Position: Senior Vice President & General Counsel
Location: Cypress, CA or Marietta, GA
Reports to: President, YMFC Global
Position SummaryThe Senior Vice President & General Counsel serves as the chief legal officer for the North American operations of the company. This executive is accountable for the strategic direction, oversight, and delivery of all legal and compliance activities across the U.S. and Canada, while playing a critical role in shaping the company's global legal and compliance framework.
The SVP & General Counsel will lead a team of legal and compliance professionals, work closely with the global head of Risk & Compliance, and partner with the company's senior leadership to align governance practices worldwide. The successful candidate will bring extensive experience from the automotive or powersports financial services industry, combining technical legal expertise with executive-level leadership, people development, and global collaboration.
Key ResponsibilitiesLegal Leadership
- Serve as the principal legal advisor to the President and senior leadership across the North American business.
- Provide expert counsel on corporate governance, financial services regulation, consumer finance law, contracts, litigation, and risk management.
- Oversee negotiation and management of high-value contracts, including dealer, vendor, and strategic partner agreements.
- Direct and manage external counsel engagements to ensure efficient, high-quality outcomes.
Compliance Oversight
- Lead the North American Legal & Compliance function, with a dedicated team focused on compliance monitoring, reporting, and regulatory engagement.
- Establish and strengthen a comprehensive compliance framework in Canada, aligned with U.S. practices and company's global standards.
- Partner with the global head of Risk & Compliance to ensure consistency of policies, standards, and risk management practices across the enterprise.
- Anticipate regulatory developments and proactively mitigate risks related to financial services operations.
Strategic & Global Impact
- Play a central role in building and aligning a global legal and compliance framework for company.
- Partner with leadership to ensure consistency with enterprise-wide governance expectations.
- Represent company in global legal and compliance forums, contributing to policy development and sharing best practices across regions.
Leadership & People Development
- Lead, mentor, and develop the Legal & Compliance team, ensuring succession readiness, professional growth, and high engagement.
- Serve as an executive role model, promoting integrity, accountability, and a strong culture of compliance across the organization.
- Build and sustain trusted partnerships with senior leaders in North America, global leadership within company, and executives to support business and strategic objectives.
Qualifications- Juris Doctor (JD) degree and active license to practice law in at least one U.S. jurisdiction.
- 20+ years of progressive legal experience, with at least 7 years in a senior leadership role within automotive or powersports financial services.
- Expertise in U.S. consumer finance law, regulatory compliance, and Canadian financial services regulations.
- Demonstrated success in leading and developing high-performing legal and compliance teams.
- Strong track record of building executive-level partnerships and influencing within a global, matrixed environment.
- Excellent judgment, negotiation, communication, and executive presence.
Preferred Attributes- Experience in a captive financial services company.
- Global orientation with experience working across regions and cultures.
- Strategic thinker with pragmatic, solutions-oriented problem-solving skills.
- Ability to shape governance and compliance frameworks across multiple jurisdictions.
