Vp, Associate General Counsel
Atlanta, Georgia, Us
* Managed the legal department’s selection, onboarding, governance, and payment of outside counsel and the business strategy of managing outside spend through alternative fee arrangements, managed budgeting and project planning.* Managed legal support for the global Human Resources function, including the drafting of handbooks, employment policies, management of severance agreements and voluntary early retirement programs, created and delivered training to internal HR staff as well as broad based manager and employee training, in-person and virtual. * Led teams and architected programs to address compliance issues, including wage and hour reviews of exempt and non-exempt positions, fair pay and timekeeping and payroll practices.* Managed programs to protect trade secret, confidential information and manage agreements on non-competition/non-solicitation; directed litigation prosecuting and defending such claims.* Represented the company in numerous asbestos cases, including a defense verdict in a Washington state court jury trial and in a series of litigated claims over disputed insurance coverage, ultimately ending in favorable coverage-in-place agreements.* Successfully litigated employee and third-party claims for serious injury and fatalities, as well as wage, harassment, and discrimination lawsuits, including class action claims related to wages and negotiated favorable settlements in antitrust, product liability claims, class action claim for public nuisance and construction disputes.* Managed the company’s global hotline and the ongoing investigations of hotline complaints (approximately 700/year) related to claims of harassment, discrimination, retaliation, theft, inappropriate relationships, conflict of interest, wage and hour issues and other policy violations.