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Overview: As a member of the senior leadership team and reporting to the President, the Vice President - General Counsel oversees and directs the day-to-day legal affairs of Juilliard, the leading conservatory for music, dance, and drama, including its college, preparatory, and extension divisions. The General Counsel provides ongoing hands-on legal advice and counsel to the President, Board of Trustees, and senior leadership team on a wide array of institutional matters relating to the School’s artistic, academic, operational, administrative, and governance activities as well as strategic initiatives, including matters related to students, employees, donors, suppliers, and business partners. This individual will also partner with the CFO, the Audit Committee, and other senior officers to develop a proactive, robust system of risk management and compliance, and then assist those responsible for implementing and/or maintaining it. This individual will manage one or more Associate General Counsels as well as multiple outside counsel relationships. The School’s Title IX office reports to this role. The role is supported by an Executive Legal Admin.

The School: Founded in 1905, Juilliard is a world leader in performing arts education. The School's mission is to provide the highest caliber of artistic education for gifted musicians, dancers, and actors from around the world so that they may achieve their fullest potential as artists, leaders, and global citizens. Located at Lincoln Center in New York City, Juilliard offers undergraduate and graduate degrees in music, dance, and drama. Currently more than 800 artists from 43 states and 44 countries and regions are enrolled at Juilliard, where they appear in over 700 annual performances in the School's five theaters. Beyond its New York campus, Juilliard is defining new directions in global performing arts education for a range of learners and enthusiasts through a global K-12 educational curricula and graduate studies at The Tianjin Juilliard School in China.

Experience: 15+ years’ experience as a practicing attorney, with specialized experience in the areas of higher education law / Title IX, contracts, negotiations, litigation, non-profit, intellectual property, licensing agreements, and human resources related matters. 5+ years’ experience as part of a senior leadership team. Appreciation of the performing arts is a significant plus.

Compensation: $375,000-$425,000 annually.

Location: New York, NY. This is not a remote role.

Relocation: Yes. This is a national search.

Juilliard Overview

Founded in 1905, Juilliard is a world leader in performing arts education. The School's mission is to provide the highest caliber of artistic education for gifted musicians, dancers, and actors from around the world so that they may achieve their fullest potential as artists, leaders, and global citizens.

Located at Lincoln Center in New York City, Juilliard offers undergraduate and graduate degrees in music, dance, and drama. Currently more than 800 artists from 43 states and 44 countries and regions are enrolled at Juilliard, where they appear in over 700 annual performances in the School's five theaters; at Lincoln Center's Alice Tully and David Geffen Halls and at Carnegie Hall; as well as other venues around New York City, the country, and the world. Beyond its New York campus, Juilliard is defining new directions in global performing arts education for a range of learners and enthusiasts through a global K-12 educational curricula and graduate studies at The Tianjin Juilliard School in China.

Juilliard has always exemplified artistic and intellectual excellence. Throughout its history, Juilliard has remained unswervingly attendant to faculty and student recruitment, and insistent on both artistic creativity and excellence. The School offers students the opportunity to perform at the highest level as they develop technical mastery and an understanding of the musical and cultural contexts of their respective art forms. The School is highly selective, admitting 7-8 percent of its applicants annually.

Juilliard’s Strategic Plan 2020-30

Juilliard embodies the highest level of excellence while also pushing past traditional bounds into new areas: expanded geographic and technological worlds as well as ever more inclusive and creative spaces. Under the leadership of President Damian Woetzel, the school has initiated major priorities for the School reflected in an ambitious ten-year Strategic Plan, https://www.juilliard.edu/school/about/strategic-plan-2020-2030. Once achieved, the School will have significantly increased funding for scholarships and financial aid; improved resources for faculty and refreshed the curriculum; revitalized the physical campus; and propelled forward the School's educational and informational technology. Interwoven with each of these priorities are Juilliard's core values: Excellence, Creative Enterprise, and Equity, Diversity, Inclusion and Belonging (EDIB).

About The President - Damian Woetzel

Damian Woetzel is the seventh president of The Juilliard School, where he is championing excellence and prioritizing affordability and access to the highest level of artistic education. Since beginning his tenure in July 2018, Woetzel has brought on a new generation of artistic leadership, launched initiatives in Creative Enterprise and Equity, Diversity, Inclusion and Belonging (EDIB); created new technology-driven programs including Juilliard LIVE, a Bloomberg-sponsored livestreaming initiative with a dedicated app; expanded national and international touring; opened the school’s first branch campus in Tianjin, China; and achieved numerous fundraising milestones, including funding the newly tuition-free Drama MFA as well as the Music Advancement Program (MAP), which has also expanded thanks to a $50 million grant. As he moves forward, Woetzel continues to build on Juilliard’s tradition of educational and artistic excellence as he leads a multiyear effort to increase sustainable affordability alongside a dedicated board of trustees, led by chair Vincent Mai.

One of the foremost ballet dancers of his time, Woetzel retired in 2008 from a 20-year career as a principal dancer with the New York City Ballet and as a dancer on the international stage. Since leaving performance, Woetzel has taken on multiple roles in arts leadership, including artistic director of the Vail Dance Festival since 2007, where he has commissioned over 100 new works by choreographers including Michelle Dorrance, Alonzo King, Justin Peck, Alexei Ratmansky, Paul Taylor, Pam Tanowitz, and Christopher Wheeldon, with new music by composers including Rhiannon Giddens, Philip Glass, Jason Moran, and Caroline Shaw. Woetzel's other roles have included director of the Aspen Institute Arts Program from 2011 to 2018, and founding director of the Jerome Robbins Foundation’s New Essential Works (NEW) Program, which initiated grants to support new dance works over a five-year period. Projects have included DEMO, his own series at the Kennedy Center, Spaces by Wynton Marsalis for Jazz at Lincoln Center, numerous initiatives with Yo-Yo Ma, including the Silk Road Connect program in the New York City public schools. President Obama appointed Woetzel to the President’s Committee on the Arts and Humanities in 2009, and he served throughout the Obama era. Woetzel holds a master’s in public administration from Harvard’s Kennedy School of Government and has been a visiting lecturer at Harvard Law School. He received the 2015 Harvard Arts Medal and is a member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences.

Position Overview

As a member of the senior leadership team and reporting to the President, the Vice President - General Counsel oversees and directs the day-to-day legal affairs of Juilliard, the leading conservatory for music, dance, and drama, including its college, preparatory, and extension divisions. The General Counsel provides ongoing hands-on legal advice and counsel to the President, Board of Trustees, and senior leadership team on a wide array of institutional matters relating to the School’s artistic, academic, operational, administrative, and governance activities as well as strategic initiatives, including matters related to students, employees, donors, suppliers, and business partners. This individual will also partner with other senior officers to develop a proactive, robust system of risk management and compliance, and then assist those responsible for implementing and/or maintaining it. This individual will manage an Associate General Counsel as well as multiple outside counsel relationships.

The successful candidate must be able to thrive in a complex, international environment with the ability to manage numerous high-profile legal matters while always maintaining the level of integrity, judgement, and discretion required for a leader at a highly visible, first-in-class School. The General Counsel will be an experienced, values-based leader who is a team player, forward-thinking, and creative in approach. This role requires an understanding of, and passion for, the academic and artistic environment and the unique mission-orientation of the School. The General Counsel will be instrumental in ensuring the success of Juilliard’s mission, strategic plan, and goals.

Duties And Responsibilities

Serve as legal counsel and trusted advisor to all school components, including the President, Board of Trustees, Chief Operating Officer & Corporate Secretary, Provost, Vice Presidents, Deans & Directors, and leading staff, administrators, and faculty on critical legal issues that impact the School. Advise and counsel on, and perform and supervise, all related legal work on legal, regulatory, and compliance matters related to Juilliard’s activities; transactional matters; dispute resolution; investigations; and policy formulation.Provide strategic leadership and direction for all legal matters involving the School, including student, faculty, and staff affairs; Title IX matters; general corporate matters; corporate and academic governance; entertainment and production issues; regulatory and compliance issues; intellectual property law; arts, media, and rights clearance matters; non-profit concerns; relations with grantmaking organizations and other donors; employment law; civil rights; insurance; tax; finance; investments and banking; development and charitable giving; cross-border and international transactions; immigration and other international issues; and litigation.Anticipate issues and risks, sharing pertinent information with the President and senior leadership team, as well as other relevant parties, including the Board of Trustees, while also developing creative solutions to address various legal risks the School may face. Lead and manage the legal department, including the Assistant General Counsel and outside counsel, to ensure legal services are delivered in a high caliber and cost-effective manner.Oversee, manage, and advise on a range of litigation matters. Work closely with other senior staff and departments to enhance existing processes for enterprise risk management, including assessing risk and loss control programs as well as ensuring the sufficiency of the School’s insurance portfolio.Initiate and follow through on independent investigator engagements as required under school policies, federal and state law.Draft, review, and negotiate contracts, including but not limited to faculty, guest artists, venue rentals, performing arts, employment and contractor agreements, intellectual property, leases, and event related agreements. Select, engage, coordinate, and manage outside counsel and legal services as needed to meet the School’s governance, operational, compliance, and inter-institutional agreements, and assess the balance between in-house and outside legal work, in light of many factors including the range of in-house expertise and the School’s budget.Maintain knowledge and understanding of trends and critical changes in the higher education and performing arts legal landscape and proactively address the impact of these changes on the School, particularly as it relates to educational and information technology, privacy and cybersecurity, Title IX, and disciplinary matters.Define and develop policies and procedures in keeping with legal requirements, principles of equity, and sound judgment

Qualifications & Skills

Education:

JD from a highly regarded, accredited law school.Admitted to the bar and in good standing to practice law in-house in New York State.

Preferred Experience

15+ years’ experience as a practicing attorney, with specialized experience in the areas of higher education law / Title IX, contracts, negotiations, litigation, non-profit, intellectual property, licensing agreements, and human resources related matters. 8+ years’ experience advising on domestic and international corporate and transactional matters, including the ability to support and advice on matters relating the School’s global activities.5+ years’ experience as part of a senior leadership team. Appreciation of the performing arts is a significant plus.Successful experience building and motivating a legal team and managing and supervising in-house and outside attorneys; demonstrated ability managing legal resources in a cost-effective and efficient manner. Demonstrated track record in managing complex legal operations, and counseling management on complex and sensitive legal issues involving personnel and students.Ability to address compliance with the full range of applicable laws, regulations, rules, and policies that affect the School’s activities.Skill, experience, and maturity to synthesize relevant information and perspectives on complex issues, balance business and legal objectives, and develop effective and pragmatic solutions.A demonstrated commitment to Equity, Diversity, Inclusion, and Belonging, and a strong track record of promoting and supporting EDIB efforts within an organization.

Personal Traits And Attributes

Outstanding executive leadership, judgment, and management skills with a proven ability to advise a first-in-class School. Strong technical skills, sharp intellect and demonstrated understanding of the major issues facing a complex, urban institution of performing arts education.Ability to work proactively, timely, collaboratively, cooperatively, and as a member of a team, while teaching, hearing, and empowering internal clients and colleagues. The stature, maturity, competence, and confidence to operate with credibility at the executive level and trustee level, to state an independent point of view, and to influence major decisions having legal ramifications through reasoned analysis, as well as a professional history of maintaining objectivity while driving appropriate outcomes, managing multiple stakeholder agendas, and promoting high client service standards. Intellectually and conceptually nimble; willing to challenge assumptions and creatively problem-solve. Able to analyze, interpret, present, and communicate complex ideas and concepts in a clear, concise fashion. Exceptional judgment and interpersonal skills with the ability to develop relationships, build consensus, and engender immediate trust. A high level of emotional intelligence. Outstanding written and oral communication skills. An effective communicator who knows how to adapt to many different audiences at all levels of the organization and beyond. Skillful management of diverse personalities and relationships, internally and externally.Prioritization, perspective, and focus on critical tasks that add value.Anticipation of, and appropriate response to, emerging legal and legislative issues.A “working” general counsel who can be both strategic and operational and is creative and flexible in their approach. Contribute to a work culture that is collaborative, transparent, responsive, and data-driven.A true passion and appreciation for Juilliard’s mission, culture, means, and methods of delivering arts education, and a general understanding of the artistic sensibility and the unique needs of an artistic community.

Nondiscrimination Policy

The Juilliard School is committed to a policy of equal treatment and opportunity in every aspect of its relations with its faculty, staff, students, and other members of the Juilliard community, and does not discriminate on the basis of actual or perceived race, color, religion, creed, age, sex, national origin, alienage, ancestry, citizenship, sexual orientation or preference, gender identity, physical or mental disability, medical condition, predisposing genetic characteristics, marital status, partnership status, or any other basis prohibited by applicable local, state, or federal law. This nondiscrimination policy covers, but is not limited to, recruitment, hiring, training, benefits, rates of pay and other forms of compensation as well as student admission, access, and treatment in school programs and activities.