Assistant General Counsel, Litigation Greater Fort Worth, TX Area

DEPARTMENT: Legal

REPORTS TO: Chief Legal Officer

LOCATION: Dallas-Fort Worth / Hybrid

At BrightPath, we believe every child deserves the best start in life. That starts with exceptional people. As one of North America's fastest-growing providers of early childhood education, we're expanding through new center openings and strategic acquisitions while investing in the people who make our mission possible.

Position Summary

The Company is seeking an experienced and pragmatic Assistant General Counsel, Litigation to serve as a key member of the Legal Department. In partnership with the Chief Legal Officer, the AGC will lead the Company’s litigation, claims management, and dispute resolution strategy.

The AGC will provide strategic legal counsel on litigation, child safety and incident-related matters, disputes, investigations, insurance claims, and other high-risk matters affecting a multi-site childcare organization. This role partners closely with Operations, Human Resources, Licensing, Compliance, Risk Management, and executive leadership to identify and mitigate risk while supporting the Company's mission and growth objectives.

The successful candidate will possess substantial litigation experience, strong business judgment, and the ability to translate complex legal issues into practical guidance for organizational leaders. This individual will oversee outside counsel, manage significant disputes and investigations, support enterprise risk management initiatives, and help develop policies, training, and processes designed to reduce legal exposure and enhance operational effectiveness.

Key Responsibilities

Litigation & Dispute Resolution

• Partner with the CLO to lead the Company's litigation portfolio, including oversight of claims, lawsuits, arbitrations, mediations, administrative proceedings, and pre-litigation disputes.
• Develop and execute litigation strategies that appropriately balance legal, financial, operational, and reputational considerations.
• Manage outside counsel, including strategy, budgets, staffing, performance, and case outcomes.
• Evaluate litigation and settlement opportunities and advise executive leadership regarding risk and exposure.
• Oversee discovery, document preservation, witness preparation, expert engagement, mediation, trial preparation, and appeals.
• Prepare executive-level reporting regarding significant litigation, emerging risks, and legal spend.

Child Safety, Incident Response & Regulatory Matters

• Provide legal guidance regarding child safety incidents, allegations involving children, serious injuries, abuse allegations, licensing issues, and other sensitive matters.
• Advise operational leaders regarding incident investigations, documentation, reporting obligations, and risk mitigation strategies.
• Support responses to licensing agencies, regulatory inquiries, investigations, and enforcement actions.
• Assist in developing policies, training, and best practices designed to promote child safety and regulatory compliance.

Claims, Insurance & Risk Management

• Partner with internal stakeholders, insurance brokers, carriers, and third-party administrators regarding insured and uninsured claims.
• Oversee matters involving general liability, premises liability, professional liability and other exposures.
• Conduct legal risk assessments and recommend strategies to reduce organizational risk.
• Monitor litigation trends and claim data to identify operational improvement opportunities.

Strategic Legal Counseling

• Serve as a trusted advisor to executive leadership and business stakeholders.
• Translate legal issues into practical business recommendations and risk-based solutions.
• Provide training to operations, leadership, HR, and other stakeholders on litigation avoidance, investigations, documentation practices, and legal compliance.
• Support crisis management efforts and significant operational incidents.
• Develop and maintain legal policies, procedures, and governance frameworks relating to litigation and investigations.

Legal Operations & Process Improvement

• Develop scalable processes for litigation management, claims oversight, investigations, spend, reporting, and outside counsel management.
• Support implementation and optimization of legal technology, matter management systems, e-discovery tools, and reporting platforms.
• Partner with CLO on strategic initiatives, acquisitions, integrations, and enterprise risk management efforts.

Qualifications

Required

• Juris Doctor (JD) from an accredited law school.
• Active license and good standing in at least one U.S. jurisdiction.
• Minimum 10 years of legal experience, with significant litigation responsibility.
• Demonstrated experience managing complex litigation and directing outside counsel.
• Strong experience handling tort, premises liability, personal injury, employment, regulatory, and commercial disputes.
• Significant internal investigation experience.
• Exceptional legal analysis, strategic thinking, negotiation, and communication skills.
• Ability to advise executives and operational leaders in a fast-paced and highly regulated environment.
• Experience working closely with insurance carriers, brokers, third-party administrators, and risk management professionals.
• Trial, deposition, mediation, and witness preparation experience.
• Experience managing nationwide litigation portfolios.

Preferred

• Minimum 3 years of in-house experience.
• Experience in childcare, early education, education, youth services, healthcare, senior living, or other multi-site service organizations.
• Experience handling child safety incidents, abuse allegations, licensing matters, catastrophic injuries, or other highly sensitive investigations.
• Experience supporting private equity-backed, acquisitive, or high-growth organizations.

Why Join BrightPath?

At BrightPath, you'll have the opportunity to make a meaningful impact while helping build the workforce that supports thousands of children and families every day.

We offer:

• Medical, dental, and vision insurance
• 401(k) with company match
• Paid time off and company holidays
• Professional development and leadership growth opportunities
• Collaborative, supportive leadership team
• Opportunity to influence recruiting strategy across a growing North American organization