Associate Legal Counsel

Gordon Food Service•Michigan, MI

15d•Hybrid

About The Position

The Associate Legal Counsel provides legal advice to Gordon Food Service, its subsidiaries, and affiliates on a North American basis as the company navigates the ever-changing legal landscape. Serving as a corporate and commercial generalist, Associate Legal Counsel will intake a variety of issues from many areas throughout the business, and work collaboratively with the other attorneys of the legal team. Provides technically proficient, yet practical advice that can be immediately applied by the business to mitigate risk. Responds promptly to a wide range of legal work and coordinates closely with Legal department colleagues to ensure delivery of smart, practical and consistent advice on a variety of commercial matters.

Requirements

Bachelor's degree from an accredited college required
Licensed to Practice Law in one or more states, Michigan preferred; in the case of Canada, Called to the Bar in Canada
Law Degree (Juris Doctorate - JD or LLB) required
3-5 or more years of post-licensure legal experience required with at least 2 years experience in contract review and drafting.
Excellent research and writing skills, including contract drafting and other forms of legal writing; detail orientation a must
Excellent business acumen and communication (i.e. interpersonal as well as digital), presentation skills
Excellent time and case management skills; ability to shift quickly between substantive areas of law in a fast paced environment and be timely and responsive to demands/needs
Emotionally intelligent and self-aware; commitment to professionalism at all times
“Can-do”, service oriented approach toward internal clients; demonstrated ability to work with wide range of clients
“Global mindset” and collaborative approach with both business owners and legal colleagues
“Digital first mindset” and ability to create and use legal technology
Self starting and independent work style, without need for frequent points of contact/supervision throughout the day
Good judgment and ability to spot issues; knows when to further research or knows when to ask for help or advice
Demonstrated ability to adapt to changing circumstances, strategies or when defending/conveying a point
High level of integrity exercised internally and in representing the company to outside parties
Sense of humor, humility and approachability
English fluency required, additional French or Spanish fluency preferred.
Must love food!

Nice To Haves

Large law firm training is a plus.
Second career lawyers are also encouraged to apply.

Responsibilities

Provides legal support to Gordon Food Service, and its affiliates and subsidiaries, in US and Canada.
Conducts research, writing, analysis, and effective communication of legal advice and guidance to the law department, sales, procurement, transportation, warehousing, and stores.
Provides general commercial contracting support, including but not limited to the drafting, review, and negotiation of contracts related to the sales and credit agreements, purchasing of goods and services, non-disclosure and confidentiality agreements, contractor and staffing, equipment leasing, simple land leases, and other contract matters that would generally arise in the course of business.
Strengthens processes, tools, templates and technology used to support our Contract Lifecycle Management (CLM) program.
Identifies gaps in the contracting process, and makes recommendations to the Contract Lifecycle Manager.
Supports CLM by drafting standard documents, provisions, and alternate provisions.
Helps to maintain the bank of standard contract forms and regularly reviews them to ensure they are up to date with changes in the law.
Monitors changing law and regulatory environment pertaining to the business and provides updates and guidance, reviews and revises policies and procedures, and provides practical solutions for compliance.
Willing to support, step up and stand in on any and all other areas managed by the full-service law department, which includes but is not limited to corporate, M&A, real estate, labor/employment, litigation, technology/IT and innovation, marketing, trademarks, food safety, transportation compliance, occupational health and safety, etc.
Manages ongoing legal matters, including management of outside counsel, and effectively communicates to the business throughout the process.
Prepares and delivers legal training sessions to company employees, both virtually or in-person.
Performs other duties as assigned.