General Counsel

The Chief Legal Officer, the General Counsel, plays a pivotal role in advising both management and the Board on the legal risk implications of all organizational activities. This position involves providing strategic counsel for decision-making, ensuring compliance with regulatory requirements, and fostering a culture of integrity. The General Counsel integrates legal expertise with a strategic mindset to support the organization in achieving its objectives while safeguarding its interests.

• Provide strategic counsel on utility industry, corporate, and litigation strategies aligned with the organization's mission

• Collaborate with executive leadership, board members, and departments to mitigate legal risks, ensuring organizational goals are met

• Support board of directors, management, and business lines with expert and strategic counsel

• Stay current on federal, state, and local laws affecting electric cooperatives, guiding the organization's compliance efforts

• Develop short- and long-term strategies impacting the organization.

• Collaborate with members of the executive management team to align departmental strategy or direction with the overall goals of the organization

• Anticipate and identify legal issues, counsel officers and management to develop business strategies and solutions

• Represent the organization in legal proceedings, ensuring adherence to quality standards and deadlines

• Ensures organizational operations and practices are in compliance with applicable laws and regulations at all times, and recommends changes to organizational policies or procedures with the goal of minimizing risk

• Implement corporate goals and procedures while supervising legal and corporate functions

• Designs, establishes, and maintains an organizational structure and staffing to effectively accomplish the organization's goals and objectives

• Supervise legal and other corporate functions to ensure adherence to quality standards, deadlines and proper procedures, correcting errors, or problems

• Draft, review, and negotiate contracts, documents, legal inquires, providing guidance on potential risks

• Ensures management understands the potential legal risks associated with current internal policies and procedures

• Attend and support all board of directors meetings, including preparing and reviewing reports and supporting materials

• Select and manage outside legal counsel to mitigate legal and reputation risks

• Mitigate legal and reputation risk to the business, including by evaluating and overseeing all corporate liability

• Provide guidance to employees in handling complex problems and resolving escalated complaints

• Oversee and interpret work procedures, company policies, and operating procedures.

• Manage the General Counsel Department budgets, establishing work priorities.

• Recommend promotions, transfers, hires, and disciplinary actions

• Prepare and present status of Legal Department programs to Board of Directors committees and the Board of Directors

• Maintain the security of confidential information

• Stay abreast of advances in technology

• Demonstrate regular and prompt attendance

• Performs other related duties as necessary or assigned.

A full range of supervisory activities, training, evaluation, counseling and recommendation for termination. This includes, but is not limited to, effectively communicating organizational policies and other information to subordinates, ensuring that employees have a clear understanding of their responsibilities.

• Knowledge of business and management principles including strategic planning, resource allocation, leadership techniques and budgeting

• Knowledge of legislative and administrative regulatory developments.

• Knowledge of principles and processes for providing customer service

• Skilled in oral and written communication.

• Skilled in strategic thinking.

• Skilled in monitoring and managing performance

• Skilled in establishing and communicating performance expectations and metrics

• Skilled in prioritizing and managing changing priorities

• Skilled in anticipating, identifying, analyzing, and resolving conflict and problems

• Ability to build collaborative relationships.

• Ability to develop and mentor others.

• Ability to drive strategic direction.

• Ability to listen and understand information verbally and in writing

• Juris Doctor

• License to practice law within the State of Texas

• Fifteen or more years of experience, including progressive experience in senior level management position(s)

• Seven or more years of experience working in a regulated market or industry, preferably including the Texas Regulatory market at the Public Utility Commission of Texas, ERCOT and Texas Reliability Entity

• Demonstrated experience in NERC and FERC transmission operations requirements and standards, including Critical Infrastructure Protection standards for the bulk electric system preferred

• Demonstrated experience in managing legal and corporate functions for a regulated utility, public entity, or private business

• Valid Texas driver's license

• The employee may be required to stand; reach with hands and arms, stoop and kneel

• The employee may be required to sit or stand for long periods of time

• The employee may be required to lift, carry, push, pull or move up to 25 pounds

• The employee may be required to travel

• Exempt employees receive a fixed bi-weekly salary to compensate them for all hours worked during each pay period

• This position may be required to work more than 40 hours per week

This description is intended to indicate the kinds of tasks and levels of work difficulty required of the position given this title and shall not be construed as declaring what the specific duties and responsibilities of any particular position shall be. It is not intended to limit or in any way modify the right of management to assign, direct and control the work of employees under supervision. The listing of essential duties and responsibilities shall not be held to exclude other duties that may be assigned based on the needs of the Cooperative.