional stakeholders.
Preferred Experience
- Experience leading a national or multi-state foreclosure/default litigation function.
- Experience overseeing a portfolio of 300+ active litigation or default matters.
- Experience managing 10+ attorneys and/or a comparable legal organization.
- Experience managing a significant outside counsel network and legal spend/invoice review.
- Experience with commercial real estate lending and distressed commercial loan portfolios.
- Experience with legal operations, workflow automation, litigation management systems, and data-driven legal reporting.
- Experience presenting litigation, settlement, recovery, and portfolio recommendations to an Asset Resolution Committee, Investment Committee, executive committee, or C-suite leadership.
Benefits
What We Offer
- Compensation includes a base salary of $150,000.
- Eligibility for incentive compensation (equity and deferred cash bonus) varies by title and level, in accordance with company policy.
- Benefits: Medical, dental, vision, life, and disability coverage; 401(k) with company match; paid holidays and paid time off (PTO).
- Work Environment: Fully remote work environment, with occasional travel as needed for leadership off-sites and corporate events.