Associate General Counsel

Job Description

Provides general counsel and advice regarding legal aspects of the activities, contracts, policies, procedures, plans and objectives of the organization. Consults with administrative and other personnel of the organization regarding their legal obligations and duties; as well as with outside legal counsel, and other consultants, on legal matters affecting System affiliated entities and personnel.

Job Responsibility

• Assists, advises, and makes recommendations on the full scope of legal matters affecting the organization and its affiliated hospitals and other corporations; understands and/or researches issues in the legal and business context in which they arise, seeks out information and colleagues to assist such understanding and responds to issues promptly, clearly, and thoughtfully and objectively; understands and is aware of the variety of laws, regulations and case law which impact the operations of the organization and its affiliated hospitals and corporations and keeps current with their evolution; strives to maintain an awareness of the activities of the organization, its constituent hospital sand other corporations, in order to provide more comprehensive up-to-date legal advice.
• Acts as a liaison to ensure that the outside professionals fully understand the business context of the issues being addressed and organization personnel understand the effect of the outside counsel’s legal analysis on their operations; assists in the development and revisions of various policies and procedures, including administrative policies and procedures, procedures relating to health information management and those particularly relevant to the System’s research efforts.
• Coordinates activities with other members of the Legal Affairs Department, fostering a team working environment; monitors activities and billings of outside legal counsel; develops policies and mechanisms to assist in the understanding and reduction of outside legal expenses.
• Advises and instructs administrative and other personnel on the review and analysis of agreements for business and legal issues; identifies opportunities for the preparation of model agreements and forms, and prepares such agreements and forms for use by non-legal personnel of the organization in order to expedite the conduct of business.
• Prepares and revises corporate documents, including certificates of incorporation, certificates of amendment and bylaws; monitors corporate and medical staff activities for legal implications necessitating board, committee and/or other action, coordinating such action.
• Provides assistance with legal matters relating to the Medical Board and Medical Staff of and the patient care provided by the various hospitals affiliated with the organization; as counsel to the hospitals and medical boards, attends meetings including; Joint Conference/Professional Affairs Committees, the medical boards (as appropriate) and medical staff bylaws; monitors medical board, committee and hospital activities for legal issues, provides advice on appropriate action for their resolution.
• Prioritizes legal issues in the patient care setting so that they are handled promptly in support of the health system's mission for quality patient care; assists social work and discharge planning personnel in anticipating and proactively dealing with complex continuum of care and discharge planning matters, upon request; identifies potential litigation exposures and works with Risk Management, Quality Management, colleagues within Legal Affairs Department and other administrative staff, as well as outside professionals (when appropriate) to minimize risks arising from such exposures.
• Assists with resolving issues related to the credentialing of various staff members; prepares documents for submission to court in connection with patient care, guardianship and mental hygiene matters; represents System Facilities in court proceedings; assists in administering legal activities in all areas affecting the health system's and its constituent hospitals and other corporation’s arrangements with institutional lenders.
• Assists, at the request of the Department of Finance, in issues relating to institutional financing after they have closed; provides assistance in legal matters relating to labor, employment and human rights issues affecting the organization, its constituent hospitals and other corporations; assists in providing advice concerning the effect on the organization, its constituent hospitals and corporations of various labor, employment and human rights laws, as well as obligations imposed by any collective bar