Legal Counsel

We are hiring for this position out of our Vancouver, Toronto, and Calgary offices. Successful candidates who apply outside of these areas will be expected to relocate and reside in a location that is within a commutable distance.

Role Overview
We are seeking a motivated and experienced legal counsel to join our in-house legal team. This role will be a key partner to our lending teams, providing pragmatic and strategic legal advice to support our business objectives. The successful candidate will work collaboratively with business units while demonstrating the independence and confidence to manage complex files from inception to completion.

About The Qualifications

• LL.B. or J.D. from an accredited law school and active membership in good standing with a Canadian provincial bar association.
• 6+ years of experience practicing law in the banking or real estate financing industry with expertise in financing, lending, mortgage sales and servicing, preferably with a mix of private practice and in-house experience.
• Ability to analyze complex situations and provide thoughtful, risk-based legal advice.
• Ability to understand business operations and objectives to balance legal risk with business objectives and provide legal advice that is commercially practical.
• Capable of managing a demanding workload with a significant degree of autonomy, taking initiative and running with files independently.
• Excellent interpersonal and communication skills, with the ability to convey complex legal concepts to non-legal stakeholders in a clear and concise manner.
• A proactive approach to problem-solving, with a focus on finding innovative and effective solutions.

About The Day-to-Day

• Transactional Support: Drafting, reviewing, and negotiating a wide variety of agreements, including loan agreements, commitment letters, security documentation, syndicated loan agreements, mortgage servicing agreements and other ancillary documents.
• Advisory: Acting as a trusted legal advisor to the lending teams on all aspects of their operations, from product development to loan origination and servicing.
• Regulatory Compliance: Collaborate with the regulatory legal team to assess the impact of new and existing legislation and regulations affecting lending business lines to ensure the institution's compliance.
• Risk Management: Identifying, evaluating, and mitigating legal and regulatory risks associated with lending activities and proposing solutions to address them.
• Independent File Management: Taking ownership of legal files from inception to completion, demonstrating the ability to work with a high degree of independence and minimal supervision.
• Problem Solving: Exercising sound judgment to provide solution-oriented legal advice that aligns with business strategy. You will be expected to present clear and practical solutions to address complex legal and business challenges.
• External Counsel Management: Engaging and managing external legal counsel when specialized advice is required, ensuring efficiency and cost-effectiveness.

About Us
Peoples Group is a boutique financial institution with offices located in Vancouver, Calgary, Toronto, and Montreal that has been in the Canadian marketplace for over 35 years. Our mission is to exceed our customers' expectations by providing exceptional customer service backed by extensive product knowledge and experience.

Our culture here at Peoples Group is formed by our values: Trustworthy, Creative, Willing. We believe people don't choose a company to work for, they choose a company to join. We prioritize risk-based practices and procedures in order to remain risk intelligent and compliant. We value people, building relationships, and focusing on strengths; we execute with passion.

About The Work Environment
Peoples Group offers a flexible and hybrid work environment. In this role you will work a combination of in-office and remotely from home. Typically, you'll be working regular business hours, Monday to Friday between 8:00am and 4:30pm with flexibility around start/end times.

We Offer

• A hybrid work environment, enabling you to balance your personal and professional life seamlessly.
• Competitive salaries, profit sharing, RRSP matching and benefits from day one.
• Generous paid time off to help achieve a healthy work-life balance.
• A strengths-based approach, ensuring we work together more effectively.
• A commitment to your well-being in five key areas: Financial, Physical, Social, Career, and Community.

Compensation
Peoples Group is pleased to offer employees a competitive annual salary plus a discretionary profit share opportunity. Salary for this position will vary between $160,000 and $180,000 per year depending on the knowledge, skills, abilities and experience that the chosen candidate possesses.

NOTE:
This job posting is for an existing vacancy. Peoples Group is an Equal Employment Opportunity employer. Please accept our utmost appreciation for your interest; however, only those applicants under consideration will be contacted.

We value and celebrate individuality while fostering an inclusive workplace for everyone. If there's any way we can support or accommodate you during the selection process, please don't hesitate to let us know.