Chief Legal Officer

Summary:

The Chief Legal Officer functions as a member of the Executive Leadership Team and reports directly to the President/CEO. This position will be the legal subject matter expert providing professional legal advice to leadership and management. This position will directly oversee the Human Resources department and functions as the Compliance Officer. The Chief Legal Officer will be responsible for providing guidance related to labor law, general corporate contracts, health care compliance, and regulatory requirements related to state and federal laws. The Chief Legal Officer works closely with the Board of Director s attorney and other outside attorneys used periodically during the normal course of business.

Primary Legal and Compliance Responsibilities

• Responsible for facilitating quality delivery of legal services. Acts as the guiding force behind all legal affairs and HR operations.
• Leads, manages, and assists with assigned litigation, administrative proceedings, and other regulatory proceedings or matters.
• Provides legal advice to the Director of Human Resources (HR) on labor and employment matters including the EEO, ADA, FMLA, and FLSA. Reviews and approves all employee termination requests made by Human Resources.
• Mitigates legal risk to the organization through proactive training and education, establishing systems and processes for managing conflicts with and between employees.
• Responsible for performing direct, consistent, high-level legal services. Direct legal services include but are not limited to: the preparation, review, and revision of complex non-physician and physician agreements and the provision of sophisticated legal counsel and guidance relating to labor law, health care operational issues, including patient consent, risk management, licensing and certification, policies, contractual arrangements (rights and responsibilities), regulatory requirements, and other areas of health care operations subject to state and federal laws and regulations.
• Performs legal and factual research necessary to draft, revise, review, and negotiate contracts, and other legal documents, including corporate transaction documents, real estate leases, property and asset acquisitions, purchasing, joint ventures, managed care, physician services, licenses and other intellectual property agreements, academic affiliations, and financing and bond documentation.
• Provides counsel on health care laws including those on privacy, Medicare, Medicaid, fraud and abuse, physician self-referral and anti-kickback laws, and 340B.

• Provides counsel for legal aspects of patient care including informed consent, medical records/privacy issues, and patients' rights issues.
• Functions as Compliance Officer and oversees Corporate Compliance Program.
• In collaboration with compliance staff, develops policies and procedures, and works closely with compliance to investigate and resolve issues and concerns.
• Maintains current knowledge and application of all relevant laws and regulations at the local, state and national level relating to employment and organizational compliance.
• Educate and advise managers and senior leaders on HR-related legal and regulatory matters and ensuring HR programs, practices, and policies are aligned.

Leadership and Senior Level Human Resources Management Responsibilities

• Functions as a strategic business advisor to the executive/senior management of each business unit. Provides overall leadership and guidance to the HR function by overseeing talent acquisition, career development, succession planning, retention, training, leadership development, compensation and benefits.
• Establish and implement HR efforts that effectively communicate and support the company's mission and strategic vision.
• Develop and drive talent management strategies to ensure effective alignment with the needs of the business. Creates systems to attract talent, identify critical talent needs, develop core competencies and corresponding development opportunities, and engage leadership in succession planning.
• Lead the effective administration of the performance management process, making sure that managers are equipped to engage in constructive and ongoing feedback and coaching, collaborate effectively when managing staff, and encourage staff to actively participate in identifying and addressing performance gaps.
• Develop comprehensive strategic recruiting and retention plans to meet the human capital needs of strategic goals.
• Develop and implement comprehensive compensation and benefits plans that are competitive and cost-effective.
• Develop a strategy to optimize and integrate HR technology, enabling managers and employees to easily perform people-related transactions (e.g. benefits enrollment), facilitates delivery of effective HR services, securely stores employee data, and supports people-related decisions.

QUALIFICATION REQUIREMENTS:

• Minimum of five (5) years legal work experience either with a law firm or in-house legal department involving the performance of general, operational, or specialty legal services for hospitals, medical foundations or groups, clinics, providers, etc.
• Minimum of three (3) years experience in a labor law setting

EDUCATION

• Juris Doctor or equivalent degree from a law school accredited by the American Bar Association, preferred
• Health law or specialty professional education, or equivalent experience preferred.

LICENSE/CERTIFICATION

• Preferably an active State Bar licensure, but not required.

PRIOR EXPERIENCE:

• Experience as in-house counsel, or equivalent acceptable status for the state of primary work location, preferred.
• Track record in transforming and modernizing the corporate approach to client contracting, risk management, and policy development.
• Paralegal or attorney experience is strongly preferred.

SKILLS

• Ability to exercise a high degree of initiative, judgment, discretion, and decision-making.
• Proven track record of success as a paralegal or attorney.
• Effective leadership skills which demonstrate the ability to participate in innovation and change, strategic thinking, and problem solving.
• Able to quickly build and maintain rapport with people of differing backgrounds; team player.
• Ability to effectively facilitate meetings.
• Superior communication skills in both written and verbal presentation, including all aspects of legal writing technique and procedure, and the ability to convey complex legal concepts to non-lawyers.
• Expert level computer skills (email, Word, Excel, PowerPoint, etc.)
• Positive professional insight.
• Flexibility and dependability.
• Ability to function effectively and complete projects in a timely manner in a fast-paced and changing environment with multiple priorities and objectives.