Associate General Counsel – Litigation & Risk

ProDriven Global Brands•West Middlesex, PA

3d•Hybrid

About The Position

The Associate General Counsel – Litigation & Risk leads and strengthens the Company’s approach to significant litigation, claims, disputes, and related legal risk. Reporting to the General Counsel, this senior leadership role combines sophisticated legal judgment with portfolio governance, financial acumen, and practical business leadership. It carries meaningful responsibility for matter strategy and resolution, external legal resources, claims oversight, and executive visibility into material risk. The role oversees significant matters from initial assessment through resolution, provides leadership for the Claims function, evaluates reserves and financial exposure, and directs outside counsel and experts. It partners with cross-functional teams to investigate matters, support defensible legal positions, improve risk controls, and translate dispute experience into practical enterprise recommendations. The position is currently hybrid, with a minimum of one office day per month for collaboration, teamwork, and business needs; this arrangement and minimum may change with evolving business needs. Domestic and international travel of approximately 10%–20% is required.

Requirements

Juris Doctor degree from an accredited law school.
Active license to practice law in at least one U.S. jurisdiction.
At least 10 years of progressively responsible legal experience, including substantial responsibility for complex litigation and disputes.
Demonstrated experience directing outside counsel, technical experts, discovery, settlement negotiations, and trial strategy.
Experience evaluating litigation exposure, developing or reviewing reserve recommendations, managing legal spend, and communicating material risks to senior leadership.
Experience leading attorneys, claims professionals, or other legal personnel.
Ability to work effectively with technical, operational, financial, and business stakeholders.
Strategic legal judgment and practical business decision-making.
Sophisticated litigation, dispute-management, and negotiation skills.
Financial acumen regarding reserves, settlements, defense costs, legal spend, and portfolio exposure.
Ability to understand and clearly communicate technical and engineering issues.
Credible executive communication and ability to translate complex legal, technical, and financial issues into actionable recommendations.
Collaborative leadership, sound judgment, discretion, and ability to influence across functions.
Ability to manage multiple significant matters in a fast-moving environment while maintaining discipline and attention to detail.
Commitment to using data, technology, and process improvement to strengthen legal operations and risk visibility.
Ability to travel domestically and internationally approximately 10%–20%.

Nice To Haves

Experience with litigation involving manufactured, industrial, durable, or consumer products.
A combination of in-house and law firm experience.
Experience working with cross-functional and international business teams.
Trial experience or meaningful responsibility for contested litigation.
Experience improving legal or claims processes, reporting, technology, or portfolio governance.

Responsibilities

Lead strategy for significant litigation, claims, and disputes involving Company products, operations, employees, and commercial relationships.
Assess liability, causation, damages, litigation posture, potential outcomes, and resolution alternatives; recommend approaches balancing legal exposure with financial, reputational, and business considerations.
Direct matters from initial assessment and investigation through discovery, expert development, product examinations, motion practice, mediation, settlement, trial preparation, and appeal.
Identify emerging allegations, recurring fact patterns, and portfolio trends that may require broader legal or business action.
Provide legal and strategic leadership for the Claims function and promote consistent standards for intake, investigation, documentation, evaluation, escalation, and resolution.
Maintain visibility into open matters, including status, strategy, critical deadlines, and potential exposure.
Ensure relevant evidence, records, products, photographs, statements, and technical information are identified, preserved, and evaluated appropriately.
Develop portfolio reporting and governance practices that support accountability, informed decision-making, and timely escalation.
Develop and periodically reassess case evaluations and reserve recommendations based on available facts, litigation developments, expert input, and expected exposure.
Partner with the General Counsel, Finance, Risk Management, insurers, and other stakeholders on reserve reviews, financial reporting, and portfolio forecasting.
Evaluate resolution opportunities and lead significant settlement negotiations and internal approval processes.
Monitor indemnity exposure, defense costs, settlement activity, legal spend, and other material financial developments across the portfolio.
Provide concise, supportable reporting on material matters, reserve activity, resolutions, and emerging exposure.
Select, retain, and direct outside counsel, technical experts, investigators, and other external resources.
Set expectations for external teams regarding strategy, staffing, budgets, reporting, responsiveness, and results, and hold them accountable for performance and alignment with Company objectives.
Oversee significant strategic decisions, including expert retention, dispositive motions, mediation, trial preparation, and settlement approach.
Lead, develop, and mentor legal and claims professionals, promoting sound judgment, collaboration, consistency, accountability, and continuous improvement.
Partner with Engineering, Quality, Product Development, Operations, Supply Chain, Sales, Marketing, Customer Care, Human Resources, Risk Management, and other functions to investigate matters and support defensible legal positions.
Advise on evidence preservation, product examinations, testing protocols, technical documentation, warnings, instructions, labeling, and related legal-risk considerations.
Translate litigation and claims experience into practical recommendations for product safety, compliance, documentation, corrective action, and risk prevention.
Support product-safety investigations, regulatory matters, internal investigations, and recall-related legal issues, as appropriate.
Develop scalable processes, technology, reporting, metrics, and knowledge-management practices that strengthen legal operations and risk visibility.
Advise the General Counsel and executive leadership on significant exposure, resolution strategy, financial implications, and enterprise risk, including concise executive and Board-level reporting when appropriate.
Perform other duties as assigned within the scope of responsibilities and requirements of the job.
Perform essential job functions and duties with or without reasonable accommodation.