Posting Date

Assistant General Counsel – Operations

Location: Denver HQ or Nashville- Hybrid

Position Summary

As a key legal leader, people manager, and strategic business partner, you will provide comprehensive legal support, oversee legal operations, and drive continuous improvement across critical business lines and newly acquired entities. In this role, you will lead and collaborate with a dynamic team consisting of attorneys and legal staff, fostering a culture of high performance, transparency, people development, and operational excellence. You will spearhead strategic initiatives to enable rapid, compliant business expansion, including collaborating with contracting attorneys, structuring compliant pricing and commercial growth strategies across new state markets, and establishing rigorous due diligence frameworks for regulatorily complex operations. Serving as a trusted advisor to senior leadership, you will independently bridge legal, regulatory, and business objectives, ensuring federal and state healthcare laws are seamlessly integrated into operational strategy to fuel sustained organizational growth.

Essential Duties and Responsibilities

• Team Leadership & People Management:
  • Supervise, mentor, and actively develop legal teammates (including junior attorneys, paralegals, and/or legal support professionals), providing regular coaching, conducting structured 1:1 check-ins, and completing annual Performance Development Reviews (PDRs) and Individual Development Plans (IDPs).
  • Foster an inclusive, high-performing team culture aligned with DaVita’s Management Ladder expectations and JLD community standards.
• Legal Counsel & Operational Strategy:
  • Serve as lead operational and regulatory attorney for multiple business initiatives on a wide variety of corporate and commercial issues arising in day-to-day operations.
  • Provide independent, high-level legal counsel on a variety of healthcare business, corporate, and commercial matters in a heavily regulated environment.
  • Resolve complex business and lease disputes and assist in the management of litigation as necessary.
  • Develop a thorough understanding of and familiarity with the company’s business, teammates, markets, facilities, patients, and competitors in order to identify trends and formulate appropriate legal advice, structures, and strategies.
• Client Relationship & Independent Engagement:
  • Establish rapport and trusted working relationships with business managers and operational leads to encourage and continue the proactive use of in-house legal counsel.
  • Independently manage client interactions, lead standing and ad hoc legal meetings with operational partners across the Village without requiring senior lane leadership presence, and serve as the primary legal point of contact for designated operational lanes.
• Outside Counsel & Process Optimization:
  • Effectively own and manage relationships with outside counsel to maximize the quality of legal representation and maintain strict budget and cost efficiency.
  • Lead process improvement initiatives and the establishment of best demonstrated practices across all aspects of legal operations.
  • Support and collaborate with other practice areas within the Justice League of DaVita (JLD) and the Compliance department, actively contributing to broader JLD culture and cross-functional initiatives at scale.
• General Administrative Responsibilities:
  • Attend team meetings, phone conferences, and training as needed.
  • Know, understand, and follow teammate guidelines, employment policies, and department or company procedures.
  • Perform special assignments and projects as needed.

Essential Traits for Success

• Unquestioned integrity, ethical judgment, and strong personal accountability.
• Assertive, self-directed self-starter who takes initiative, leads others effectively, and thrives with the support of a collaborative team.
• Outstanding written, verbal, and interpersonal communication skills with an ability to listen attentively, diagnose complex legal problems, and present clear, creative solutions and alternatives to senior leadership.
• Demonstrated ability to interact positively and build collaborative relationships with senior management, cross-functional partners, operations personnel, and peers across all levels of the organization.
• Demonstrated talent development and emotional intelligence skills—fostering psychological safety, delivering constructive feedback, and coaching teammates to reach their full potential.
• Ability to work effectively under pressure, manage multiple complex matters simultaneously, meet tight deadlines, and adjust priorities appropriately in a fast-moving, dynamic healthcare environment.
• Intellectual curiosity and agility—a bright “quick study” who rapidly grasps unfamiliar business, regulatory, and operational issues.
• Excellent attention to detail, organizational skills, project management, and follow-through capabilities.
• Commitment to DaVita’s Core Values of Service Excellence, Integrity, Team, Continuous Improvement, Accountability, Fulfillment, and Fun, with the ability to demonstrate those positively and proactively in everyday performance and interactions.

Essential Qualifications

• Juris Doctor (J.D.) degree from an accredited law school required.
• Active state bar admission in good standing in at least one U.S. jurisdiction required.
• Minimum of six to eight (6–8+) years of legal practice experience with a mix of corporate law, commercial transactions, and healthcare operations required.
• Prior experience representing business clients in an in-house legal department and/or private law firm setting required.
• Strong working knowledge of relevant healthcare compliance issues and regulatory frameworks (e.g., Anti-Kickback Statute, Stark Law, HIPAA) required.
• Understanding of Medicare certification, provider conditions of coverage/participation, and state healthcare licensing matters preferred.
• Prior experience supervising, managing, or mentoring junior attorneys, paralegals, or legal support staff (or proven readiness for people leadership) preferred.

What You Can Expect When You Join Our Village

• A “community first, company second” culture based on Core Values that really matter.
• Clinical outcomes consistently ranked above the national average.
• Award-winning education and training across multiple career paths to help you reach your potential.
• Performance-based rewards based be...