Lead Counsel, Payments Partnerships Legal

Meta; New York (NY); On-site; USD 170,000 - 237,000; Full time

Job summary

Meta seeks an experienced transactional attorney to lead Payments Partnerships, supporting multiple apps globally. You will structure and negotiate complex payment and financial services agreements, advise on regulatory risks, and drive strategic initiatives with internal partners and outside counsel.

Ideal candidates have a strong bar credential, extensive experience in payments law, and the ability to manage numerous deals under tight deadlines while collaborating across product, tax,

Qualifications

• Active and in good standing bar license in at least one U.S. state or equivalent foreign bar license.
• Experience advising on payments law and financial services regulation.
• Experience drafting and negotiating commercial agreements with financial institutions or payment networks.
• Ability to manage numerous deals with tight deadlines with minimal supervision.
• Strong written and verbal communication for technical and non-technical stakeholders.

Responsibilities

• Provide legal and strategic business advice for Payments and Financial Integrity Partnerships.
• Serve as subject matter expert on payments and financial services transactions.
• Draft, negotiate, and close complex payments and financial agreements.
• Identify risks and collaborate to implement mitigations aligned with business goals.
• Advise on privacy, data protection and information-sharing in financial risk exchanges.
• Collaborate with cross-functional teams across Meta and outside counsel.

Skills

Payments law

Commercial agreements

Regulatory compliance

Cross-functional collaboration

AI in legal workflows

Job description

Meta seeks a experienced transactional attorney to serve as Lead Counsel to support its growing efforts in the payments (financial services and financial integrity) across Meta’s family of apps (Facebook, Instagram, Messenger, Threads, WhatsApp, Muse, and Reality Labs). You will work with partnerships and business development teams to structure, draft, and negotiate a wide variety of contracts, including strategic payments processing agreements, agentic payments partnerships, payment network integrations and other strategic payments agreements. You will also advise clients on the various legal risks, business strategies and other issues related to commercial transactions and general operations. In this role, you will join a legal team supporting the delivery of new payment and financial services experiences globally. This is a full-time position.

Lead Counsel, Payments Partnerships Legal Responsibilities:

• Provide legal and strategic business advice to Payments and Financial Integrity Partnerships to help develop a comprehensive, long-term approach to our relationships with key partners and the commercial aspects of our products and programs
• Serve as legal subject matter specialist on payments and financial services and financial integrity transactions
• Draft, negotiate, and close complex payments and financial services and financial integrity agreements
• Identify legal risks in payments transactions and financial integrity and work with business and other internal stakeholders to identify and implement solutions and mitigations in line with business objectives
• Advise on the privacy, data protection and information-sharing considerations arising from financial risk and fraud data exchanges with external partners, industry consortia and financial institutions
• Collaborate with internal business partners and cross-functional teams across Meta, including partnerships, product, tax, finance, compliance, financial crime, integrity, and privacy, as well as other members of the legal team and outside counsel
• Willingness and ability to manage numerous deals, meet tight deadlines, and work extended hours when necessary to complete projects
• Open to travel as and when required

Minimum Qualifications:

• Active and in good standing bar license in at least one U.S. state or equivalent foreign bar license. Where the jurisdiction of licensure differs from the location in which the role is based, the ability to promptly obtain permission to practice law for Meta in that location
• Experience advising on payments law, financial services regulation, or money transmission requirements, including applicable federal and state regulatory frameworks
• Experience drafting and negotiating commercial agreements with financial institutions, payment networks, or technology partners
• Experience advising clients on and managing numerous deals on tight deadlines with minimal supervision
• Experience communicating complex legal and regulatory concepts clearly to technical and non-technical stakeholders through written and verbal communication
• Experience building relationships and collaborating with cross-functional business and legal teams

Preferred Qualifications:

• Familiarity with international payments regulations, cross-border money transmission requirements, or financial services licensing across multiple jurisdictions
• Experience with or knowledge of agentic commerce and emerging payments technology
• Experience drafting and negotiating agreements with fraud, risk, identity or financial crime detection vendors, including data processing and service-level terms
• Experience supporting compliance, AML/CFT, sanctions or financial crime programmes through third-party partnerships and vendor arrangements
• In-house legal experience at a consumer technology company, fintech, or payments platform with direct responsibility for payments or financial services products
• Demonstrated ability to integrate AI tools to optimize legal workflows and drive measurable efficiency or quality improvements
• Demonstrated ongoing AI skill development (e.g., prompt/context engineering, agent orchestration) and staying current with emerging AI technologies
• Demonstrated ability to integrate AI tools to optimize/redesign workflows and drive measurable impact (e.g., efficiency gains, quality improvements)
• Experience adhering to and implementing responsible, ethical AI practices (e.g., risk assessment, bias mitigation, quality and accuracy reviews)

About Meta:

Meta builds technologies that help people connect, find communities, and grow businesses. When Facebook launched in 2004, it changed the way people connect. Apps like Messenger, Instagram and WhatsApp further empowered billions around the world. Now, Meta is moving beyond 2D screens toward immersive experiences like augmented and virtual reality to help build the next evolution in social technology. People who choose to build their careers by building with us at Meta help shape a future that will take us beyond what digital connection makes possible today—beyond the constraints of screens, the limits of distance, and even the rules of physics.

Meta is proud to be an Equal Employment Opportunity and Affiritive Action employer. We do not discriminate based upon race, religion, color, national origin, sex (including pregnancy, childbirth, or related medical conditions), sexual orientation, gender, gender identity, gender expression, transgender status, sexual stereotypes, age, status as a protected veteran, status as an individual with a disability, or other applicable legally protected characteristics. We also consider qualified applicants with criminal histories, consistent with applicable federal, state and local law. Meta participates in the E-Verify program in certain locations, as required by law. Please note that Meta may leverage artificial intelligence and machine learning technologies in connection with applications for employment.

$170,000/year to $237,000/year + bonus + equity + benefits

Individual compensation is determined by skills, qualifications, experience, and location. Compensation details listed in this posting reflect the base hourly rate, monthly rate, or annual salary only, and do not include bonus, equity or sales incentives, if applicable. In addition to base compensation, Meta offers benefits. Learn more about benefits at Meta.