Job DescriptionWe are seeking a Senior Legal Counsel - Litigation / Employment to act as a business-facing legal partner across North America, leading legal strategy related to employment law, litigation, and enterprise risk.
Key Responsibilities May Include:- Provide reliable, cost-effective, and timely legal counsel to business units across a wide array of matters affecting the region and the global corporation.
- Advise on and negotiate commercial transactions, contracts, and agreements with key customers, vendors, and service providers, ensuring alignment with business goals and legal standards.
- Offer strategic legal guidance on major transactions, including mergers and acquisitions (M&A), with a focus on identifying risks and conducting necessary due diligence.
- Manage day-to-day legal issues for business operations, including matters related to plant operations, logistics, asset management, and real estate (e.g., leases, property agreements).
- Anticipate, mitigate, and manage legal risks by providing proactive legal strategies and monitoring emerging legal trends that may impact the business.
- Support the company's litigation strategy, manage disputes, and handle intellectual property rights issues, leveraging external counsel when necessary.
- Support the development of company policy, operational improvements, and procedural enhancements by providing legal insights on regulatory compliance and business operations.
- Research and monitor evolving legal issues, using external counsel where needed, to provide pragmatic, business-oriented legal advice to senior leadership.
Position PurposeThe Senior Legal Counsel, Litigation, Employment & Risk serves as the lead legal advisor for litigation, disputes, employment matters, claims, and other high-risk matters across North America.
Location: This is a
remote, U.S.-based individual contributor role with a preference for candidates located in
Eastern or Central time zones (including Texas).
Major/Key Accountabilities- Oversee North America litigation and claims across a broad risk portfolio, including asset recovery / protection, commercial disputes, employment matters, general liability, personal injury, and IP / trade secret disputes
- Serve as primary legal advisor on employment matters, including employee relations issues, investigations, demand letters, agency matters, terminations, reductions in force, policy-related issues, and employment-related strategic projects
- Manage outside counsel on employment and litigation matters, including scope, strategy, budgets, staffing, and outcomes.
- Provide strategic advice on dispute prevention, early resolution, settlement strategy, risk escalation, and privilege-sensitive internal responses
- Partner with HR, Operations, Asset Recovery, and other business teams to support issue spotting, claims handling, improved visibility, and the efficient use of outside counsel.
- Support legal hold, subpoena, service-of-process, and related matter-management processes in coordination with legal operations or paralegal support.
- Escalate material disputes, precedent-setting matters, and sensitive employment issues to the General Counsel as appropriate.
Skills and Knowledge- Exemplary written and verbal communication skills.
- Strong work ethic, coupled with superior multi-tasking capabilities.
- Must be a team player, and highly approachable.
- Strong interpersonal, presentational and networking skills
- Strong analytical and technical legal skills
- Must be able to work autonomously
- Dynamic, energetic, positive
Essential Qualifications- J.D. and active bar membership in at least one U.S. jurisdiction or Canada jurisdiction
- Bachelor's Degree and qualification from an accredited law school
- Strong required expertise in:
- Employment law
- Litigation and dispute strategy
- Experience managing outside counsel and complex disputes
- Strong judgment in handling privileged, sensitive, and reputationally significant matters
- Strong judgment, executive presence, and ability to work cross-functionally with non-legal stakeholders
- Strong cross-functional partnership skills and the ability to advise business teams in a practical, solution-oriented manner.
- Experience managing outside counsel, budgets, litigation strategy, and early case assessment
- Ability to provide practical, business-oriented advice in fast-moving, operationally complex environments
Desirable Qualifications- Experience in creating or improving process and automation for the efficient and effective delivery of legal services
- Experience working with digital technology such as AI tools and systems to support the efficient and effective delivery of legal services
- Experience working in a global company
- Experience in matrixed environments
Experience- At least 8+ years post qualification experience
- See qualifications above for required and desired experience
Languages- Essential: English
- Desirable: Spanish
Remote TypeFully Remote
Skills to succeed in the roleCoaching, Cross-Functional Work, Disruptive Thinking, Emotional Intelligence, Feedback, General Corporate Counsel, Inclusive Leadership, Influencing, Intellectual Property Protection, Leading Change, Leading Customer Centric Teams, Legal Risk, Legal Strategies, Mentorship, Prioritization, Regulatory Compliance, Risk Management, Strategic Thinking
