CSX Joins Rest of Big Four Railroad Companies in Installing New Generation of Legal Leadership
CEO Joe Hinrichs said the company's hiring of an 18-year veteran of its legal department as legal chief "highlights our confidence in the exceptional depth of talent within our organization. We are fortunate to have an outstanding team of railroaders poised to harness our current momentum and propel us toward even greater success."
November 13, 2024 at 02:15 PM
3 minute read
In House MovesCSX Chief Legal Officer Nathan Goldman, the longest-serving legal chief among the Big Four U.S. railroads, is stepping aside, in what the company casts as an orderly transition made possible by the company's deep well of internal legal talent.
Goldman, who is retiring effective Jan. 2, 2025, has been with Jacksonville, Florida-based CSX for 21 years and has been legal chief since November 2017, a steadying force during a span when he reported to three different CEOs. Goldman will will be succeeded by 18-year CSX veteran Michael Burns, who's been general counsel since 2017.
The company has enjoyed far more stability in the legal department than its rival Nortfolk Southern, which in September fired Chief Legal Officer Nabanita Nag and CEO Alan Shaw, saying they were having an inappropriate romantic relationship that violated the company's policies and code of ethics. Succeeding Nag is Jason Morris, who over the course of 14 years worked himself up from the bottom to the top of the legal department. He is the Atlanta-based company's seventh legal chief in seven years.
CSX is the nation's third-largest railroad company, and Norfolk Southern is fourth-largest. The largest, BNSF, promoted Jill Mulligan, who's been with the Fort Worth, Texas-based company for 17 years, to CLO two years ago. The second-largest, Union Pacific, promoted Craig Richardson, who's been with the Omaha, Nebraska-based company since 2016, to CLO in December 2020.
The transitions have put a new generation of legal leaders at the helm of the nation's railroad companies. At Norfolk Southern, for instance, the revolving door of legal chiefs began in 2016 with the retirement of James Hixon at 63. Nag is in her late 40s, while current legal chief Shaw is in his mid-40s. At CSX, Michael Burns is in his late 40s, while Nathan Goldman is in his late 60s.
"Nathan’s contributions to CSX have been highly valued, and his expertise and dedication have been instrumental to our organization. His leadership will leave a lasting legacy, having developed the best group of legal, regulatory and compliance professionals in the industry," CEO Joe Hinrichs said in a statement.
As Goldman's succeessor, Burns will oversee all of CSX's legal and regulatory affairs, the corporate secretary’s office, risk management, police and infrastructure protection, environmental and hazmat, and audit functions.
Hinrichs said that, over the course of his CSX career, Burns gained experience in a vast array of areas, from employment law and hazardous waste containment to risk management as he took on he took on positions of increasing respsonsibility. Burns will bring "invaluable insight and stability" to his new role.
He added: “This leadership transition underscores CSX’s commitment to growth and highlights our confidence in the exceptional depth of talent within our organization. We are fortunate to have an outstanding team of railroaders poised to harness our current momentum and propel us toward even greater success."
The company has not yet disclosed Burns' compensation package. In 2023, Goldman was CSX's sixth-highest paid executive, earning $3.8 million. That included a stock and option grants totaling $2.3 million, salary of $570,000 and cash incentive compensation of $589,950.
NOT FOR REPRINT
© 2024 ALM Global, LLC, All Rights Reserved. Request academic re-use from www.copyright.com. All other uses, submit a request to [email protected]. For more information visit Asset & Logo Licensing.
You Might Like
View AllAs Uncertainty Hovers Over PGA Merger, LIV Golf Hires Entertainment Industry Veteran as Legal Chief
Lowenstein Hires Ex-FTX US General Counsel Ryne Miller to Lead Its Commodities, Derivatives Practice
3 minute readSustainable Packaging Company Packsize Finds New Legal Chief a Perfect Fit
2 minute readLockmaker's Veteran GC Takes Old Job Back After Successor Lasts Just 3 Months
2 minute readTrending Stories
- 1Cravath Elevates 7 to Partnership, Up From Last Year
- 2Kline & Specter Hit With Lawsuit From Another Former Associate
- 3USPTO Director Kathi Vidal Announces Resignation Ahead of Administration Change
- 4As Gen AI Acceptance Grows, Lawyers Race to Mitigate Risks
- 5Decisions Have 'Real-Life Consequences': Juvenile Court Judge Considered for Appellate Bench
Who Got The Work
Michael G. Bongiorno, Andrew Scott Dulberg and Elizabeth E. Driscoll from Wilmer Cutler Pickering Hale and Dorr have stepped in to represent Symbotic Inc., an A.I.-enabled technology platform that focuses on increasing supply chain efficiency, and other defendants in a pending shareholder derivative lawsuit. The case, filed Oct. 2 in Massachusetts District Court by the Brown Law Firm on behalf of Stephen Austen, accuses certain officers and directors of misleading investors in regard to Symbotic's potential for margin growth by failing to disclose that the company was not equipped to timely deploy its systems or manage expenses through project delays. The case, assigned to U.S. District Judge Nathaniel M. Gorton, is 1:24-cv-12522, Austen v. Cohen et al.
Who Got The Work
Edmund Polubinski and Marie Killmond of Davis Polk & Wardwell have entered appearances for data platform software development company MongoDB and other defendants in a pending shareholder derivative lawsuit. The action, filed Oct. 7 in New York Southern District Court by the Brown Law Firm, accuses the company's directors and/or officers of falsely expressing confidence in the company’s restructuring of its sales incentive plan and downplaying the severity of decreases in its upfront commitments. The case is 1:24-cv-07594, Roy v. Ittycheria et al.
Who Got The Work
Amy O. Bruchs and Kurt F. Ellison of Michael Best & Friedrich have entered appearances for Epic Systems Corp. in a pending employment discrimination lawsuit. The suit was filed Sept. 7 in Wisconsin Western District Court by Levine Eisberner LLC and Siri & Glimstad on behalf of a project manager who claims that he was wrongfully terminated after applying for a religious exemption to the defendant's COVID-19 vaccine mandate. The case, assigned to U.S. Magistrate Judge Anita Marie Boor, is 3:24-cv-00630, Secker, Nathan v. Epic Systems Corporation.
Who Got The Work
David X. Sullivan, Thomas J. Finn and Gregory A. Hall from McCarter & English have entered appearances for Sunrun Installation Services in a pending civil rights lawsuit. The complaint was filed Sept. 4 in Connecticut District Court by attorney Robert M. Berke on behalf of former employee George Edward Steins, who was arrested and charged with employing an unregistered home improvement salesperson. The complaint alleges that had Sunrun informed the Connecticut Department of Consumer Protection that the plaintiff's employment had ended in 2017 and that he no longer held Sunrun's home improvement contractor license, he would not have been hit with charges, which were dismissed in May 2024. The case, assigned to U.S. District Judge Jeffrey A. Meyer, is 3:24-cv-01423, Steins v. Sunrun, Inc. et al.
Who Got The Work
Greenberg Traurig shareholder Joshua L. Raskin has entered an appearance for boohoo.com UK Ltd. in a pending patent infringement lawsuit. The suit, filed Sept. 3 in Texas Eastern District Court by Rozier Hardt McDonough on behalf of Alto Dynamics, asserts five patents related to an online shopping platform. The case, assigned to U.S. District Judge Rodney Gilstrap, is 2:24-cv-00719, Alto Dynamics, LLC v. boohoo.com UK Limited.
Featured Firms
Law Offices of Gary Martin Hays & Associates, P.C.
(470) 294-1674
Law Offices of Mark E. Salomone
(857) 444-6468
Smith & Hassler
(713) 739-1250