Legal Counsel

As a member of a dynamic legal team, the attorney in this position will serve as a business partner and legal adviser, reporting to the Director of Brand Threat Litigation and Employment. Legal Counsel primarily partners with Pizza Hut U.S., Pizza Hut Global, and Pizza Hut Field and Training Human Resources Business Partners and the Franchise Administration team on a variety of initiatives. Legal Counsel also supports critical litigation matters, monitors compliance and leads other matters associated with an established restaurant brand in an evolving business environment. The successful candidate will have a  growth mindset and a passion for providing legal support by collaboratively working across business units while consistently modeling Pizza Hut of America, LLC’s cultural values. Legal Counsel will also perform other essential Law Department functions and responsibilities as assigned. Over time, there could be opportunities to work in additional areas within the legal department and/or business.

Key Responsibilities: 

Litigation: Assist with litigation matters, including management of and coordination with outside and insurance counsel with strategic defense of litigation matters nationwide. Caseload will primarily focus on consumer protection, employment, franchise, and personal injury litigation, but could also be as varied as real estate, anti-trust, patent infringement and data privacy. Litigation may be brought as single plaintiff or class and/or collective actions. Legal Counsel additionally monitors Brand-threat and franchisee litigation, recommending involvement when necessary to protect the Pizza Hut Brand and System. 

Responsibilities also include: 

• Coordinating with Litigation Paralegal to collect and supply responsive, non-objectionable information and documentation to outside counsel in support of discovery responses.
• Reviewing and revising draft pleadings, discovery responses, and motions prepared by outside counsel; 
• Managing e-discovery.
• Drafting state/federal agency position statements, responses to AG and BBB complaints, and other formal requests for information.
• Assisting Director to forecast and manage Pizza Hut legal budget per period and annually.
• Coordinating as appropriate and necessary with YUM! Risk/Insurance Team, Asset Protection, sister brands, and cross functional partners.
• Overseeing Litigation Paralegal’s response to subpoenas. 

Employment, Crisis Management and Compliance: Provide key legal support to cross functional partners, including consistent advice, counsel and training on a variety of legal touchpoints. Develop, review and revise policies and processes, including compliance training, new hire applications and onboarding (including background checks) processes, performance management, forms and correspondence, and severance agreements. Assist Director in managing, mitigating, and responding to crisis. Monitor compliance, including reviewing evolving legal trends and developments, advising on any actions required as a result, and implementing aligned solutions.  

• Partnering with Field HR Business Partners on a variety of advice and counsel and compliance matters related to Company-owned restaurants.
• Support Director in managing labor relations procedure, training, and action plan for Corporate-owned restaurants.
• Drafting and reviewing training materials and other Company documents for compliance with local, state, and federal laws.
• Facilitating Company-wide education on employment-related matters.
• Partnering with Pizza Hut US HR Business Partners to review various internal and franchisee-facing documentation for compliance.
• Partnering with and advising and counseling Pizza Hut U.S. and Global HR Business Partners regarding internal investigations and complex employee-related issues. 

Brand Enforcement: Assist franchise administration team with brand standards enforcement and other compliance issues. 

• Coordinating enforcement efforts aimed at remediating franchise agreement and/or brand standards violations.
• Leading annual updates to Pizza Hut brand standards designed to drive revenue growth, ensure franchise network uniformity, and improve customer experience, including drafting of standards, coordination with internal stakeholders and rollout to franchise system.
• Providing legal guidance to cross-functional team of Brand leaders to create and implement solutions to systemwide or franchisee/licensee-specific enforcement issues.
• Guiding business through any required store closures, including assistance with de-identification issues. 

Required Qualifications

• You will be required to attend the Plano, TX office 3 days a week on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday.
• Education: Juris Doctor Degree from an ABA accredited law school.
• Licensed to practice law in Texas with at least five years of general litigation and employment experience in a law firm or in-house legal department.
• Strong grasp of federal civil procedure.
• Strong background in client counseling or other client-facing engagements.
• Solution-oriented and collaborative mindset, including ability to work successfully in a team environment.
• Excellent communication skills, including the ability to listen and effectively explain complex legal issues to non-lawyers in one-on-one and large presentation formats.
• Ability to self-start and work proactively to advance business objectives to completion.
• High personal and professional integrity, including the ability to establish personal credibility within the department and Company.
• A team player and relationship builder, with the ability to adapt and respond in a fast paced and rapidly changing environment.

Salary Range: $122,100 to $143,600 annually + bonus eligibility. This is the expected salary range for this position. Ultimately, in determining pay, we'll consider the successful candidate’s location, experience, and other job-related factors.

Who We Are

Founded in 1958, Pizza Hut - a subsidiary of Yum! Brands, Inc. - now operates more than 18,000 restaurants in more than 100 countries. Pizza Hut is leading the way in providing customers with great experiences, innovating with technology and new products, as well as delivering exceptional service.

Our People & Culture

We're looking for people who LOVE pizza and thrive in a fun, past paced, and customer-centric environment. At our corporate campuses, Pizza Hut has created the perfect place for you to grow your career. Every day, you’ll work to support our franchisees and teams across the U.S., continuously challenging yourself to feed more possibilities. In return, we’ll provide professional development and career growth opportunities so that you can become your best and achieve your goals. And we’ll sweeten the deal by immersing you in our world-class recognition culture and providing a robust array of benefits, some highlights include:

• Hybrid work schedule and year-round half day Fridays 
• Onsite childcare through Bright Horizons 
• Onsite dining center
• Onsite gym with fitness classes and personal trainer sessions 
• 4 weeks of vacation per year plus holidays and time off for volunteering 
• Tuition reimbursement and education benefits 
• Generous parental leave for all new parents and adoption assistance program 
• 401(k) with a 6% matching contribution from Yum! 
• Comprehensive medical & dental including prescription drug benefits and 100% preventive care

Giving Back

As a global company, Pizza Hut aims to make the world better by acting responsibly with respect to food, planet and people. Whether it’s donating food through the Harvest Program or supporting literacy with the Pizza Hut BOOK IT! Program – the company, our franchisees and our team members are committed to improving the communities we serve.

Pizza Hut is an equal opportunity workplace and committed to fostering an inclusive, diverse culture. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex (including pregnancy, sexual orientation, or gender identity), national origin, age, disability and genetic information (including family medical history).