Description:

About the role:
The Associate General Counsel is a senior member of the Legal Department responsible for providing strategic, practical and business-focused legal advice and support to United Franchise Group (UFG), a family of affiliated brands consisting of multiple domestic and international franchisors. The position reports to the General Counsel.

The Associate General Counsel will work closely with the General Counsel, senior leadership and business leaders across UFG to identify and manage legal and business risks, facilitate business objectives, and provide timely, practical legal guidance. The position will have substantial responsibility for independently managing significant legal matters and projects, while escalating material, complex or high-risk matters to the General Counsel as appropriate.

The successful candidate will be a business-minded attorney who combines strong legal judgment with excellent client service, communication, negotiation and project-management skills. The Associate General Counsel will be expected to understand the business objectives underlying legal issues and provide solutions that appropriately balance legal risk, operational considerations and commercial objectives.

The position represents an opportunity for an experienced attorney to have a meaningful impact on a growing organization and to play a significant role in the continued development, efficiency and sophistication of UFG's Legal Department.

Responsibilities:

Serve as a trusted legal advisor to senior management and business leaders on a broad range of legal and business matters affecting UFG and its affiliated companies.
Structure, draft, review and negotiate a broad variety of legal documents and agreements, including franchise disclosure documents, franchise agreements and amendments, vendor and supplier agreements, master services agreements, technology agreements, confidentiality agreements, letters of intent, commercial agreements and other complex business contracts.
Provide legal support and strategic guidance throughout the franchise sales process, including advising sales and operations personnel regarding applicable legal requirements and reviewing legal documents ancillary to franchise sales.
Provide guidance regarding federal and state franchise laws, rules and regulations, including FTC requirements and state franchise registration and disclosure requirements.
Monitor developments in applicable laws and regulations and proactively advise management regarding changes that may affect UFG's businesses, operations or franchise systems.
Manage and oversee domestic and international trademark matters, including applications, renewals, maintenance, enforcement and coordination with outside intellectual property counsel
Independently manage significant commercial, corporate and operational legal matters and provide practical recommendations to internal clients.
Manage litigation and dispute-resolution matters, including coordinating with outside counsel, overseeing litigation strategy, managing costs and providing regular updates to the General Counsel and appropriate business leaders.
Support mergers, acquisitions, divestitures, investments and other strategic transactions, including due diligence, transaction documentation, negotiation and post-closing matters.
Assist the General Counsel in developing and implementing legal department policies, procedures, processes and systems designed to improve efficiency, consistency, quality and responsiveness.
Conduct or oversee legal research on behalf of UFG, senior management and employees concerning U.S. and international legal matters.
Appropriately identify, assess and escalate material legal, regulatory, financial and reputational risks to the General Counsel and senior management.
Exercise independent judgment in determining appropriate legal solutions while recognizing matters requiring escalation or specialized outside counsel.

Qualifications:

Juris Doctorate from an ABA-accredited law school.
Admitted to the Bar in the state of Florida.
4 - 7 years of experience in the commercial and business law, emphasis in transactional work.
Intellectual property law experience preferred.
Experience in international legal matters and/or franchise law is a plus.
Ability to read and interpret documents such as safety rules, operating and maintenance instructions, and procedure manuals.
Ability to write routine reports and correspondence.
Ability to speak effectively before groups of customers or employees of organization.
Ability to solve practical problems and deal with a variety of concrete variables in situations where only limited standardization exists.
Ability to interpret a variety of instructions furnished in written, oral, or schedule form.
Proficient in the Microsoft Office Suite.