Independent Banker - April 2021 - 32

PORTFOLIO
◎FOCUS LEGAL SERVICES
Building your
bank's legal bench
Community banks are complex organizations with a multitude of
liabilities. That's why having sound legal advice from a firm or general
counsel is increasingly necessary. Here's what to consider when hiring
a firm or internal legal professional. By Elizabeth Judd
E
ven community banks with only
a few branches and modest
assets fi nd themselves in need of a
stunning breadth of legal expertise.
No matter the topic-regulatory
compliance, M&A, lender liability,
employment, vendor management
or cybersecurity-having legal
expertise allows community bankers
to better perform their duties and
achieve their goals.
Recently, for instance, employment
law got much thornier during
the COVID-19 pandemic, and
community banks wrestled with
issues surrounding remote work,
shutdown orders and the safety of
their employees.
" There are a bunch of really unique
HR and employment issues that
came up-and continue to arise-
because of the coronavirus, " says
Chet Fenimore, managing partner at
Fenimore Kay Harrison & Ford, LLP
in Austin, Texas.
Revisiting bread-and-butter
corporate law in light of the
pandemic also makes good sense,
Fenimore says. For example, many
community bankers realized that
their articles, bylaws and committee
charters needed refreshing because
they didn't permit shareholders
and/or board members to meet over
virtual platforms.
Most community bankers
understand that legal counsel, while
expensive, is a regular, even daily,
necessity. Tom Sellers, chairman of
the board and CEO of $1.1 billionasset
Alliance Bank in Sulphur
Springs, Texas, says the community
bank's need for legal expertise
has skyrocketed.
" Nowadays, " he says, " there's
32 Q ICBA Independent Banker Q April 2021

Independent Banker - April 2021

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Independent Banker - April 2021

Table of Contents
Independent Banker - April 2021 - Cover1
Independent Banker - April 2021 - Cover2
Independent Banker - April 2021 - Table of Contents
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Independent Banker - April 2021 - Cover3
Independent Banker - April 2021 - Cover4
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