Several lawyers who built their in-house reputations at well-known companies from Uber Technologies Inc. to Apple Inc. have taken top counsel positions at growing companies in October.

The month started with a former Goldman Sachs general counsel and Blackrock chief operating officer becoming general counsel at the cryptocurrency firm Blockchain. A former associate general counsel at Uber went to Fundbox, the San Francisco-based firm that's building a business-to-business electronic payment and credit network that leverages machine learning. Cloud data protection startup Druva Inc. picked up a former lawyer for Apple and Broadcom Inc. as its first general counsel. The chief legal and policy officer of electric scooter company Bird Rides Inc. has joined Nuro Inc., a robotics firm that builds self-driving delivery vehicles. Genesco Inc., the Nashville, Tennessee-based footwear specialty retailer affiliated with the Dockers brand and Journeys stores, nabbed a former Nissan Group and Sears Holdings Corp. general counsel.

Government lawyers also jumped to rising companies. The former general counsel for the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission is now the general counsel at renewable energy services company Arcadia Power Inc. The former U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission senior counsel just became the first chief legal officer of financial technology startup Crypto Asset Rating Inc.

Similar to previous months, health companies, especially those specializing in biopharmaceutics, have shared their top lawyer promotions more compared to other industries.

AGRICULTURE

Christine Castellano will become the senior vice president, general counsel and corporate secretary at The Andersons Inc., the agricultural company announced in a news release. She starts in her new position Feb. 3 at the Maumee, Ohio-based company and replaces Naran Burchinow, who will retire in March 2020.

Castellano is the former senior vice president, general counsel, corporate secretary and chief compliance officer for Ingredion Inc., where she worked 16 years.

Burchinow will retire after more than 15 years of service to The Andersons.

CANNABIS

Green Thumb Industries Inc., a cannabis consumer packaged goods company and retail store owner with Vancouver and Chicago headquarters, hired Beth Burk as interim chief legal and compliance officer. She replaces Matt Miller, who resigned from the general counsel post.

Burk most recently served as global chief compliance officer at Aon plc, according to Green Thumb Industries' statement. 

Her LinkedIn profile says she was a partner at Winston & Strawn and a graduate of Chicago-Kent College of Law.

CONSTRUCTION

Vulcan Materials Co., a Birmingham, Alabama-based producer of construction aggregates, announced Denson "D." Franklin III will become its senior vice president and general counsel Dec. 2 in a news release. 

He will replace Michael R. Mills, who retired in September, and join Mitesh Shah, who was promoted to serve as deputy general counsel.

Franklin is in the corporate and securities practice group at Bradley Arant Boult Cummings in Birmingham. He graduated from Vanderbilt University Law School.  

EDUCATION

Stephanie Adamany, general counsel of the Wisconsin Alumni Research Foundation.

The Wisconsin Alumni Research Foundation, known as WARF, promoted Stephanie Adamany to general counsel, according to the foundation's announcement.

Adamany has been with WARF since 2006. She was most recently deputy general counsel. 

She is an alum of the University of Wisconsin Madison Law School. 

Little Sunshine's Playhouse and Preschool, an early education and care provider operating 22 preschools nationwide, promoted Mary Bozarth to general counsel.

Bozarth started at the Springfield, Missouri-based Little Sunshine three years ago as in-house counsel, according to the company's announcement. 

She received her Juris Doctor from the University of Miami School of Law. 

Childrens Lighthouse Learning Centers, a Fort Worth, Texas-based nationwide chain of early learning schools, appointed Stephanie Russ as vice president and general counsel.

Russ takes the legal helm as the school franchise has 30 schools in development across the United States and has added several members to its corporate team this year, according to the company's press release.

"Having represented Childrens Lighthouse in the past, I am extremely excited to be joining such an accomplished team," Russ said in the release. "I look forward to continuing to better the franchisee experience as we grow throughout the U.S."

Russ has practiced franchise law for 13 years and has represented Childrens Lighthouse while with Mullin Russ Kilejian and most recently Baker McKenzie. She's a graduate of Texas Wesleyan School of Law, now Texas A&M University School of Law, according to a Baker McKenzie partner announcement.

ENTERTAINMENT

C. Kristopher Simpson, senior vice president and general counsel of Urban One Inc.

Kristopher Simpson is the new senior vice president and general counsel at Urban One Inc., the parent company of African American content providers Radio One Inc., CLEO TV and TV One LLC, a television network serving more than 59 million households.

Simpson has been with the Silver Spring, Maryland-based company for 12 years, most recently serving as vice president and deputy general counsel, according to Urban One's investor relations statement. 

"I feel very fortunate to have a terrific team of colleagues across the company and look forward to working together to further the mission of Urban One," Simpson said in the statement. "My history with the company gives me unique perspective and opportunity to build on our many successes and meet key milestones in the years to come."

Simpson received his Juris Doctor from The George Washington University Law School.

ENVIRONMENT

Greentown Labs, the largest clean technology startup incubator in North America, named Ryan Dings as executive vice president and general counsel, second-in-command to the CEO, the Somerville, Massachusetts, company said in a press release. 

Dings most recently served as chief operating officer and general counsel of investment firm Sunwealth, a Greentown Labs graduate company. Prior to Sunwealth, Dings served as vice president and general counsel of Blu Homes Inc., a sustainably focused prefabricated home builder. 

"Combating climate change is an immense challenge—one that requires an inspiring community of dedicated entrepreneurs committed to creating advanced clean technologies and rapidly bringing those technologies to market," Dings said in the release. "Greentown Labs is that inspiring community, and there is no place I'd rather be as we accelerate our efforts to address climate change and create a net-zero economy that works for all of us."

Dings holds a Juris Doctor from Wake Forest University School of Law and a master's degree from Harvard University Graduate School of Design.

HEALTH

AEON Biopharma Inc., a Newport Beach, California-based biopharmaceutical company focused on therapeutic toxins, named Scott Akamine as general counsel.

Akamine most recently was vice president and associate general counsel at CoreLogic Inc. Prior to CoreLogic, Akamine held legal management positions at Incipio LLC and Allergan. He was also a corporate securities and mergers and acquisitions attorney at Latham & Watkins.

"I am excited to join AEON Biopharma and work alongside the great team Marc [Forth, president and CEO] has assembled as we continue to break new ground as the only company solely dedicated to the therapeutic applications of toxins," Akamine said in the media release.

Akamine is a graduate of Pepperdine University School of Law, according to the California State Bar.

Health Plus Management LLC, a Uniondale, New York-based physician support organization supporting business services of independent physicians specializing in musculoskeletal care, has appointed Claudia Hinrichsen as general counsel and chief legal officer.

Hinrichsen served five years as general counsel and chief legal officer for CityMD Urgent Care. 

"As HPM continues to expand, I'm eager to leverage my passion and deep knowledge in healthcare to contribute to its continued growth and success," Hinrichsen said in the announcement. "This is an exciting time for HPM, and I look forward to working alongside this talented team with a proven success record."

Hinrichsen holds her Juris Doctor from the Maurice A. Deane School of Law at Hofstra University.

Stoke Therapeutics Inc., a biotechnology company looking to treat the cause of severe genetic diseases by upregulating protein expression, hired Robin Walker as senior vice president and chief legal officer.

Walker joins the Bedford, Massachusetts-based Stoke Therapeutics from Casebia Therapeutics, where she served as senior vice president and head of legal, according to the press release. Prior to Casebia, she was the associate general counsel of corporate at Biogen Inc. Walker also had been a senior corporate counsel at Staples Inc. and a corporate associate in the Boston office of K&L Gates. 

Walker holds her Juris Doctor from Boston University School of Law.

Luminis Health in Annapolis and Lanham, Maryland named Timothy Adelman as its general counsel and chief legal officer.  

Adelman comes to Luminis Health from Indianapolis‐based Hall, Render, Killian, Heath & Lyman, a health care law firm where he served as managing partner, according to the announcement. Adelman also served on the Anne Arundel Medical Center Foundation board of directors. 

He earned his law degree from the University of Maryland Francis King Carey School of Law and MBA from the University of Maryland Robert H. Smith School of Business.

Virpax Pharmaceuticals Inc., a company specializing in the development of pharmaceutical products for pain management, promoted Michèle Linde to executive vice president of global corporate governance, chief legal officer and corporate secretary, the company said in a press release.

Linde became general counsel for the Malvern, Pennsylvania, company in June in an earlier release. 

Most recently, Linde served as general counsel of Akloma Bioscience AB in Stockholm, Sweden. Linde has served as a vice president of Endo Pharmaceuticals Inc. in the U.S. and also worked in the legal departments of AstraZeneca, Bristol-Myers Squibb in Belgium, and DuPont Pharmaceuticals. Her private practice experience includes global law firm Mannheimer Swartling. 

Adverum Biotechnologies Inc., a clinical-stage gene therapy company targeting ocular and rare diseases, appointed Peter Soparkar as chief legal officer, the Menlo Park, California, company said in a statement. 

Most recently, Soparkar served as chief legal officer and head of human resources at Counsyl Inc. He also spent 10 years at Jazz Pharmaceuticals Inc., last as the vice president and associate general counsel.

"I'm excited to join Adverum at this pivotal time for the company," Soparkar said in the release. "I look forward to working with the team to maximize Adverum's potential of becoming a leader in the gene therapy space, focusing on developing new therapy options for patients with serious ocular and rare diseases."

Soparkar worked at Latham & Watkins in London and San Francisco. He received a law degree from New York University.

Tris Pharma Inc., a pharmaceutical company based in Monmouth Junction, New Jersey, named Jonathan Provoost as general counsel.

Provoost most recently served as general counsel for business development and licensing at Mallinckrodt Pharmaceuticals. He's also worked at Ikaria Inc., PTC Therapeutics, Kos Pharmaceuticals Inc., Bristol-Myers Squibb and Exxon Mobil Corp.

"I am honored to have the opportunity to lead Tris' legal function. Tris' impressive growth trajectory and product pipeline provide a robust foundation upon which we can build Tris into a leading global specialty pharmaceutical company," Provoost said in the press release. "I look forward to working with my colleagues to advance the continued growth and expansion of Tris' business."

NGM Biopharmaceuticals Inc., a clinical-stage biotechnology company focused on developing transformative therapeutics for patients, appointed Valerie Pierce as senior vice president, general counsel and chief compliance officer.

"I'm excited to join NGM at this point in the company's evolution as it builds on the ongoing accomplishments of its highly productive research engine to move product candidates into the clinic, including progressing its lead clinical candidate, aldafermin (NGM282) for the treatment of NASH, toward late-stage clinical development," Pierce said in the company's announcement. "I look forward to being a part of the mission-driven team at NGM, working together toward delivering meaningful medicines to patients in need."

Pierce joins the South San Francisco-based NGM from Jazz Pharmaceuticals Inc., where she worked since 2012, most recently as senior vice president, associate general counsel. Before Jazz, Pierce worked as vice president and senior transactional counsel at Amyris Inc., senior vice president and general counsel at Sunesis Pharmaceuticals Inc., and in various in-house legal positions at the Institute for OneWorld Health, Tularik Inc. and ALZA Corp.

Pierce received her Juris Doctor from Yale Law School.

Protenus Inc., a health care compliance analytics platform based in Baltimore, hired Amy Much as vice president of legal.

Before Protenus, Much held legal roles at Under Armour Inc., Prime Retail Services and Verizon Business, formerly MCI, according to the company's announcement.

"Protenus deeply understands the importance of ensuring compliance and reducing risk across the organization. I am looking forward to helping the Protenus team continue to scale and meet increasing customer demand," Much said in the announcement.

Much received her law degree from the University of Maryland School of Law. 

INSURANCE

Erie Indemnity Co. in Erie, Pennsylvania, promoted Brian Bolash to senior vice president and general counsel from vice president, corporate secretary and senior counsel, the company said in a media release.

Bolash's appointment follows the December 2018 retirement of the former U.S. District Judge Sean McLaughlin of the Western District of Pennsylvania as Erie's general counsel.

Bolash joined Erie in 2000 as associate general counsel and later assumed the assistant corporate secretary title. Prior to Erie, Bolash worked in private practice with starting his legal career with the law firm MacDonald, Illig, Jones, & Britton in the city of Erie.

A city native, Bolash is a graduate of Penn State Dickinson Law.

MANUFACTURING

MSA Safety Inc. promoted Stephanie Sciullo to vice president and chief legal officer. Sciullo succeeds Douglas McClaine, who plans to retire in 2020 after 35 years with the company, according to a media release. Sciullo starts in her position Jan. 1.

Sciullo served as deputy general counsel, where she managed the companywide litigation portfolio. She's been with MSA nearly 10 years.

Prior to MSA, Sciullo, an adjunct professor of law at the University of Pittsburgh and Duquesne University, practiced with Reed Smith.

She is a graduate of the University of Pittsburgh School of Law.

Scott Posner, senior vice president, secretary and general counsel of Terex Corp.

Terex Corp. promoted Scott Posner to senior vice president, secretary and general counsel, said a news announcement from the Westport, Connecticut-based manufacturer of lifting and materials processing products and services.

Posner will replace Eric Cohen, who plans to leave the company Dec. 31. 

Posner joined Terex in 2004 and most recently was vice president, assistant secretary and deputy general counsel. Prior to Terex, he was an associate at Weil, Gotshal & Manges. 

He holds a law degree from the Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law at Yeshiva University.

NONPROFIT

The Wikimedia Foundation Inc. appointed Amanda Keton as general counsel. 

Prior to the San Francisco-based Wikimedia, Keton was general counsel of Tides Network, a national social justice public foundation. While at Tides, Wikimedia said she worked with its foundation to establish the Wikimedia Endowment, a source of funding to support the Wikimedia projects and mission in perpetuity. She also served as head of Tides Foundation and People Operations as well as CEO of Tides Advocacy, the policy affiliate in the Tides family of organizations.

Before Tides, Keton worked for Ernst & Young, providing nonprofit organizations with consulting, advisory and compliance services.

"I'm thrilled to join the Wikimedia movement and help bolster the work of its dedicated community," Keton said in the foundation's press release. "Increasing access to knowledge, defending our community and users, curbing surveillance and censorship, facilitating open policy discussions, and advocating for privacy are among the defining issues of our time. Wikimedia is poised to play a leading role in shaping them in collaboration with people everywhere who are driving forward our goal of free knowledge for all."

Keton received her master of laws in taxation and Juris Doctor from the University of San Diego School of Law. She also completed a master of arts in education. She is based in San Diego.

The REFORM Alliance, a criminal justice advocacy organization, in New York announced its new C-suite, including chief legal officer Monique Haughton Worrell, in a press release. She started in July, according to her LinkedIn profile. 

Worrell most recently served as director of the Conviction Integrity Unit at the Office of the Florida Attorney Ninth Judicial Circuit in Orlando, Florida, where she oversaw the review of applications and investigation of claims of wrongful convictions and drafted recommendations and pleadings sustaining or vacating convictions. She also served as a professor and the director of the Criminal Justice Center at the University of Florida Fredric G. Levin College of Law, her alma mater. She's a former assistant public defender for the Ninth Judicial Circuit. 

The REFORM Alliance is supported by star power through CEO Van Jones, activist and CNN personality, and its co-founding partners, including rapper and business mogul Shawn "JAY-Z" Carter; Kraft Group CEO and New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft; and rapper Meek Mill.

TECHNOLOGY

San Jose, California-based Quantum Corp. announced Regan MacPherson has joined as chief legal and compliance officer in a press release.

MacPherson previously served as the chief compliance officer at Marvell Technology Group Ltd.  Prior to Marvell, MacPherson spent 12 years at Seagate Technology PLC in a variety of legal roles, eventually becoming senior vice president and general counsel. 

"I am pleased to join Quantum at a critical juncture in the company's resurgence," MacPherson said in the release. "I see enormous potential for advancing the company's open, accountable culture centered on building and empowering teams of people to achieve our business goals while touching society in impactful ways."

The California State Bar lists her alma mater as Southwestern Law School.

TRANSPORTATION

Ervin Equipment Inc., a Toledo, Ohio-based trailer supplier, appointed Preston Owen to the role of chief financial officer and general counsel. 

Owen is a certified public accountant and a retired U.S. Navy chief petty officer, serving 20 years on active duty and in the reserve forces, Ervin Equipment said in its press release. 

He's a graduate of Southern Illinois University School of Law, according to his LinkedIn profile.

Univar Solutions Inc., a global chemical and ingredient distributor and services provider, announced the appointment of Noelle J. Perkins as senior vice president, general counsel and secretary. Perkins assumes the role from Jeffrey Carr, who transitions to the role of adviser to the CEO until his retirement in March.

Perkins joined Downers Grove, Illinois-based Univar Solutions in March 2018 as deputy general counsel and assistant secretary, the company said in an investor relations statement. Prior to Univar Solutions, Perkins was chief counsel for the oilseeds processing segment of Archer Daniels Midland Co. She's also served as the deputy general counsel for John Bean Technologies Corp., a food processing machinery and airport systems equipment maker.

Perkins began her career as a litigation associate with Bell, Boyd & Lloyd, which is now K&L Gates. She is a graduate of the University of Illinois College of Law, her LinkedIn profile said.