Senior Director / Vice President, Deputy General Counsel - National Office (Remote)

Overview: The Senior Director / Vice President, Deputy General Counsel is a senior legal advisor responsible for managing Y-USA’s litigation portfolio, providing enterprise legal guidance, negotiating complex contracts, and overseeing the effective engagement of outside counsel. This role exists to protect Y-USA from legal, financial, fiduciary, and reputational risk by applying experienced legal judgment early, consistently, and at scale across a complex nonprofit and federated environment. The role extends the capacity of the CLO by independently managing sophisticated legal matters while escalating issues that carry enterprise-level or Board-level risk. This position emphasizes early risk identification, litigation strategy, and enterprise-level legal judgment to enable proactive, efficient legal decision-making. YMCA of the USA (Y-USA) embraces a remote-first working environment which means most employees work remotely from a home office within the continental United States. Responsibilities: Litigation Management and Risk Mitigation • Manage Y-USA’s litigation docket, including employment, tort, contract, and other civil matters. • Serve as the primary internal lead on litigation strategy, posture, motion practice, discovery coordination, and resolution. • Apply disciplined judgment regarding jurisdictional challenges, early dismissal strategies, settlement posture, and escalation thresholds. • Coordinate insurance alignment, notice obligations, and claims strategy in partnership with Finance and Risk. • Prepare concise, executive-ready briefings on litigation exposure, trends, and outcomes, focused on risk and impact rather than procedural detail. • Conduct portfolio-level analysis of litigation trends to identify systemic risk drivers and recommend preventive or corrective action. Enterprise Risk Triage and Early Intervention • Serve as a front-line legal risk assessor, providing early triage of emerging disputes, workforce issues, and operational risks before they escalate into litigation, regulatory scrutiny, or reputational harm. • Advise on when matters should be resolved early, escalated, or formally litigated, consistent with Y-USA’s risk tolerance and enterprise priorities. Legal Advisory and Enterprise Counsel • Provide legal guidance to executive leadership and business teams on operational, employment, governance, and risk-related matters. • Advise on sensitive personnel issues, internal disputes, and escalated workplace matters in coordination with HR and Compliance. • Stay abreast of nonprofit legal developments affecting governance, tax-exempt status, employment, fiduciary duties, and regulatory exposure. • Identify emerging legal risks and escalate appropriately to the CLO. Contract Negotiation and Legal Transactions • Lead negotiation of complex, high-risk contracts, including: • Strategic vendor and services agreements • Employment and executive separation agreements • Technology, data, and SaaS agreements • Sponsorship, partnership, and licensing arrangements • Design and apply contract risk standards related to indemnification, limitation of liability, insurance, termination rights, and dispute resolution. • Establish escalation thresholds for non-standard or high-risk contract terms and advise when deviations require executive or Board awareness. • Support and guide contract intake and review processes without owning operational workflows. Technology, Data, and Emerging Legal Risk Oversight • Provide legal oversight and risk analysis related to emerging technologies, including AI-enabled tools, automated decision-making systems, and data-driven platforms. • Assess contractual, liability, governance, and regulatory implications of technology adoption in coordination with Privacy, Compliance, IT, and business stakeholders. • Monitor legal and regulatory developments affecting technology use and advise leadership on associated legal exposure. Outside Counsel Oversight and Spend Discipline • Select, manage, and oversee outside counsel across litigation and specialized legal matters. • Control legal spend through disciplined scope management, budgeting, and performance oversight. • Promote effective use of alternative fee arrangements where appropriate. • Ensure outside counsel advice is practical, aligned with Y-USA’s risk posture, and defensible in regulatory or litigation contexts. Executive and Board Legal Readiness • Support the CLO in preparing executive leadership and the Board for high-impact legal issues. • Contribute to scenario planning for potential legal, regulatory, or litigation events with enterprise-wide implications. Internal Leadership and Collaboration • Partner closely with the CLO, CCPO, HR, Finance, IT, and operational leaders. • Mentor legal staff and contribute to the development of internal legal capabilities. • Support continuous improvement of OGC processes, playbooks, and institutional knowledge. Qualifications: A successful candidate will possess a majority of the following professional and personal attributes and competencies: • Juris Doctor or equivalent legal training. • Active license to practice law in at least one U.S. jurisdiction. • Minimum of 12 years of experience required • Deep functional expertise and functional thought leadership • Oversees a department or function • Highly strategic and operational decision-making authority • Mid- to long-term strategic planning for department or functional area • Internal and external communications, executive level, high influence on department vision and strategy • Management-level autonomy; no daily supervision from manager; goal achievement is typically accomplished through performance of direct and/or indirect reports • Strong background in employment law, contracts, and nonprofit or regulated environments. • Demonstrated ability to exercise independent judgment on high-risk, sensitive matters. • Executive presence and comfort advising senior leadership Benefits: We offer a full benefits package including medical, dental, vision, defined benefit plan (retirement savings), defined contribution plan (403(b) plan, life and disability insurances, technology stipend, and generous paid time off, all in a work from anywhere within the continental U.S. workplace. Posted Salary Range: USD $177,000.00 - USD $298,000.00 /Yr. Apply tot his job Apply To this Job