Chief Legal Officer

Warren Recruiting; Tyler (TX); On-site; USD 240,000 - 420,000; Full time

Job summary

Warren Recruiting seeks a Chief Legal Officer to serve as a trusted advisor to executive leadership and influence the future of a healthcare/higher education complex organization.

Reporting directly to the President, this role will build the legal function, develop talent, establish robust processes, and guide critical legal, business, and strategic challenges with senior leadership.

Qualifications

• J.D. from an accredited law school.
• 10+ years of broad-based legal experience, incl. healthcare.
• Leadership experience building legal teams.
• Higher education or academic medical center exposure a plus.
• Strong business judgment balancing legal risk with priorities.
• Exceptional communication with executive leadership.
• Ability to identify opportunities for improvement and drive change.
• Integrity, discretion, adaptability, sound judgment.

Responsibilities

• Build and lead a strategic, high-performing legal team.
• Partner with the President and senior leadership on institutional decisions.
• Navigate healthcare and higher education regulatory frameworks.
• Oversee business transactions, regulatory compliance, litigation, and real estate.
• Help shape strategy, risk management, and organizational priorities.

Skills

Strategic thinking

Leadership

Regulatory compliance

Healthcare law

Higher education law

Executive communication

Risk management

Team development

Business acumen

Stakeholder management

Education

Juris Doctor (J.D.) from an accredited law school

Job description

A Unique Opportunity to Build, Lead, and Make an Impact

The Opportunity

Some leadership opportunities are about maintaining what already exists. This one is about building what comes next.

Warren Recruiting is seeking an accomplished, forward-thinking Chief Legal Officer to serve as a trusted advisor to executive leadership and play a pivotal role in shaping the future of a complex organization at the intersection of healthcare and higher education.

Reporting directly to the President, this individual will have the opportunity to build and strengthen the legal function, develop a high-performing team, establish effective processes, and help shape how the organization navigates its most important legal, business, and strategic challenges.

This is an opportunity for a legal leader who thinks beyond the traditional boundaries of the legal department—someone who combines sophisticated legal judgment with business acumen, a solutions-oriented mindset, and a genuine desire to build something meaningful.

The successful candidate will have the latitude to bring fresh ideas, develop talent, strengthen institutional partnerships, and create a legal function that is not simply responsive to the organization’s needs, but actively helps advance its mission.

What Makes This Opportunity Special?

• Build Something Meaningful: Help shape the legal function, establish priorities, improve processes, and create the foundation for long-term success.
• Influence at the Highest Level: Serve as a strategic partner to the President and senior leadership, with a voice in important institutional decisions and initiatives.
• Lead and Develop a Team: Build a collaborative, service-oriented legal team, mentor talented professionals, and create an environment where people can thrive.
• Solve Complex, High-Impact Challenges: Work across healthcare, higher education, business transactions, regulatory compliance, litigation, real estate, and institutional strategy.
• Think Strategically, Not Just Legally: Help leadership evaluate opportunities, navigate risk, and find practical solutions that support the organization’s broader objectives.
• Leave Your Mark: Create lasting value by strengthening the legal function, building trusted relationships, and helping position the organization for future growth and success.

Who Will Thrive in This Role?

We are looking for more than an experienced healthcare attorney. We are looking for a builder, a strategic thinker, and a leader who sees the opportunity to make a difference.

The ideal candidate will bring:

• A Juris Doctor (J.D.) from an accredited law school.
• At least 10 years of broad-based legal experience, including significant healthcare legal experience.
• A record of leadership, team development, and the ability to build effective, collaborative legal teams.
• Experience in higher education, government, an academic medical center, or another complex institutional environment a plus.
• Strong business judgment and the ability to balance legal risk with organizational priorities.
• Exceptional communication skills and the ability to build trust with executive leadership and stakeholders across the organization.
• The initiative to identify opportunities for improvement, challenge conventional approaches when appropriate, and turn ideas into results.
• The integrity, discretion, adaptability, and sound judgment required to navigate sensitive and consequential matters.

Candidates must be admitted to and in good standing with the State Bar of Texas or another U.S. jurisdiction, with the ability to obtain Texas licensure following appointment if not currently licensed in Texas.

Knowledge of healthcare and higher education regulatory frameworks—including HIPAA, FERPA, the Texas Public Information Act, NCAA regulations, ACGME standards, SACSCOC requirements, the Stark Law, and the Anti-Kickback Statute is important to success in this role.

The Bottom Line

This is an opportunity to do more than lead a legal department. It is an opportunity to help build one that makes a meaningful difference.

For the right person, this role offers the chance to shape strategy, develop people, strengthen an organization, and build a legal function designed for the future.

If you are an experienced legal leader who is energized by the opportunity to create, improve, lead, and leave a lasting mark, we would welcome the opportunity to connect.