In clayey soils, the response of a monopile subjected to lateral loads can be influenced by strain rate dependency, strain softening, and strength anisotropy. Strain softening, where shear strength decreases with increasing shear strain, can lead to larger deformation, reduced stiffness, and decreased ultimate capacity of the monopile. Conversely, high strain rates typically result in increased stiffness and strength, whereas low strain rates reduce these properties. Additionally, effects of strength anisotropy can modify the load distribution and overall response of the monopile. This paper uses large deformation finite-element (LDFE) analyses combined with the user-defined material model NGI-ADPSoft to investigate the impacts of strain softening, strain rate, and anisotropic strength on monopile behavior. Preliminary LDFE results indicate that these factors could have a substantial impact on monopile resistance. Moreover, the results suggest that the effect of loading rate on pile capacity can be approximately predicted by a linear relationship between the pile’s lateral resistance and the logarithm of the normalized penetration velocity.