Senior Counsel - Insurance Product Tax Law

Job Location: 200 Park Ave, New York, NY  Alternate Job Location : Warwick, RI

Role Value Proposition: 

As a Senior Counsel in the Product Tax & ERISA Unit of MetLife Legal Affairs you will join a diverse pool of talented legal professionals who have the potential to be future leaders within MetLife and across the insurance & retirement solutions industry.

You will be a part of a small, close-knit team of lawyers who work side-by-side with colleagues in US Insurance Law, Corporate Tax, Employee Benefits Tax and the lines of business. We are responsible for the ERISA, federal & state tax aspects of the design, administration, marketing, and tax reporting & information withholding of MetLife’s suite of voluntary benefits, life insurance, and retirement and investment offerings, primarily in the employer-sponsored and institutional markets.

We advise a broad swath of the company -- from front-line customer service representatives to senior executives -- on a broad swath of product offerings -- some issued decades ago and some in current development -- thus you must be able to master insurance product specifics, distill their complex tax issues and tailor team communications for specific audiences.  

Key Responsibilities:

We seek a tax and ERISA attorney who is a self-motivated, adaptive team player and lifelong learner who wants to have a direct impact on the growth of our company and the experiences of our customers. We prize these leadership competencies because they motivate and inspire higher performance by all of us to maintain MetLife’s status as a world-class leader in insurance, retirement savings and employee benefits.

Key responsibilities include devising and delivering solutions for:    

• Business Projects that directly impact MetLife’s customers in group insurance, institutional annuities, structured settlement annuities, voluntary employee benefits, consumer directed savings accounts (e.g. HSAs) and the closed-block of “retail” annuity and life insurance contracts.
• Product Administration, including: IRS resolutions and Closing Letter Agreement; creating and updating customer-facing forms (e.g., death claims); modernizing internal policies & procedures; resolving errors & customer complaints; and interfacing with third-party contract administrators.
• Government Relations efforts that require technical tax and ERISA input as well as being an active and productive company representative on industry trade committees such as the ACLI and the Committee of Annuity Insurers.

Essential Business Experience and Technical Skills:

As a team member you are required to have:

• J.D, LL.M. in Taxation and admission to at least one State Bar Association.
• 7+ years of experience in the life insurance & retirement benefits industry or comparable, specialized law firm experience (e.g. employee benefits, estate & trust, etc. )
• Expertise in Internal Revenue Code Sections 72, 101, 104-106, 132, the 400s, 817, 7702, 7702A, and tax withholding and reporting, including Chapters 3 and 4.
• Working knowledge of ERISA as it applies to the provision of services and products to qualified retirement plans, PTEs and Form 5500 reporting and working familiarity with the ever-evolving world of best interest standards.
• A passion for Leadership through serving your colleagues, clients and MetLife’s customers.
  You will be most effective if you have working knowledge of…

• The use and design of: individual and group life insurance (e.g., COLI, GUL, and GVUL); annuity contracts (whether non-qualified, IRA, 403(b) and 457s); disability, critical illness, hospital indemnity; and consumer-directed accounts (HSAs).
• Insurance company tax matters (e.g., premium tax, reinsurance).
• Employee benefits i.e., MetLife’s own retirement and employee benefit plans.
• Insurance and/or DOL Regulatory Affairs.
• Estate, Trust and/or Elder Law.
   

Travel

n/a

Business Category

Legal Affairs

Number of Openings

1

At MetLife, we’re leading the global transformation of an industry we’ve long defined. United in purpose, diverse in perspective, we’re dedicated to making a difference in the lives of our customers.” 

MetLife is a proud equal opportunity/affirmative action employer committed to attracting, retaining, and maximizing the performance of a diverse and inclusive workforce. It is MetLife's policy to ensure equal employment opportunity without discrimination or harassment based on race, color, religion, sex (including pregnancy, childbirth, or related medical conditions), sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, age, disability, national origin, marital or domestic/civil partnership status, genetic information, citizenship status, uniformed service member or veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by law.

MetLife maintains a drug-free workplace.

For immediate consideration, click the Apply Now button. You will be directed to complete an on-line profile. Upon completion, you will receive an automated confirmation email verifying you have successfully applied to the job.

Requisition #: 112439