Overview
Barbara Meeks is a partner in Chapman's Banking and Financial Services Department and member of the Bank Corporate Group. Barbara provides practical and collaborative legal advice to a range of global, regional, and community banks, as well as fintech, treasury management, payments, insurance, wealth management, and brokerage companies. Her practice addresses complex legal challenges, including regulatory, compliance, transactional, governance, risk management, and investigative matters. She has substantial experience with commercial and government banking, commercial real estate, small business, and broker-dealer transactions.
Prior to joining Chapman, Barbara was a partner at an Am Law 200 firm in Charlotte. Prior to that, she held leadership positions in large financial institutions, providing regulatory and legal support for a broad platform of banking, insurance and brokerage activities, both domestically and internationally.
In addition to advising financial institutions on complex legal issues and crisis management, Barbara serves the community. She currently serves on the board of Common Wealth Charlotte and served previously on the Board of Trustees and as Chair of the Development Committee for the Blumenthal Performing Arts Center, and as a board member for the Davidson-Cornelius Child Development Center.
Practice Focus
- Bank Mergers and Acquisitions and Regulatory Applications
- Bank Regulatory Compliance/Examination Activities
- Bank Regulatory Matters
- Bank Secrecy/USA Patriot Act and OFAC
- Banking and Financial Services
- Chartering of Financial Institutions
- Commercial Lending and Real Estate
- Community Reinvestment Act Compliance
- Disclosure Requirements (Federal/State)
- Fair Lending and Equal Credit Opportunity
- Fintech and Marketplace Lending
- General Compliance Activities
- Non-Banking Activity Approvals
- Portfolio Acquisitions and Sales
- Privacy and Fair Credit Reporting
- Real Estate Finance
- State Licensing, Regulation and Examination
Memberships
American Bar Association (ABA) Business Law Section
Association of Certified Anti-Money Laundering Specialists (ACAMS)
North Carolina Banking Institute, Board of Advisors
Securities Industry and Financial Markets Association (SIFMA)
Honors & Awards
Recognized by Best Lawyers in America in Banking and Finance Law
Ranked by Chambers USA as a leading lawyer in Banking and Finance-Mainly Regulatory in North Carolina (Band 1)
Top 25 Women in Business Award, Charlotte Business Journal, 2015
Top 50 Most Influential Woman Award, Mecklenburg Times, 2015 and 2018
Leader in Law Award, Lawyer’s Weekly, 2015
Corporate Counsel Award, Charlotte Business Journal, 2016
Admitted
North Carolina
Education
Wake Forest University School of Law, J.D., cum laude
Wake Forest University, B.A., magna cum laude
Insights
Presentations
- “Cyber Risk in the Supply Chain and Importance of a Contract," North Carolina Banking Institute, February 2023
- "Banking in an Inflationary World," North Carolina Banking Institute, January 2023
Community
Common Wealth Charlotte
- Board of Directors
Blumenthal Performing Arts Center (2015-2022)
- Board of Trustees
- Development Committee Chair
