Legal and Deficiency Recovery Manager

First Help Financial • Needham, MA

3d • Remote

About The Position

First Help Financial is hiring a Legal and Deficiency Recovery Manager to build and lead a structured post-charge-off recovery program. The role owns legal and compliance gates, including eligibility for legal escalation, consumer contact standards, vendor oversight, and outside counsel management. It is a program-building role with responsibility for converting currently uncollected balances into recoveries. This is not a practicing attorney position; outside counsel handles legal action. The position reports to the VP of Operations and is remote from anywhere in the United States. Compensation starts at a base salary of $120,000, plus an annual performance-based bonus.

The manager designs and maintains account qualification criteria for legal escalation, monitors and audits account routing, reviews exceptions, approves settlement letters and collection scripts, and owns legal and compliance reporting. The role also maintains a state-by-state legal viability map, ensures compliance with FDCPA, UDAAP, ECOA, and SCRA requirements, coordinates bankruptcy filings and regulatory responses, and provides compliance training.

The role vets and monitors third-party collection agencies and BPO partners, leads outside counsel selection and oversight, reviews vendor contracts, and tracks referrals, outcomes, costs, and compliance. It writes and maintains program policies and procedures, coordinates active collections litigation with outside counsel, maintains a litigation log, reports material developments, identifies process gaps, and provides routine legal and compliance guidance to collections staff. The position may hire and develop direct reports as program volume grows.

First Help Financial describes itself as a fast-growing, culturally diverse auto lender serving underserved consumers. It highlights a work-life balance, career growth, employee development, and an inclusive workplace.

Requirements

• At least 5 years of experience in legal operations, compliance management, or collections oversight within consumer lending, auto finance, or a third-party collection agency.
• Demonstrated historical career stability.
• Specific experience in non-prime or subprime auto lending.
• Working knowledge of FDCPA, UDAAP, and applicable state consumer protection laws as they apply to post-charge-off collections.
• Ability to review scripts, letters, and vendor practices for compliance and answer routine questions without relying on outside counsel.
• Experience managing bankruptcy filings across a consumer lending portfolio and handling SCRA compliance for servicemember accounts.
• Experience managing outside counsel relationships, including scoping work, reviewing billing, managing timelines, and escalating performance issues.
• Experience working in or alongside a deficiency recovery operation and understanding how settlement letters, agency placement, and legal escalation work together.
• Experience designing, building, or leading a post-charge-off deficiency recovery program from the ground up.
• Experience managing legal collections activity across multiple states, including knowledge of states that prohibit wage garnishment.
• Experience coordinating with outside counsel on deficiency suits and post-judgment enforcement.
• Ability to interpret collections performance data without requiring a data team to validate program performance.
• Bachelor's degree required.

Nice To Haves

• JD, paralegal certification, or CRCM.
• Experience building or administering an agency compliance monitoring program.
• Experience exercising a right-to-audit provision.
• Experience terminating a vendor relationship for compliance failure.
• Background at a non-prime auto lender or servicer, such as Consumer Portfolio Services, Westlake Financial, Exeter Finance, CAC Holdings, DriveTime, First Investors, or a similar company.

Responsibilities

• Design and own qualification criteria for determining which deficiency-balance accounts are eligible for legal escalation.
• Maintain the controlled file, audit account routing, spot-check the application of criteria, and approve threshold changes before implementation.
• Monitor the legal escalation pipeline and review exceptions flagged by the collections team.
• Maintain the program compliance log and approve settlement letter content before mailing.
• Approve deficiency collection scripts and settlement authority structures, and reapprove material changes.
• Ensure compliance with FDCPA and applicable state laws in consumer interactions and collection approaches.
• Own legal and compliance reporting within the collections KPI package and prepare quarterly Board updates on the post-charge-off program.
• Escalate material program issues to leadership promptly.
• Conduct and maintain FDCPA and UDAAP reviews of consumer-facing materials and processes.
• Build and maintain a state-by-state legal viability map for deficiency collections and communicate legal updates to relevant teams.
• Document the ECOA compliance basis before differentiated treatment is implemented.
• Manage portfolio bankruptcy filings and ensure SCRA compliance for servicemember accounts.
• Coordinate responses to CFPB inquiries, state attorney general matters, and consumer complaints escalated through regulatory channels.
• Develop and deliver compliance training for post-charge-off staff before they work live accounts.
• Vet third-party collection agencies before account placement, including assessment of compliance, call recording, data security, and relevant experience.
• Ensure vendor contracts include appropriate oversight and accountability provisions.
• Run the agency compliance program, including call audits, complaint tracking, performance monitoring, and remediation.
• Oversee third-party BPO partners to ensure they follow approved scripts, authority levels, and FDCPA requirements.
• Lead outside counsel evaluation and selection; manage account referrals, case outcomes, and costs against recovery.
• Review vendor contracts before execution and confirm required compliance and oversight terms.
• Write, maintain, and version-control post-charge-off collection policies and procedures, and communicate changes before implementation.
• Coordinate active collections-related litigation with outside counsel, maintain a litigation log, and report material developments to the VP Servicing and COO.
• Identify process gaps that create legal exposure or reduce recovery and develop solutions.
• Provide routine legal and compliance guidance to collection agents, team leads, and directors.
• Hire and develop direct reports as program volume increases.

Benefits

• Medical, dental, vision, LTD/STD, identity theft, and other health and welfare benefits.
• Paid parental leave.
• Paid vacation.
• 401(k) match.
• Tuition reimbursement.
• Social activities and monthly lunches.
• Employee recognition and talent development program.
• Career planning and development opportunities.
• Accommodations during interviews for candidates with special needs.

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Manager