Legal Director

About the role

The Legal Director will serve as a strategic legal advisor and key leader within the organization, responsible for advancing a robust and effective regional compliance program. This role partners closely with business and functional leaders to proactively identify and mitigate risk, ensure adherence to applicable laws and regulations, and promote a culture of integrity and accountability. The position requires a pragmatic, business-oriented approach to legal counsel, strong leadership capabilities, and the ability to operate effectively in a dynamic, fast-paced, and complex environment.

Responsibilities

• Serve as the primary legal advisor to North America's functional and business leaders, providing practical, risk-based counsel on commercial, operational, regulatory, and strategic business matters.
• Lead the North America trade compliance program, ensuring compliance with import/export regulations, sanctions, customs, and global trade requirements and other applicable trade laws.
• Implement enterprise legal, compliance, and risk management by identifying and mitigating legal, regulatory, contractual, operational, and reputational risks.
• Develop, implement, and continuously enhance compliance policies, governance frameworks, training programs, and ethics initiatives to foster a strong culture of integrity and accountability.
• Collaborate with global and regional legal and compliance teams to drive consistency, share best practices, and continuously improve compliance programs across the organization.
• Partner proactively with business leaders to identify legal and compliance risks, evaluate business initiatives, and develop practical solutions that enable business objectives while protecting the organization.
• Lead the strategic management of the company's property, casualty, and liability insurance programs, ensuring appropriate risk transfer and coverage aligned with business needs.
• Partner with the Global Intellectual Property team and designated external U.S. counsel to support the protection and enforcement of the company's intellectual property assets.
• Support complex commercial, operational, and regulatory matters, coordinating with internal and external legal resources as needed.
• Lead, mentor, and develop legal and compliance professionals, fostering a collaborative, high-performing, and business-oriented team.
• Provide a contracted framework for legal services for the businesses and functional services to provide consistency in legal advice and risk management.
• Understand and translate the UBE Corporate legal framework into a US-based legal framework that differentiates and addresses US-specific legal needs.

Qualifications

• Juris Doctor (JD) from an accredited US-based law school.
• Minimum of 10 years of progressive legal experience, with a strong focus on corporate compliance and ethics programs.
• Proven ability to advise business leaders on complex compliance matters and deliver practical, business-oriented solutions.
• Demonstrated experience conducting regulatory and corporate compliance risk assessments and developing mitigation strategies.
• Ability to operate independently while balancing legal risk with business objectives in a fast-paced environment.
• Strong track record of effectively engaging and influencing diverse stakeholders across functions and levels.
• Executive presence with exceptional interpersonal, communication, and organizational skills, and a demonstrated ability to exercise sound judgment proactively.
• Experience designing, implementing, and managing corporate compliance programs, policies, and training initiatives strongly preferred.
• Global perspective with experience operating in complex, multinational environments and sensitivity to cultural and regional differences.
• Prior experience leading, mentoring, or supervising legal or compliance professionals.

Pay

$180,000 - $200,000