Ellen Patterson, general counsel of Wells Fargo. Courtesy photo

TD Bank Group's Ellen Patterson, named Friday as Wells Fargo & Co.'s next general counsel, will join the bank on March 23 in an effort to improve its scandal-plagued image, its culture and its relationship with regulators.

Patterson will overlap for one week with Allen Parker, the previous general counsel who also tried for more than two years to accomplish those feats but apparently fell short. Because of its repeated misconduct, the bank is operating under five consent agreements from four different regulators. Last month Wells Fargo agreed to pay a $3 billion penalty to resolve its fake bank account scandal.

In a statement, Patterson said, "I am excited to join Wells Fargo during a transformational time in the company's history. I look forward to collaborating with leaders across the company to shape the culture, help businesses innovate, and produce the best outcomes for the customers and communities Wells Fargo serves."

The bank said Patterson, who is not accepting interviews at this time, will report to CEO Charles Scharf and will serve on the company's operating committee, a key leadership group. She will be based in New York, where Scharf is based, and not at the bank's headquarters in San Francisco.

In a statement, Scharf said, "Ellen is a seasoned lawyer with extensive experience in the financial services industry, where she has had responsibilities for managing and advising on global legal and regulatory compliance risks."

Scharf continued, "She will play a critical leadership role on our operating committee as we continue to work on our company's top priority of meeting regulatory expectations."

Patterson joins Wells Fargo after more than seven years at Canada's TD Bank, where she was group head and global general counsel. Earlier, she served as general counsel for TD Bank's U.S. banking operations.

For the past two years, she has chaired TD Bank's global Women in Leadership program, supporting programs and practices to advance the careers of a diverse group of female employees.

Before joining TD Bank, Patterson was a partner at the New York law firm of Simpson Thacher & Bartlett, where she focused on advising financial institutions on mergers and acquisitions, capital markets and corporate governance matters.

Lee Meyerson, head of Simpson Thacher's financial institutions practice, said, "Ellen has been an extraordinary person to work with, both as a partner at Simpson Thacher and as a client. She is a superb lawyer with great judgment and deep experience, and will be an outstanding general counsel for Wells Fargo at this important point in its long history."

Her hiring is part of a major executive makeover at the bank. Scharf, who has been at the bank only four months, told a U.S. House Committee last week that the bank is replacing many of its top executives. He said he has created the position of chief operating officer to provide centralized oversight for compliance and to facilitate meeting regulators' concerns.

Patterson will work closely with the new chief operating officer, Scott Powell. The general counsel job has been a hot seat after former general counsel James Strother left in 2017. Strother was civilly charged by federal regulators for failing to halt the phony bank accounts. He is fighting the charges.

Strother's replacement, Parker, is leaving at the end of this month after taking heavy criticism for moving too slowly on reforms. Parker also had served as interim CEO until Scharf was hired. Wells Fargo deputy general counsel Douglas Edwards is serving as acting general counsel until Patterson takes over.