Lead Counsel - Americas

Position Summary:

Reporting to the Associate General Counsel, the Lead Counsel, Americas , is the strategic legal lead for the company’s operations in the US and Canada and will help leaders worldwide proactively manage risk.  Main responsibilities include overseeing legal matters related to franchise transactions and compliance, collaborating cross-functionally to ensure legal integrity, operational alignment and business growth, and risk management.  

Roles and Responsibilities:

• Build relationships with key internal stakeholders 
• Draft, review, and negotiate franchise agreements, disclosure documents, and related contracts
• Advise on federal and state franchise regulations, including FTC compliance
• Support franchise registration and renewal processes across jurisdictions 
• Collaborate with internal departments on advertising, development, and operational compliance.
• Manage franchisee disputes, defaults, and terminations in coordination with litigation counsel
• Provide strategic legal guidance on franchise expansion, transfers, and restructuring
• Support and collaborate with the team of in-house attorneys and the compliance team 
• Advise senior and executive members of both new and existing laws that impact the business 
• Oversee the legal matters of the business, including acting as the business’ legal representative, and leverage expertise of external counsel where appropriate 
• Maintain knowledge of the company’s legal documents and operations 
• Craft and review legal strategy in response to any litigation 
• Assess current practices and developing a roadmap to manage risk more effectively 
• Any additional duties needed to help demonstrate our core values, drive our vision, and fulfill our mission.

Demonstrated Competencies: 

• Critical Thinking - The ability to analyze facts, generate and organize ideas, defend opinions, make comparisons, draw inferences, evaluate arguments and solve problems.
• Communication - The capacity to convey information effectively and efficiently.
• Decision Making - The process of making choices by identifying a decision, gathering information, and assessing alternative resolutions while factoring ethics and organizational values
• Negotiation - The ability to reach agreements between two or more parties with conflicting interests.
• Organizational Skills - The ability to manage time and resources effectively to achieve desired outcomes.
• Interpersonal Skills - The skills used by a person to interact with others properly.
• Risk Management - The identification, evaluation, and prioritization of risks followed by coordinated and economical application of resources to minimize, monitor, and control the probability or impact of unfortunate events.
• Strategic Thinking - The ability to think on a broad scale, involving long term planning and consideration of the implications and consequences of proposed actions.
• Analytical Thinking - The skill of understanding and solving complex problems through analysis.
• Resource Management - The efficient and effective deployment of the organization’s resources when they are needed.
• Leadership - Guiding and motivating others, setting clear expectations, and fostering a positive work environment

Required Qualifications:

• 5-10 years of commercial legal experience with a focus on franchise law
• Minimum of 5 years litigation experience
• Law degree and active Bar membership 
• Experience in some or all the following areas: data privacy, SaaS and AI agreements, transactions, legal compliance training, intellectual property, HR matters, managing external counsel, vendor contract negotiations  
• Familiarity and comfort working within a growing global organization 
• High sense of urgency and attention to detail  
• Strong references, clean background, customer service orientation 
• Professional demeanor with a sense of humility and humor 
• Excellent oral communication skills with a high level of professional confidence 
• Familiar in a fast-paced, fun, and collegial environment 
• Ability to perform some international travel

Preferred Qualifications:

• Business acumen and problem-solving mindset
• Familiarity with franchise disclosure documents (FDDs) and registration protocols
• Experience with international franchising and cross-border legal issues

Physical Demands and Working Conditions 

Sedentary work. Exerting up to 10 pounds of force occasionally and/or negligible amount of force frequently or constantly to lift, carry, push, pull or otherwise move objects. Repetitive motion. Substantial movements (motions) of the wrists, hands, and/or fingers. The worker is required to have close visual acuity to perform an activity such as preparing and analyzing data and figures; transcribing; viewing a computer terminal; extensive reading.

This is a full-time position. This job description is not designed to cover or contain a comprehensive listing of activities, duties or responsibilities that are required of the employee for this job. Duties, responsibilities, and activities may change at any time with or without notice.

An equal opportunity employer.