Monica is a member of Womble Bond Dickinson’s GCSolutions team, which provides affordable on-demand, scalable legal services to corporate law departments and small and medium companies. Monica has over 26 years' experience as an attorney and counselor to senior corporate management, both as outside and in-house counsel. She has focused her practice on all aspects of business and corporate law.
Monica understands the role of in-house counsel and the responsibilities it entails having served in that position for much of her career directing the legal, regulatory, compliance and internal audit departments for a large financial services company. Her goal is to use her experience to assist her clients with their diverse and fluctuating workload managing the legal affairs of their companies.
Monica is experienced in contract review and negotiation, due diligence, research, real estate matters, development and implementation of policies, procedures, contract templates and playbooks, and regulatory licensing, reporting and compliance matters.
Presentations & Publications
- Feature Article, The New Adoption Law in Tennessee: A Controversial Sweeping Reform, Tennessee Bar Journal, September/October 1996 issue, (cited in footnote in the Tennessee Code Annotated; used as part of course materials at University of Tennessee School of Law Family Law Course).
- Teaching Faculty, National Business Institute Seminar on Adoption Law, Chattanooga, Tennessee.
Civic and Professional Activities
- South Carolina Bar Association
- Georgia Bar Association
- Friends of the Guardian ad Litem Program of Spartanburg County, past board member, 2012-2015
- Anderson Mill Road Baptist Church, Member and Preschool Volunteer, Spartanburg
- Westview Elementary School, Class Mom and Parent Volunteer
- Participation in various fundraising auctions for nonprofit organizations throughout SC
Honors and Awards
Justice Joseph Henry Award for Excellence in Legal Writing for Tennessee Bar Journal article, awarded by the Tennessee Bar Association and the Tennessee Supreme Court, July, 1997 (the first woman to receive the award in its history).
Experience
Any result the lawyer or law firm may have achieved on behalf of clients in other matters does not necessarily indicate similar results can be obtained for other clients.
- Provided in-house legal counsel to financial services company from its infancy through and after its initial public offering on the New York Stock Exchange real property
- Experienced in reviewing and negotiating all types of commercial contracts, including master service agreements, consulting agreements, distribution agreements, and technology-related agreements
- Experienced extensively in the development of operational policies and procedures, manuals, contract templates and internal audit programs
- Supervised, and responded to, regulatory examinations by state regulators as well as the FDIC, OCC and OTS
- Involved in all aspects of state licensing and regulatory compliance for financial services operations in over 20 states
- Worked with national trade association on monitoring and reviewing state legislation of interest throughout the country for over 7 years
- Experienced in preparing the necessary contracts and other disclosures regarding the sale of assets and real property
