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FirstService Residential · 2 days ago

General Counsel

Irvine, CA

Full-time

Onsite

Senior Level, Lead/Staff

$225K/yr - $250K/yr

12+ years exp

FirstService Residential is a leader in property management, providing professional association management services across the United States and Canada. The West Region General Counsel will provide expert legal advice to support business growth, manage litigation and claims, and guide the company through various legal challenges.

Property ManagementReal Estate

Responsibilities

Analyze all manner of legal & business issues, develop strategy alternatives, recommend effective courses of action, and lead the legal implementation

Effectively manage litigation & claims brought against FirstService, including: Developing and vetting defense strategies, Minimizing defense spend & settlement outlays, Ensuring the value of insurance defense firms’ and specific attorneys’ billing & deliverables, including case analyses, litigation strategy, status updates, litigation budgets, and well-thought-out discovery, motion practice & settlement approaches, Managing discovery, preservation & privilege

Advise the business on asserting & resolving disputes

Protect the company by leveraging a deep understanding of insurance principles, coverage types, tendering imperatives, triggers to coverage, managing adjusters & third-party administrators, and avoiding actions that may jeopardize coverage

Expertly draft & edit contracts to protect FirstService while also achieving the company’s business objectives

Successfully negotiate agreements to balance protecting FirstService’s interests with obtaining or retaining the business

Pre-acquisition: Serve as part of the acquisition team, effectively analyzing a target’s agreements, suits, claims & other risk factors as well as business ‘fit’ factors. Assist in the preparation, review, and negotiation of documents for complex transactions

Post-acquisition: Serve as part of the post-acquisition integration team, managing various integration initiatives

Mergers & entity formation: Plan & project-manage the efforts, bringing the right voices to the table & considering operational, financial, tax, insurance, human resources & regulatory questions

Leverage a solid working knowledge of employment law to provide sound legal advice related to wrongful termination, harassment, discrimination & other employee matters. Team with outside employment counsel & insurance defense counsel to address such matters as appropriate

Leverage a deep understanding of the business & operating departments as well as in-depth knowledge of homeowner association law in the West Region states in order to navigate the legal / operations interface effectively

Train managers, executives and others to minimize legal liability for FirstService

Partner with operating executives & others to develop & adjust company processes as FirstService provides new services and as statutes & case law evolve

Guide the company with regard to regional compliance matters and public policy advocacy as needed

Other responsibilities as assigned

Qualification

Corporate lawLitigation experienceEmployment lawContract negotiationJD from ABA accredited schoolCalifornia State Bar membershipAnalytic skillsProficient in EnglishInterpersonal skillsCommunication skillsLeadership skills

Required

Overall broad legal knowledge (corporate law, litigation, labor law, etc.)

Ability to develop legal strategy & objectives

Impeccable professional ethics & integrity

Ability to anticipate legal issues or risks and to ‘see around the corner'

Creative problem-solving ability & excellent analytic skills

The ability to apply sound business & legal judgment to a wide variety of legal questions

Extraordinary interpersonal and communication skills; ability to communicate information effectively internally and externally – whether on the fly or with prepared communications - and to drive cross-functional alignment and action

High degree of initiative; growth-minded & collaborative

Execution-oriented mindset with the drive to get things done

Able to work under tight deadlines, handle multiple, detailed projects simultaneously and anticipate needs in advance

Fluent with Microsoft Office applications, including Excel, Word, PowerPoint and Windows; Ability to learn new applications and skills quickly

A self-aware leader with a growth mindset who seeks to understand, fosters trust, and develops his or her own leadership skills

Ability to build talent in the organization through coaching and staff development, giving and receiving feedback, motivating, empowering and leading by serving

Ability to strengthen the organization by influencing, establishing alignment, and skillfully managing change

JD from an ABA accredited law school

Member in good standing of the California State Bar

Litigation & employment law experience required

12+ years licensed legal practice experience

Proficient in English

Excellent general math skills

Must be able to lift 25 lbs

Must be able to sit for extended periods of time

Must have finger dexterity for typing/using a keyboard

Talking and hearing occur continuously in the process of communicating with guests, supervisors, vendors and our clients