General Counsel

Company Overview

Established in 2016 and headquartered in Minneapolis, Minnesota, Sezzle Inc. is a publicly traded financial technology company (Nasdaq: SEZL) operating in the United States and Canada. With a mission to financially empower the next generation, Sezzle is revolutionizing the shopping experience beyond payments, blending cutting‑edge technology with seamless, interest‑free installment plans that make shopping smarter and more accessible. Sezzle currently employs approximately 400 employees and contractors, with gross annual revenue exceeding $450 million.

The Position

We are seeking a best‑in‑class tech‑driven General Counsel. This role presents an exciting opportunity to thrive in a dynamic, fast‑paced environment within a rapidly growing team.

Responsibilities

Legal Leadership

• Lead Sezzle’s legal function as a technology‑first operator, implementing and championing AI tools across the legal and compliance team, from contract review and regulatory research to compliance monitoring and risk analysis.
• Serve as the company’s primary legal advisor to the CEO, executive team, and Board on all legal, regulatory, and strategic matters.
• Lead, manage, and build Sezzle’s in‑house legal team, setting a high‑performance culture consistent with Sezzle’s Merit, Excellence, and Intelligence values.
• Oversee all corporate governance matters including Board minutes, charter documents, equity management, securities compliance, and public company obligations.
• Manage litigation, outside counsel relationships, and legal spend with a results‑driven, efficiency‑first orientation.
• Provide real‑time legal guidance on product development, marketing, technology partnerships, and business strategy.
• Lead or support M&A, debt facility, and strategic transaction work as Sezzle’s business evolves.

Compliance & Regulatory Leadership

• Directly lead and own Sezzle’s Compliance department, overseeing the team, program structure, and regulatory posture across the U.S. and Canada.
• Own all consumer lending regulatory compliance including TILA/Reg Z, ECOA, FCRA, UDAAP, GLBA, CCPA/GDPR, and state‑level consumer protection laws.
• Lead state licensing strategy including money transmission, consumer finance, and lending licenses across all active jurisdictions.
• Act as primary point of contact for CFPB, FTC, state banking regulators, and other relevant regulatory bodies.
• Own Sezzle’s ILC bank charter regulatory strategy in partnership with the CEO and executive team, guiding application, charter management, ongoing regulatory relationships, and bank‑level compliance build‑out.
• Develop and maintain enterprise‑wide compliance programs, policies, and training frameworks.
• Lead regulatory examination and audit preparation, response, and resolution.
• Champion the adoption and implementation of AI tools within the Legal and Compliance departments, drafting, research, contract review, regulatory monitoring, and compliance automation.
• Actively partner with Engineering and Product on AI‑powered product initiatives, ensuring legal and compliance are accelerators rather than gatekeepers.
• Set and model a culture where legal team members are expected to leverage AI in their daily practice.
• Advise on legal risk associated with Sezzle’s proprietary AI development, including the AI shopping assistant, algorithmic credit decisioning, and data strategy.

What We Look For

• Demonstrated track record of leading AI implementation within a legal or compliance function, acting as an owner and driver of adoption.
• Experience building or leading compliance operations at a high‑growth fintech, digital lender, or regulated technology company.
• Regulatory experience navigating CFPB, FTC, state banking regulators, and/or FDIC examinations.
• Exceptional ability to translate complex regulatory requirements into clear, actionable business guidance without slowing execution.
• Strong team‑building instincts, leading a department and setting the culture for how legal and compliance operates at Sezzle.
• Strategic thinker with operational discipline, capable of setting direction and executing.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills; comfortable presenting to the Board and external regulators.
• Deep expertise in U.S. consumer lending regulation with direct BNPL, pay‑in‑four, short‑term lending, earned wage access, or adjacent consumer finance experience is preferred.

Preferred Qualifications

• J.D. from a top‑ranked U.S. law school; law review or equivalent academic distinction preferred.
• 8–15 years of relevant legal experience; a mix of elite law firm and in‑house experience is ideal.
• Direct experience with ILC charter applications or de novo bank formation is a significant differentiator.
• Prior experience in BNPL, payday lending, consumer installment lending, personal loans, or near‑Sezzle consumer finance verticals strongly preferred.
• Background or active interest in financial technology product development; candidates who have coded, prototyped, or built internal legal‑tech tools are of particular interest.
• Public company experience (SEC reporting, Regulation FD, proxy statements) is a plus; Sezzle is publicly traded on Nasdaq.
• Familiarity with Canadian consumer protection law is an asset.

About You

• You have relentlessly high standards; many people may think your standards are unreasonably high. You continually raise the bar and drive others to deliver great results. You prevent defects from being sent down the line and ensure problems are fixed permanently.
• You’re not bound by convention; your success and much of the fun lie in developing new ways to do things.
• You need action; speed matters in business. Many decisions and actions are reversible and do not require extensive study. We value calculated risk‑taking.
• You earn trust; you listen attentively, speak candidly, and treat others respectfully.
• You have backbone; you disagree, then commit. You can respectfully challenge decisions when you disagree, even when doing so is uncomfortable or exhausting. You have conviction and are tenacious. You do not compromise for social cohesion. Once a decision is determined, you commit wholly.
• You deliver results; you focus on the key inputs and deliver them with the right quality and in a timely fashion. Despite setbacks, you rise to the occasion and never settle.

What Makes Working at Sezzle Awesome

At Sezzle, we are more than just brilliant engineers, passionate data enthusiasts, out‑of‑the‑box thinkers, and determined innovators. We believe in surrounding ourselves with only the best and the brightest individuals. Our culture is not defined by a certain set of perks designed to give the illusion of a traditional startup culture, but rather, it is the visible example living in every employee that we hire.

Equal Employment Opportunity

As set forth in Sezzle’s Equal Employment Opportunity policy, we do not discriminate on the basis of any protected group status under any applicable law.