“Tennessee Titans president and CEO Steve Underwood retired from his full-time duties Friday after a four-decade relationship with the franchise,” reports Reuters in Yahoo! Sports.

“Senior vice president of business operations Burke Nihill was promoted to replace Underwood, who will remain with the team as a senior counselor.”

Controlling owner Amy Adams Strunk said in a release. “Since starting with the club as the General Counsel, Burke has continued to take on additional responsibilities to the point that he has become an invaluable resource and an absolute superstar for our organization.”

“I have great confidence in him and his leadership, and I know that the future is bright for the team.”

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“Albertsons Cos. has hired Juliette Pryor as EVP and general counsel, and she will join the company’s senior leadership team, effective June 15. Pryor joins Albertsons from Cox Enterprises, where she is general counsel and corporate secretary, a role she has held for nearly four years. Before that, she spent 11 years at US Foods, including a stint as general counsel and chief compliance officer,” reports Abby Kleckler in Progressive Grocer.

“Pryor succeeds Bob Gordon, who is stepping down and transitioning to retirement after more than 20 years with Safeway and Albertsons collectively. Gordon, who came to Safeway from Pillsbury Winthrop in 1999, was previously chief governance officer and general counsel of Safeway Inc.”

“At Albertsons, Pryor will lead the company’s corporate governance and compliance functions, as well as matters related to financial reporting, mergers and acquisitions, labor and employment, real estate, litigation, data privacy, and government affairs.”

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“The U.S. Coast Guard has named Rear Adm. Melissa Bert to the post of judge advocate general and chief counsel. Bert is the first woman to hold the service’s top legal position,” reports The Maritime Executive.

“Bert was most recently the director of governmental and public affairs for the Coast Guard, where she was responsible for external engagement with Congress, the media and other inter-governmental entities.”

“As judge advocate general and chief counsel, Bert will lead the team responsible for all legal services in support of the Coast Guard’s missions, its units and its people.”

“Bert is the Coast Guard’s 20th chief counsel and seventh uniformed judge advocate general.  She joins other trailblazing women in the Coast Guard’s legal field like Capt. Eleanor Creed L’Ecuyer and Capt. Etha B. Fox of the Coast Guard Reserve, both of whom joined the Coast Guard in 1944.”

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“Richard Weber has been named to the position of general counsel at the New York State Department of Financial Services (DFS), according to an announcement from Superintendent of Financial Services Linda A. Lacewell. Weber was most recently head of Financial Crime Prevention for the Americas at UBS, spearheading all facets of sanctions, BSA and AML compliance. He also had previously served as Deutsche Bank’s head of Anti-Financial Crime for the Americas,” reports Pymnts.com in Bitcoin.

“Weber served with the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) as chief of the Criminal Investigation Division for over five years. He led a team of more than 3,500 while there, managing complicated financial crime probes involving digital currency, among other matters. Weber led high-profile investigations into Silk Road and FIFA.”

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“Skydance Media, the company behind movies including the upcoming Top Gun: Maverick, has boosted its in-house legal team with the recruitment of Stephanie Kyoko McKinnon to the newly created position of general counsel and the promotion of Jun Oh to president of global business and legal affairs. McKinnon and Oh both report to Skydance Media president and COO Jesse Sisgold,” reports Ben Maiden in Corporate Secretary’s Appointments.

“McKinnon is tasked with providing legal and strategic guidance on major corporate transactions such as acquisitions, financing and joint ventures, and oversees corporate governance and employment matters.”

“Oh was previously head of theatrical and interactive business affairs. He now has television and animation responsibilities and leads all business and legal affairs for the company related to the development, production and distribution of Skydance’s content divisions.”

“McKinnon previously worked at VICE Media where she was senior vice president and deputy general counsel, overseeing legal issues involving VICE’s strategic projects such as international expansion, joint ventures, market entry, investments, equity raises and acquisitions.”

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“New York-based private equity investment firm Harvest Partners has hired Jamie Toothman as general counsel and chief compliance officer. In her new role, Toothman oversees the firm’s legal and compliance work and provides legal support for funds managed by Harvest,” reports Ben Maiden in Corporate Secretary’s Appointments.

“Toothman was previously a senior vice president at Oaktree Capital Management, where she managed fund formation and operations, regulatory compliance and other legal issues related to strategies such as private equity and credit opportunities.”

“She started her legal career at Gibson Dunn & Crutcher, where she advised clients on private and public acquisitions, capital markets and other corporate transactions.”

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“Santee Cooper fired its chief legal officer this week as the state-run utility continues to weather the political backlash from a failed nuclear project and seeks to finalize a multi-million dollar legal settlement over those abandoned reactors,” reports Andrew Brown in The Post and Courier.

“Mike Baxley, a former judge and state lawmaker, was officially released from his position as Santee Cooper’s chief public affairs officer and general counsel on Friday.”

“The general counsel position was a role Baxley held since he joined the Mocks Corner-based utility in 2014, following a 14-year stint as a judge in South Carolina’s 4th Judicial Circuit.”

“Baxley declined to comment on exactly why he was let go. When contacted, he said: ‘The only comment appropriate for me to make at this time is my departure was not voluntary.’”

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“Leafline Industries, LLC, and its portfolio of subsidiaries in the legal medical cannabis business and CBD wellness business, have named Mitchel Chargo as General Counsel and Executive Vice President. In this role, he will lead Leafline’s legal, compliance, and governance matters,” reported via PR Newswire’s News Releases.

“Mr. Chargo brings more than 25 years of experience as a private practice attorney to this role. He worked for two of the largest law firms in the State of Minnesota and was an owner of his own law firm which had a footprint of offices in six states. Over the years, Mr. Chargo’s practice has involved a broad mix of business, banking and commercial real estate transactions, legal compliance, and commercial litigation. Mr. Chargo graduated with Magna Cum Laude honors from both the University of Minnesota and William Mitchell College of Law (now the Mitchell Hamline School of Law). ”

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“Zogenix, Inc. (NASDAQ: ZGNX), a global pharmaceutical company developing rare disease therapies, today announced it has appointed Shawnte M. Mitchell to the role of Executive Vice President, General Counsel and Secretary. In this role, Ms. Mitchell will lead the company’s Legal team, manage certain corporate affairs, and serve as a member of the Zogenix Executive Team,” reports Melinda Baker in Zogenix’s News Releases.

“An accomplished attorney, Ms. Mitchell has more than 15 years of experience advising publicly traded and privately held companies. She joins Zogenix from Aptevo Therapeutics, where she was most recently Senior Vice President, General Counsel and Corporate Affairs, contributing to the development and execution of the company’s strategic and operational plans and overseeing compliance, governance, SEC, intellectual property, data privacy, and contractual matters. Prior to Aptevo, Ms. Mitchell was Vice President, Associate General Counsel and Assistant Secretary at the specialty biopharmaceutical company Emergent BioSolutions. Earlier, as an Associate at Ropes & Gray, she advised health care, life sciences, and technology clients in mergers and acquisitions, venture capital investment, and other matters. Ms. Mitchell received a B.S. in Biological Sciences from Stanford University and a J.D. from The George Washington University Law School.”

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Saint Joseph’s University has appointed Tracey S. Pachman, J.D., to serve as the University’s General Counsel, the result of a thorough national search. Pachman, who joins Saint Joseph’s on April 14, brings nearly 20 years of deep and varied higher education legal experience to the University. She specializes in contracts, intellectual property, research, employment and student matters, and other higher education law issues,” reports Saint Joseph’s University.

“Pachman succeeds Marianne Schimelfenig, J.D., who has served as the University’s General Counsel since 2008.”

“Prior to Pachman’s tenure at Villanova, where she served as deputy general counsel since 2014, she was the assistant general counsel for ARAMARK, serving the K-12 and higher education business, and held positions at Comcast as senior counsel and Pepper Hamilton LLP as an associate.”

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“Dennis Wiessner, a legal veteran in defense, aerospace and government contracting industries for more than two decades, has been named general counsel at Spaceflight,” posts Matthew Nelsono in Executive Biz’ Executive Moves.

“Wiessner will direct Spaceflight’s legal efforts as part of his new capacity, the company said April 6.”

“Prior to his appointment, Wiessner worked as vice president and general counsel at Sea Launch Company, a former Boeing joint venture, as well as secretary to the board of directors and chief compliance and ethics officer. He also held similar roles at Leonardo and at Thales’ avionics business in California.”

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“Brentwood, Tennessee-based Delek US Holdings and Delek Logistics Partners have appointed Abby Yates to the role of executive vice president, general counsel and corporate secretary, effective April 9,” reports Ben Maiden in Corporate Secretary’s Appointments.

“Yates previously spent six years as general counsel, chief compliance counsel and senior vice president for HR at EthosEnergy, a joint venture between Siemens and Wood Group. Before that, she spent 10 years working at Wood Group, initially as senior litigation counsel and then as divisional counsel to the gas turbine services division. She began her career at law firm Morgan Lewis in Philadelphia and has also worked for Bracewell and Schlumberger in Houston.”

“Yates succeeds Regina Jones, who has elected to leave the company to pursue other opportunities, according to Delek US. Jones will remain with the company to ensure a smooth transition to Yates, the companies say in a statement. Jones joined Delek US in May 2018, having previously spent 12 years at Schlumberger, according to her LinkedIn profile.”

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“Facebook Inc. general counsel Jennifer Newstead earned nearly $19.14 million in total compensation in her first year with the social media giant, according to a 2019 proxy statement filed by the company April 10,” reports Brian Baxter in Bloomberg Law’s Benefits & Executive Compensation News.

“Newstead did not immediately respond to a request for comment about her pay package, which was comprised of a $353,077 base salary, $2.29 million in bonuses, and $16.31 million in stock awards for 2019.”

“Facebook’s proxy said it agreed to give a $4 million sign-on bonus to Newstead after hiring her in May of last year to succeed Colin Stretch as general counsel. Newstead received $2 million of that bonus within 30 days of joining the company and was paid another $1 million by Jan. 31. She will get the remaining $1 million if she remains with Facebook for 30 days after the one-year anniversary of her start date.”

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“The MIAMI Association of Realtors (MIAMI) has named Evian White De Leon Chief General Counsel. With more than 52,000 total members, MIAMI is the largest local Realtor Association in the nation, has the fourth largest MLS nationally, the fifth largest commercial association and over 220 global partners worldwide,” reports PRNewswire in Yahoo Finance.

“In addition to serving as in-house counsel for MIAMI, White De Leon will oversee professional standards and grievances, human resources and legal education for members. She will also support the government affairs and public policy team.”

“White De Leon graduated from the University of Miami School of Law after studying International Relations, Spanish and Literature at Florida International University, both in Miami and in Spain. Most recently, White De Leon served as Deputy Director of Miami Homes for All, Inc., a nonprofit with a vision that everyone in Miami has a safe and stable place to call home through affordable housing and youth homelessness policy advocacy, research, and coalition building.”

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“ORIC Pharmaceuticals has recruited Christian Kuhlen as general counsel at the privately held, clinical-stage oncology company. He serves on the executive leadership team and leads ORIC’s legal, compliance, intellectual property and corporate governance functions,” reports Ben Maiden in Corporate Secretary’s Appointments.

“The south San Francisco, California-based company is focused on developing treatments that address mechanisms of therapeutic resistance.”

“Kuhlen, who is also a doctor, most recently worked as general counsel and secretary for Synthorx, where he led the legal aspects of its IPO and advised on the company’s subsequent acquisition by Sanofi. Before joining Synthorx, he was general counsel at Ignyta, where he co-ordinated two public financings and advised on the company’s acquisition by Roche.”

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“Gritstone Oncology, Inc. (GRTS), a clinical-stage biotechnology company developing the next generation of cancer immunotherapies to fight multiple cancer types, today announced the appointment of Rahsaan W. Thompson as its executive vice president and general counsel. Mr. Thompson joins Gritstone with over 20 years of experience as corporate counsel,” reports Yahoo Finance.

“Thompson was the general counsel for Opiant Pharmaceuticals, where he was responsible for all legal aspects of corporate strategy, intellectual property, transactions, compliance and regulatory matters. Previously, as the vice president of law for Actelion Pharmaceuticals, he led the Actelion Law Department based in San Francisco, California … Thompson was the associate general counsel at Abraxis Bioscience, before its acquisition by Celegene … Thompson also served as Corporate Counsel at McKesson Corporation.  He began his career as an assistant district attorney in the Philadelphia District Attorney’s office. Mr. Thompson obtained his bachelor’s degree from Southern Methodist University and his law degree from Hofstra University. He has served on various non-profit boards and presently serves on the Board of Directors for the Oakland Museum of California Board of Directors as the finance committee chair.

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“ORIC Pharmaceuticals, Inc., a privately held, clinical-stage oncology company focused on developing treatments that address mechanisms of therapeutic resistance, today announced that Christian V. Kuhlen, M.D., has been named General Counsel. Dr. Kuhlen will serve on the executive leadership team and lead ORIC’s legal, compliance, intellectual property, and corporate governance functions,” reported in Yahoo Finance.

“Dr. Kuhlen has extensive depth and breadth of expertise as General Counsel for biotechnology companies, where he has been responsible for legal, SEC, human resources, intellectual property, and corporate governance functions. Most recently, Dr. Kuhlen served as General Counsel and Secretary for Synthorx, where he led the legal aspects of its initial public offering and advised on the company’s subsequent acquisition by Sanofi. Prior to Synthorx, Dr. Kuhlen was General Counsel at Ignyta, where he coordinated two public financings and advised on the company’s acquisition by Roche. Before Ignyta, Dr. Kuhlen served as General Counsel of Genoptix, Inc., where he led the legal function from its initial public offering to its successful acquisition by Novartis. Prior to Genoptix, he was an attorney in private practice with Cooley LLP. Dr. Kuhlen holds a B.S. in biochemistry and cell biology and a B.A. in economics from the University of California, San Diego, and a M.D. and J.D. from the University of Southern California.”

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“The Hanover Insurance Group, Inc. announced Dennis F. Kerrigan has been appointed executive vice president and general counsel, effective immediately, following the retirement of longtime general counsel, J. Kendall Huber. In this role, Kerrigan is responsible for The Hanover’s legal, regulatory and government affairs, as well as compliance, state filings, securities, and corporate governance matters,” posted in Cision PR Newswire’s News Releases by Emily P. Trevallion and Abby M. Clark.

“Kerrigan brings decades of corporate counsel, insurance and global legal experience to the company. He joins The Hanover after more than 10 years as general counsel for Zurich North America, where he led the legal, compliance, government and industry affairs, security and regulatory affairs groups.”

“Kerrigan previously served as a partner in the global litigation department of an international law firm, representing Fortune 500 companies in a variety of matters, including trials, arbitrations, governmental investigations, regulatory proceedings and internal investigations.”

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“NeoPhotonics Corporation, a leading designer and manufacturer of advanced hybrid photonic integrated circuit based modules and subsystems for bandwidth-intensive, high speed communications networks, today announced the appointment of Barbara Rogan as the Company’s Senior Vice President and General Counsel, reporting to Tim Jenks Chairman and CEO of NeoPhotonics,” reports Michael Newsom in Yahoo Finance.

“Ms. Rogan brings twenty years of legal experience in technology in both public and private companies. Prior to joining NeoPhotonics, Ms. Rogan served as General Counsel at Velodyne Lidar, Inc. where she was responsible for Velodyne’s worldwide legal operations. Ms. Rogan has also held legal leadership roles at Cadence Design Systems, Inc. where she was Vice President and Associate General Counsel and at LogLogic, Inc. (acquired by TIBCO) where she was Vice President of Legal Affairs.”

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“Kelly Services Inc. named Janis Acosta as VP, interim general counsel of the company. Kelly’s senior VP and Chief Legal Officer Hannah Lim-Johnson has been separated from the company, Kelly reported in a filing with the US Securities and Exchange Commission,” reports SIA Staffing Industry Analysts.

The company had named Lim-Johnson as chief legal officer in October 2017. Prior to joining Kelly, Lim Johnson served in several roles from October 2016 to April 2017 at PSEG in Newark, New Jersey.

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