January proved to be a busy month of companies filling their open positions for general counsel. With the new year push, many major companies such as Eli Lilly and Co., TikTok Inc. and MoneyGram International Inc. named new chief legal officers, with these three moves in particular happening on the same day.

As new legal leaders were hired, others retired or left due to company restructuring. The most high-profile exit was the Alphabet Inc. chief legal officer who retired amid sexual misconduct accusations. Jack in the Box Inc. named a new chief legal officer in anticipation of its longtime one leaving next month, along with other executives and eventually the CEO, after a franchisee lawsuit. Washington Redskins "mutually parted ways" with its general counsel, who had worked with the NFL team for 17 years, and named a successor two weeks later.

Some general counsel who had retired at the end of the year resurfaced elsewhere. AECOM's general counsel, who left after four years in December, became chief risk officer at DXC Technology Co. Heineken USA named a new chief legal officer, who had left Red Bull North America. Red Bull also named a new general counsel and another general counsel for its Major League Soccer team.

Below are several other top lawyer appointments announced this month.

Business

Summit Exercises and Training LLC, a risk management firm in St. Petersburg, Florida, hired Scott Glick to the role of vice president and general counsel. Glick will be based in SummitET's new D.C. office, according to the company's media release. 

Before SummitET, Glick served in a number of high-ranking positions at the U.S. Department of Justice, including as the director of preparedness and response, the deputy chief in the counterterrorism section, and the deputy counsel in the Office of Intelligence Policy and Review.

"I'm thrilled to be joining a company that emphasizes both a commitment to preparedness and its close-knit team," Glick said. "SummitET offered me an opportunity to work alongside a diverse cadre of subject matter experts to prepare customers for a variety of disasters."    

Glick is a graduate of the Maurice A. Deane School of Law at Hofstra University.

Consumer Products

Grove Collaborative Inc. appointed Delida Costin as chief legal and people officer. 

Costin joined the San Francisco-based consumer goods company in July 2019 as general counsel. Prior to Grove, Costin acted as general counsel for lynda.com. Before that, she built the legal team at Pandora Media as the senior vice president, secretary and general counsel, per Grove's announcement. 

According to her website, Costin started her career as an associate at Goodwin Procter in Boston and Pillsbury Winthrop Shaw Pittman in Palo Alto, California.

She is a graduate of Boston University School of Law.

Environment

Motiva Enterprises LLC appointed Amy Marlyse Plato as the company's executive vice president, general counsel, corporate secretary and business compliance officer. Plato succeeds Chris Vice, who retired after serving in the role since 2011, the Houston-based oil and energy firm said in its announcement.

Plato comes to Motiva after spending seven years as senior counsel at Aramco Services Co., where she served as the primary corporate counsel for Saudi Refining Inc. Prior to Aramco, Plato was a partner at Zabel Freeman and Mayer Brown. 

Plato received her juris doctor from the University of Texas School of Law.

Finance

Ares Management Corp. in Los Angeles appointed Naseem Sagati Aghili to general counsel and secretary. Sagati Aghili had served as co-general counsel of Ares since 2019 alongside Michael Weiner, who has been appointed as head of public policy and legislative affairs, according to the company's press release. 

During her more than 10 years at Ares, Sagati Aghili has served in various roles, including general counsel of Ares' Private Equity Group. 

Prior to Ares, Sagati Aghili was with Proskauer Rose, where she focused on mergers and acquisitions, securities offerings and general corporate matters. 

She holds a juris doctor from the University of Southern California Gould School of Law.

Weiner has been with Ares since 2006. In his new role as head of public policy and legislative affairs, Weiner will continue to focus on various strategic initiatives for Ares and serve as a key point of contact for various stakeholders, particularly related to matters of public policy and legislative affairs.

He received his juris doctor from the Santa Clara University School of Law.

Sprout Mortgage, a non-qualified mortgage lender in East Meadow, New York, announced that Gregory Walker joined the company as chief compliance officer and general counsel. The company said in a statement Walker takes over the position from Shannon Leight, who moves to the newly created position of chief compliance officer and general counsel for Sprout Lending LLC.

Walker most recently served as special counsel at Impac Mortgage Co. and previously was chief compliance officer and general counsel at Towne Mortgage Co. Prior to that, he was in-house counsel at Credit Suisse Securities (USA) LLC, managing director and counsel at UBS AG, and executive director and counsel at Morgan Stanley. 

Early in his career, Walker was a senior ratings analyst at Moody's Investors Service. Walker practiced law at Cravath, Swaine & Moore; Brown & Wood; and had his own private practice.

"I'm very pleased to join Sprout and look forward to serving as general counsel as the firm continues its impressive growth to become the dominant non-QM lender," Walker said.

He graduated from Fordham University School of Law.

Eagle Bancorp Inc., the parent company of EagleBank, hired Paul Saltzman to be its executive vice president and chief legal officer, according to a press release.

Saltzman joins EagleBank from White & Case, where he was a partner in the banking and financial institutions advisory practice. He joined White & Case following his tenure at Deutsche Bank as head of the Americas global transaction banking. He previously served as president and general counsel of The Clearing House.

He earned his law degree from the Boston University School of Law.

Inez Friedman-Boyce, HarborOne Bank.

HarborOne Bancorp Inc., the holding company for HarborOne Bank in New England, hired Inez Friedman-Boyce as senior vice president, general counsel and corporate secretary.

Most recently, Friedman-Boyce was a partner at Goodwin Procter, where she spent nearly 15 years practicing securities and complex business litigation, according to the Brockton, Massachusetts-based bank's press release. She began her career as an associate at Testa, Hurwitz & Thibeault. She also has served as a special assistant district attorney in the Middlesex County District Attorney's Office in Massachusetts. 

Friedman-Boyce received her juris doctor from Georgetown University Law Center.

Riley Wealth Management Inc., a full-service private wealth and investment services firm and subsidiary of B. Riley Financial, promoted Michael Markunas to general counsel and chief compliance officer. Markunas assumes this position following the retirement of Jim Ritt, who had served in this dual role since August 2015, the company said in its statement.

Since joining the company in 2016, Markunas has served as in-house counsel and chief compliance officer to various regulated entities under B. Riley Financial. In addition to his blended role with B. Riley Wealth Management, Markunas also advises on legal matters as deputy general counsel and chief compliance officer for investment banking affiliate B. Riley FBR Inc.

Prior to B. Riley, Markunas was chief compliance officer for Athene Asset Management LLC, a division of Apollo Global Management LLC. He previously served as an attorney with the Securities and Exchange Commission and at the Investment Company Institute, a leading global association of regulated funds. Markunas began his legal career in New York litigating high-profile securities class action matters and has served in a variety of management and compliance roles with firms such as Morgan Stanley, UBS Group AG, and Wells Fargo & Co.

Markunas holds a law degree from the University of San Diego and a master of laws degree in securities and financial regulatory law from Georgetown University Law Center.

Food and Beverage

Heineken USA welcomed J. Carlos Kuri as senior vice president and chief legal officer. 

Kuri comes from Red Bull, where he was senior vice president and general counsel for Red Bull North America. 

"Carlos brings experience with three-tier distribution, a history of supporting and protecting beloved global brands and a passion for innovation," a Heineken spokesperson told Corporate Counsel. "This background, coupled with his leadership experience sets him up to be a strong contributor to our company. Carlos grew up in Houston, and has relocated from Los Angeles to New York with his family."

Kuri received his law degree from the University of Virginia School of Law.

Flowers Foods Inc., the parent behind well-known brands Nature's Own, Wonder, Tastykake, Dave's Killer Bread, and other bakery foods, promoted Stephanie Tillman to chief legal counsel. The company added in its statement that Tillman is replacing longtime general counsel, Stephen Avera, who retired last May. 

Tillman joined the Thomasville, Georgia, company's legal team in 1995 as a corporate attorney and has held several positions, including vice president and associate general counsel; vice president of compliance and assistant general counsel; and, most recently, vice president, chief compliance officer and deputy general counsel.

"This is an exciting time to take on new responsibilities as Flowers continues to grow and evolve, and I look forward to working closely with Ryals [McMullian, president and CEO] and the entire management team," Tillman said. "I would like to express my sincere thanks to Steve Avera for his friendship, his advice and guidance as a mentor, and for the many opportunities he afforded me to succeed."

Tillman is a graduate of the University of Georgia School of Law, according to the Georgia State Bar. 

Health

San Diego-based Arena Pharmaceuticals Inc. appointed Joan Schmidt to executive vice president, general counsel and secretary. Schmidt will join Arena in March, the company said in a press release.

Steven Spector, Arena's current executive vice president, general counsel and secretary, will retire after nearly two decades of service. To support the transition, Spector will remain with Arena until early March and then will serve as a consultant supporting ongoing projects.

Schmidt most recently served as executive vice president, chief legal officer and secretary at DBV Technologies Inc., a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company. She also had served as executive vice president and U.S. general counsel at Biotronik Inc., a global commercial-stage medical device company. 

Additional experience includes 20 years at Novo Nordisk in the U.S. and in Europe, most recently as U.S. corporate vice president of legal affairs. 

Schmidt earned a juris doctor from Pace University.

Ann & Robert H. Lurie Children's Hospital of Chicago named Fatema Zanzi as senior vice president, chief legal officer and corporate secretary. She succeeds Nancy Borders, who retired in December, and starts her new position Feb. 10, according to the hospital's statement.

Zanzi comes from Manatt, Phelps & Phillips, where she serves as office partner in Chicago and as a partner within its health practice group. She currently chairs the Children's Health Affinity Group at the American Health Lawyers Association. 

Zanzi is a graduate of Loyola University Chicago School of Law.

Vor Biopharma, a Cambridge, Massachusetts-based oncology company pioneering engineered hematopoietic stem cells for the treatment of cancer, added Amy Mendel as chief legal officer. 

"Vor was founded to unleash the potential of targeted therapies through the deletion of specific antigens from HSC transplants," Mendel said in the company's press release. "Vor's foundational intellectual property position underpins our platform approach and creates potential for significant growth and value creation, which we will pursue as we continue to layer on product-specific protection for our lead clinical candidate VOR33 and additional pipeline programs."

Prior to Vor, Mendel held legal roles at Accent Therapeutics, Rheos Medicines, Ohana Biosciences, Epiva Biosciences, and Evelo Biosciences, which merged with Epiva. Prior to working with biotech startups, Mendel was the vice president and associate general counsel for Ziopharm Oncology and the associate general counsel for Clinical Data. Mendel has also worked as a patent attorney at Greenberg Traurig and Wolf Greenfield. 

She earned a juris doctor from Suffolk University Law School.

Neuronetics Inc., a Malvern, Pennnsylvania, commercial-stage medical technology company focused on developing products for patients who suffer from psychiatric disorders, added Andrew Macan as its new senior vice president, general counsel, chief compliance officer and corporate secretary.

Prior to Neuronetics, Macan was senior vice president, general counsel and corporate secretary of U.S. Silica Holdings Inc. since October 2018. He served in roles of increasing responsibility with Axalta Coating Systems LLC, last being the general counsel and chief compliance officer of the Americas. He also climbed positions at Chubb Ltd. with being the vice president, corporate counsel and secretary for more than eight years. Macan began his career in private practice at Ballard Spahr and Dechert. 

"I am very excited to join Neuronetics, and I look forward to making significant and meaningful contributions to helping the company achieve its mission of renewing lives by transforming neurohealth," Macan said in Neuronetics' news release. "I'm grateful to Chris and the team for the opportunity to come aboard at this pivotal moment of growth as the Company continues to advance in the medical technology industry."

He earned his law degree from Emory University School of Law.

Akouos Inc., a precision genetic medicine company developing potential gene therapies to restore and preserve hearing, appointed Karoline Shair to senior vice president, general counsel and corporate secretary, the company said in a statement.

Shair most recently was the vice president, head counsel intellectual property program portfolio at Biogen Inc., where she led the company's global IP portfolio strategy, IP diligence and transactions for business development and mergers and acquisitions. Prior to Biogen, Shair was vice president legal, chief intellectual property counsel and corporate secretary at FORMA Therapeutics Inc. Shair also held leadership roles at Millennium Pharmaceuticals, which was later acquired by Takeda Pharmaceutical Co. Ltd., and Vertex Pharmaceuticals Inc. She was a lawyer at Choate, Hall & Stewart.

Shair received a juris doctor from Boston College Law School.

MDLIVE Inc., a Sunrise, Florida-based virtual health care service, appointed Rachel Dvorken as chief legal officer and corporate secretary. She will be based in the company's Chicago office, the company said in a press release.

Prior to joining MDLIVE, Dvorken was executive vice president and general counsel at Sinai Health System in Chicago. Previously, she held in-house roles at Northwestern Memorial HealthCare and Illinois Masonic Medical Center. She's a former lawyer with McDermott, Will & Emery. 

"MDLIVE's platform and large network of physicians offer an innovative route for Americans to get access to health care," Dvorken said. "I look forward to leveraging my experience to benefit MDLIVE and to support the company's vision of delivering the most convenient, high-quality health care for the benefit of our members."

Dvorken earned a juris doctor from Harvard Law School.

Jessica Baer was named general counsel at Innovation Associates, a high-volume pharmacy automation technology and software solutions provider in Johnson City, New York. 

The company said in its press release Baer is one of several executive leadership appointments resulting from the recent closing of the transaction in which a consortium of investors acquired a majority stake in the company.

She most recently led her own firm, Jessica Baer Consulting, and previously was the director of the Division of Professional Regulation and a general counsel for the Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation. She practiced at K&L Gates for six years, according to her LinkedIn profile. 

Baer is a graduate of DePaul University College of Law.

Insurance

Mountain View, California-based At-Bay Inc. named Tara Bodden as general counsel and head of claims. Bodden will be a part of the executive team with a base in San Francisco, the company said in a statement. 

Bodden joins At-Bay from Hiscox USA, where she mostly served as the senior vice president and head of claims for cyber, media and technology, and interim head of claims for the U.S.

"At-Bay has built a service with innovative products that deliver a great customer experience to brokers and insureds alike. I'm excited to join the strong team of seasoned security and insurance professionals at At-Bay," Bodden said. "As the business and products continue to grow, so will the number of claims. I'm honored to lead this new team that will ensure an exceptional At-Bay claims experience, and to work with the talented security team to help insureds avoid losses from digital exposures."

Bodden earned her law degree from the Santa Clara University School of Law. 

Religion

The Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America named George Tsougarakis as its general counsel and chief legal officer, according to his law firm Hughes Hubbard & Reed where he was partner and now will be of counsel while transitioning into his general counsel role.

"I'm thankful to my partners at Hughes Hubbard for the opportunity to work alongside some of the finest lawyers across the globe for over three decades," Tsougarakis said. "For the next phase of my career, I have the rare opportunity as a lawyer to represent a client whose mission is personally very meaningful to me and one which I support entirely. I look forward to serving my faith and His Eminence Archbishop Elpidophoros, for whom I have much respect and love."

Tsougarakis received his law degree from the University of Pennsylvania Law School.

Sports

Major League Soccer's New York Red Bulls appointed Kari Cohen as general counsel. Cohen succeeds Djenaba Parker, who was promoted to the role of senior vice president and general counsel with Red Bull North America.

Cohen spent nearly nine years at BSE Global, most recently as vice president and deputy general counsel. She was hired by BSE in June 2011 as associate counsel and promoted to counsel for legal and business affairs then vice president and assistant general counsel before becoming deputy general counsel. As part of her duties, Cohen handled the negotiation and drafting of agreements for the Brooklyn Nets, New York Islanders, Barclays Center, New York Community Bank Live Home of Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum, and Webster Hall.  

Prior to BSE, Cohen was an associate in the new media, entertainment and technology practice group at Hughes Hubbard & Reed. 

Cohen graduated from Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law at Yeshiva University.

The Ironman Group, known for putting on triathlons around the world, promoted Brooks Cowan to chief legal officer. 

Cowan joined Tampa, Florida-based Ironman in 2011. Ironman said in the announcement that Cowan has been "protecting and strengthening our intellectual property portfolio (currently almost 1,200 trademark registrations, across 70 countries)." According to his LinkedIn profile, he was most recently the senior vice president of legal. 

He earned his law degree from the University of Virginia School of Law.

Technology

Andrew Gaudin, VideoAmp.

VideoAmp Inc., a software and data platform that enables advertisers to optimize their video portfolio for business outcomes, has appointed Andrew Gaudin to chief legal and privacy officer. 

Gaudin introduced legal initiatives for media and technology firms, including DoubleClick, Adobe Inc., FreeWheel Media Inc. and Comcast Corp. 

"This is a rapidly changing sector and having worked with a number of pioneering businesses in the media and technology space, I can say the energy at VideoAmp is without peer," said Gaudin in the press release. "We are excited to add significant value to our customers with the highest quality commingled TV datasets and data science methodologies we apply alongside a privacy-compliant suite of solutions. I could not be more thrilled to be joining the company at this important stage of its development."

Gaudin is a graduate of the University of Michigan Law School. 

CytoDyn Inc., a late-stage biotechnology company in Vancouver, Washington, appointed Maura Fleming as vice president, general counsel and corporate secretary.

Before CytoDyn, Fleming served as counsel for Holland & Hart, according to the company's statement. Prior to the law firm, Fleming served as senior corporate counsel at Shutterfly, a personal products and services publicly traded company. Fleming also served as director of legal services at Aerohive Networks Inc. 

Fleming worked as an associate at Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati. She began her career at Yahoo Inc., where her last position was senior compliance paralegal. 

"I am honored to join CytoDyn and look forward to leveraging my strategic and legal insight to advise the company during this unprecedented period of extensive growth and evolution," Fleming said. "I am eager to start working alongside the leadership team and support the continuing evolution of its corporate governance, transactions and other legal challenges."

She received her law degree from Santa Clara University School of Law.

Jonathan Decker, Viken Detection.

Viken Detection, the Burlington, Massachusetts, threat protection technologies provider, added Jonathan Decker to the senior leadership team as general counsel. Decker started his new role Jan. 27, according to Viken's press release.

Decker previously served as vice president and associate general counsel of CIRCOR International Inc. Before CIRCOR, he was corporate counsel at Analogic Corp. and director of policy and communications at the Tobin Project. He started his legal career as an associate at Ropes & Gray. 

"In its short history, Viken Detection has already had a tremendous impact on public safety and security," Decker said. "I look forward to helping Jim and Viken continue on the path of success, evolve as a global security company, and aggressively secure and defend our shared values."

Decker is a graduate of Harvard Law School.

Trade Associations

The Battery Council International in Chicago welcomed Roger Miksad as its senior vice president and general counsel. 

In an interview with the battery trade organization, Miksad said he started with the organization as a lawyer at Wiley Rein, supporting the board of directors and committees, authoring the Battery Labeling Manual, and leading legislative and regulatory advocacy efforts in California, Washington and other states. He joined the law firm in 2009.

"While the underlying technology of lead batteries has been around for a long time, I see nothing stagnant about the industry," Miksad said. "The issues BCI's members care about are exciting; the industry leads the world on recycling, and is investing in cutting-edge R&D programs to ensure the continued success of lead batteries."

Miksad earned his law degree from Washington and Lee University, according to his LinkedIn profile. 

Sarah Yurasko joined the American Short Line and Regional Railroad Association as general counsel. She takes on the role following the retirement of Keith Borman, who held the position for fifteen years, according to the nonprofit association's media release.

Most recently, Yurasko served as assistant general counsel at the Association of American Railroads, representing railroad member interests before federal agencies and courts. In that role, ASLRRA said Yurasko interacted frequently with its association and its safety and regulatory staff.

Prior to the AAR, Yurasko worked for Amtrak, where she served as the chief administrative officer for high-speed rail. Prior to Amtrak, she worked for six years in the Office of Chief Counsel at the Federal Railroad Administration.

"I have dedicated my career to working in the railroad industry. I look forward to assisting the ASLRRA and its members in telling the short line story, ensuring that regulators, legislators, and policymakers understand the needs of the small business short line railroads and their suppliers," Yurasko said. "I'm eager to put my legal and regulatory experience to work supporting short lines, which are a unique and compelling American success story."

Yurasko has served on the board of directors for the League of Railway Women since 2017, currently in the role of vice president.

She holds a juris doctor from American University Washington College of Law.

Transportation

XPO Logistics Inc. appointed Kurt Rogers to chief legal officer and corporate secretary and Karlis Kirsis to senior vice president and European chief legal officer. Rogers and Kirsis start Feb. 3, the transportation and logistics company said in a statement.

Rogers joins XPO from Stericycle Inc., a medical waste management company, where he served as executive vice president and general counsel from 2017 to 2020. He was previously chief legal officer of cloud communications leader Vonage Holdings Corp. for seven years. Earlier, he was a partner at the defunct Bingham McCutchen and at Latham & Watkins. 

Rogers received his juris doctorate degree from Cornell Law School.

Kirsis, who joined XPO in 2016, has served as corporate counsel since 2017. Prior to XPO, he advised businesses on strategic transactions at Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom. 

He received his juris doctor from New York University School of Law.

Dana Henderson has been hired as general counsel for The Northwest Seaport Alliance, a marine cargo operating partnership of the ports of Seattle and Tacoma, Washington, according to the alliance's announcement.

Henderson most recently served as general counsel for Pierce Transit, the second-largest public transit agency in Washington state, since 2013. Earlier in her career, she also worked as a litigator and maritime law practitioner.

Henderson graduated from Tulane University School of Law.