James Strother, Wells Fargo ‘s general counsel, who had originally planned to retire at year-end, will stay on indefinitely in the position to deal with fallout from the bank's sales scandal. According to a bank spokesperson, the decision was made by the bank's board of directors and a search is under way for Strother's replacement.

Strother became the San Francisco-based bank's top lawyer in 2003, and sat behind then-CEO John Stumpf at a bruising congressional hearing about the scandal in September. He has been at Wells Fargo and its predecessor, Norwest Corporation, since 1986.

Strother was deeply involved in Wells Fargo's acquisition of Wachovia during the 2008 financial crisis. He also keeps a close eye on compliance issues, something that is not always a general counsel's responsibility.

Because he turned 65 this year, Strother would ordinarily be required to retire at the end of the year, according to an internal policy at Wells Fargo. However, the bank occasionally makes exceptions to this rule in extraordinary situations. During the financial crisis, then-Chairman Dick Kovacevich postponed his retirement by slightly more than a year.