NEWS: John Engel, The League’s longtime Director of Legal Affairs, is retiring Aug. 31. His departure will lead to new & changing duties for staff in The League’s Legal Affairs and Compliance Specialist departments.
John, a Glendale, Wis. native, graduated from Marquette University Law School in 1986 and joined The League that same year, becoming our first in-house attorney. He has been an invaluable legal resource for Wisconsin credit unions ever since. John has developed and curated the library of credit union forms that The League provides; launched the compliance area of The League’s website; authored dozens of ii Releases and numerous Compliance Couriers; spoken at countless seminars and roundtable events; and answered thousands of legal questions from credit union staff in his nearly 38 years on the job.
“Everyone appreciates John’s thoughtful approach to the complex compliance challenges that credit unions face,” said League President Brett Thompson. “John has an outstanding depth of knowledge about the state and federal laws that impact credit union operations. His skills and contributions will be deeply missed, but we all wish him a happy retirement.”
Paul Guttormsson, SVP & General Counsel at The League, will take on John’s duties, including overseeing the League’s forms program and helping the Government Affairs team analyze pending state legislative developments.
In addition, the League is pleased to announce three related staff promotions:
- Attorney Kim Hoppe is now Director of the Compliance Specialist Program. She will oversee the Compliance Specialist team and coordinate their work with participating credit unions around the state. Kim will continue her work in Legal Affairs, as well.
- Laura Nelson has become the Manager of the Compliance Specialist Program, helping Kim run the program, tracking specialist’s certifications, orienting new specialists, and tackling other jobs as needed. Laura also continues to serve credit unions as a Compliance Specialist.
- Nikki Springer has become our Compliance Resource Manager. She splits her time between her work as a Compliance Specialist and helping the Legal Affairs team field credit union questions, present at compliance events, and update ii Releases.
Please join us in wishing John a great (and well-deserved) retirement, and in congratulating Kim, Laura and Nikki on their promotions!