Asset Manager & Insurance Legal, VP

Why State Street
State Street is one of the world’s leading providers of financial services to institutional investors. Investment Services is a core State Street business, delivering servicing, operational, and technology solutions to asset managers, asset owners, insurance companies, and other institutional clients globally. Its capabilities span custody, fund administration, middle-office services, analytics, financing, and liquidity.
Joining State Street means working at the center of a sophisticated and highly regulated financial services ecosystem. Our Legal team partners with business and control leaders to solve complex challenges, support strategic growth, strengthen client relationships, and help shape the future of the investment servicing industry.
This position offers an experienced legal executive the opportunity to:
Support the legal strategy across State Street’s Investment Services business
Advise business partners on significant client, regulatory, operational, and reputational matters
Work with leading asset managers, asset owners, registered funds, private funds, and insurance companies
Influence product, commercial, risk management, and transformation strategies
Be part of a sophisticated team of attorneys and legal professionals
Operate within a global organization while providing dedicated support for the IS Americas business
The Opportunity
We are seeking a seasoned attorney to serve as Vice President – Investment Services Legal (Americas). In this role, you will support all segments within the IS Americas business. The client base includes registered investment companies, ETFs, mutual funds, money market funds, business development companies, private markets funds, hedge funds, real estate funds, investment advisers, insurance companies, and large asset owners.
You will serve as a trusted advisor to business colleagues, client-facing teams, and control functions on the legal, regulatory, commercial, operational, governance, and reputational matters affecting these client relationships. You will also provide strategic legal guidance across an extensive portfolio of asset servicing products and services, including custody, fund accounting, trustee services, fund administration, transfer agency, ETF servicing, collateral services, and related middle- and back-office solutions.
This opportunity requires an accomplished legal professional who combines strong knowledge of registered funds, asset owner clients, and the alternative investments servicing industry, with sound business judgment, operational understanding, and a practical, risk-based approach to legal advice.
What You Will Be Responsible For
Strategic Legal Leadership
Serve as a senior legal advisor to business colleagues on client strategy, product development, regulatory change, commercial arrangements, operational matters, governance, and risk.
Develop legal strategies that support business priorities while appropriately managing legal, regulatory, operational, financial, and reputational risk.
Translate complex legal and regulatory considerations into clear, practical, and commercially informed guidance.
Identify emerging legal and regulatory developments and advise the business on their potential business, client, product, and operational implications.
Establish priorities and deploy legal skills effectively across a complex portfolio of matters.
Business Segment Advice
Provide expert guidance on matters involving registered investment companies, ETFs, mutual funds, money market funds, business development companies, investment advisers, private markets funds, hedge funds, insurance companies, and large asset owners.
Advise on the Investment Company Act of 1940, Investment Advisers Act of 1940, Securities Act of 1933, Securities Exchange Act of 1934, applicable SEC rules and guidance, fiduciary obligations, disclosure requirements, and related regulatory expectations.
Support legal and regulatory considerations involving fund structures, asset owner structures, adviser relationships, governance, servicing models, client obligations, and operational arrangements. Help the business navigate the intersection of investment servicing requirements and applicable legal and regulatory obligations.
Products, Clients, and Commercial Matters
Advise on custody, fund accounting, fund administration, trustee, transfer agency, ETF servicing, middle-office, securities lending, cash, collateral, and related solutions.
Lead the drafting, review, interpretation, and negotiation of complex asset servicing agreements, disclosures, client communications, and supporting documentation.
Provide legal guidance on strategic client relationships, new products, service enhancements, operating model changes, and complex commercial arrangements.
Support significant client negotiations and escalations with practical, solutions-oriented advice.
Risk, Regulatory, and Cross-Functional Partnership
Partner with Compliance, Risk, Audit, Operations, Product, Technology, Procurement, Client Service, and other functions on regulatory change, incident response, remediation, governance, and transformation initiatives.
Manage or support interactions with regulators, fund boards, asset owner stakeholders, industry groups, outside counsel, and senior client representatives, as appropriate.
Evaluate complex legal, regulatory, operational, and reputational risks and escalate significant matters to senior management.
Strengthen legal processes, escalation protocols, knowledge management, and client support models.
Promote consistency, efficiency, sound judgment, and risk awareness across the legal organization.
What We Value
The successful candidate will be a strategic and commercially minded legal leader who can operate effectively at the intersection of law, regulation, business strategy, client service, and operational risk.
The individual will bring:
Executive presence and the credibility to advise and influence business and control leaders
Strong judgment and the ability to make well-reasoned decisions in complex or high-pressure situations
A practical, business-oriented approach to legal advice and problem-solving
The ability to identify the issues that matter most and provide clear, actionable guidance
Intellectual curiosity and the ability to quickly understand sophisticated products, operating models, and client needs
A collaborative style and the ability to build trusted relationships across functions and jurisdictions
A commitment to integrity, ethical practices, accountability, and disciplined risk management
Qualifications:
Juris Doctor from an accredited U.S. law school and active license to practice law in good standing in at least one U.S. jurisdiction.
5-10 years of legal experience advising registered investment companies, private funds, custodians, banks or similar institutional financial services organizations.
Demonstrated experience serving as a legal advisor on complex regulatory matters, including regulatory examinations, inquiries, remediation efforts, regulatory change initiatives, and interpretation of evolving regulatory requirements.
Experience practicing within or advising investment management organizations, registered funds, private funds, asset owners, investment advisers, asset managers, or comparable regulated investment businesses, with the ability to provide practical guidance on governance, fiduciary obligations, disclosures, fund structures, servicing arrangements, and adviser relationships.
A combination of major law firm and in-house financial services experience is strongly preferred.
Strong understanding of asset servicing products and operating models, including custody, fund accounting, fund administration, trustee services, transfer agency, ETF servicing, middle-office services, collateral solutions, securities lending, and related institutional investment services.
Experience advising on legal, regulatory, commercial, operational, and reputational risks affecting large institutional clients and complex financial services businesses.
Demonstrated ability to serve as a trusted advisor to business and influence decision-making across business leadership, Legal, Risk, Compliance, Operations, Product, Technology, Audit, and other control functions.
Significant experience drafting, reviewing, negotiating, and overseeing complex commercial agreements, strategic client arrangements, outsourcing relationships, and other sophisticated legal documentation.
Ability to assess and communicate legal, regulatory, operational, financial, and reputational risks and provide clear, practical, and commercially focused recommendations in high-pressure situations.
Experience supporting strategic business initiatives, product development, technology transformation, operating model changes, regulatory remediation programs, and enterprise-wide change initiatives.
Experience interacting with fund boards, regulators, industry organizations, senior client stakeholders, outside counsel, and other external constituents.
Strong analytical, drafting, negotiation, communication, relationship management, and problem-solving skills, with the ability to translate complex legal concepts into actionable business advice.
Why