Pathfinder International has hired a new chief legal officer, eight months after two longtime board members resigned, claiming they had lost faith in the leadership of the Watertown, Massachusetts-based reproductive health nonprofit.

Harold Glasser, who spent more than 20 years as in-house counsel at Merck & Co. before branching out to other health care organizations over the last decade, will join Pathfinder on May 1.

"Hal Glasser's professional experience in non-profit, health policy, corporate, and international environments is ideal for Pathfinder," CEO Lois Quam said in a statement. "As we move toward greater local control of our operations and programs, we need to make sure our offices around the world have the strongest skill sets possible when it comes to compliance, monitoring, and legal standards. Hal will help us build that capacity."