Deputy General Counsel - Litigation
About The Position
In 1770, John Adams agreed to defend British soldiers charged in the Boston Massacre. It was an unpopular decision, and not one likely to help his career. The facts were contested, emotions were high, and the outcome was uncertain. Adams later wrote that the case taught him something simple and durable: facts matter, pressure is inevitable, and judgment is what carries you through when neither side has a perfect story. That is still true of litigation today. At Mercury, we’re building a modern banking experience trusted by more than 200,000 ambitious companies. We move quickly, we build new products, and we operate in a highly regulated environment. That combination makes disputes, investigations, and enforcement matters a fact of life — and handling them well is essential to continuing to innovate and scale. To support that work, we’re hiring a Deputy General Counsel, Litigation to own Mercury’s litigation and enforcement function end to end. What this role is about This role exists to help Mercury keep building. Litigation at Mercury is not about posturing or perfection. It’s about making clear-eyed decisions under pressure, managing risk thoughtfully, and ensuring that disputes don’t distract from or unnecessarily constrain the company’s ability to move forward. You’ll be responsible for how Mercury approaches adversarial matters across the company, from early assessment through resolution, and for building the systems that allow us to handle those matters consistently as we scale.
Requirements
- 12+ years of legal experience, with significant litigation or enforcement experience.
- An exceptional communicator and advocate, able to explain complex issues clearly and persuasively.
- A strategic, practical thinker who can weigh risk without slowing the business unnecessarily.
- Comfortable owning decisions and giving direct advice when there’s no obvious right answer.
- Creativity is required, and a willingness to push beyond “the way things are normally done” to achieve outsized outcomes for Mercury.
Nice To Haves
- A mix of in-house experience at a technology company (particularly in regulated industries) along with a strong law firm litigation background, with hands-on exposure to contested matters.
- Fintech, financial services, and/or government experience are a plus.
- Experience with government investigations/enforcement (federal + state) with pragmatic response posture.
- Strong legal-tech instincts (including AI) - can evaluate tools, deploy them responsibly, and drive adoption to make the team meaningfully faster.
Responsibilities
- Own Mercury’s litigation and disputes portfolio, including civil litigation, arbitration, investigations, regulatory enforcement, and other adversarial matters.
- Set litigation strategy, grounded in facts, risk tolerance, and business context.
- Build and scale Mercury’s litigation function, including playbooks, escalation frameworks, and outside counsel strategy, with an eye toward achieving differentiated outcomes.
- Oversee subpoena and government request response, balancing speed, rigor, and practicality.
- Advise senior leadership and the Board during high-stakes situations, helping the company navigate tradeoffs and move forward decisively.
- Identify patterns across matters, and partner with teams to reduce future risk through better systems, product design, or processes.
- Be a calm, trusted presence when issues are ambiguous and timelines are short.
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What This Job Offers
Job Type
Full-time
Career Level
Executive
Education Level
No Education Listed
Number of Employees
501-1,000 employees
