Title:

Vice President, Litigation

We are KBR

When you become part of our KBR team, your opportunities are endless. Through internal collaboration, and with our partners and customers, we’re defining tomorrow’s challenges, then providing the innovative solutions to overcome those challenges, always maintaining our commitment to Zero Harm and Sustainability Platform.

At KBR, we partner with clients to provide purposeful and comprehensive science, technology and engineering solutions to governments as well as the top tier commercial clients in green hydrogen and green ammonia. With a full portfolio of services, proprietary technologies and expertise, our almost 38,000 employees are ready to handle projects and missions throughout their entire lifecycle, from planning and design to sustainability and maintenance. Whether at the bottom of the ocean or in outer space, our clients trust us to deliver the impossible on a daily basis.

Working at KBR means being rewarded for your contributions. In addition to competitive benefits and professional development, our people are empowered to use all their potential, creating meaningful change for themselves and our clients. We attract the best minds in the world because our expertise thrives on creativity, resourcefulness and collaboration. That is how we supply our clients with cutting-edge solutions.

As the needs of the world change, we’re ready to respond and guide the way forward with strategic, sustainable, and technological advancements grounded in more than a century of practical application and execution.

We Are Legal

We take on any legal or related task. Every day we work across many different jurisdictions and interface with many different cultures. Our versatility is reflected in our strong commercial awareness and ability to adapt to the circumstances at hand, to provide solid practical legal and commercially focused solutions.

About the Role

Reporting to the General Counsel, you will be responsible for the global litigation legal function. You will lead the Litigation Team and the strategy, management and execution of litigation matters which are critical to KBR’s success. You will work closely with the General Counsel, Litigation Team, General Counsel Leadership Team, business unit attorneys, and business stakeholders including the Executive Leadership Team and other high-level executives to provide legal advice on a wide range of litigation matters and related issues. You will direct and manage outside counsel and other vendors to obtain the most favorable results for the company on litigation and pre-dispute matters, including the negotiation of alternative fee arrangements and managing to budgets. You will ensure that the strategy and execution of litigation matters is aligned with the interests of the business, including exploring options for resolution while vigorously protecting the company.

About You

Accountability: While you will be responsible day-to-day management of the Litigation department and certain litigation matters, you will also be expected to continuously drive the strategy and assess the risk presented by each matter and the overall litigation portfolio. You will be responsible for overseeing the management of litigation matters by other litigation attorneys in the department, ensuring they are managing litigation in line with expectations and the company’s goals and objectives. You will be accountable for accurate and timely reporting to management on litigation matters and for managing the litigation budget, including accruals, forecasting, cost control, and resource allocation .

Leadership: You will provide leadership, guidance, and mentorship to the litigation team, fostering a collaborative and high-performing work environment. You will champion and model teamwork, continuous improvement, best practice benchmarking and use of technology to improve performance and outcomes.

Collaboration: You will need to excel at working with a wide variety of departments and personalities. When you are advising the business on litigation matters and/or risk, coordinating with business unit attorneys, directing outside counsel, guiding the Litigation Support Team and attorneys, you will need to collaborate and build and maintain strong relationships and partnerships.

Adaptability: You will need to be comfortable making decisions amid ambiguity and working in a fast-paced environment. Whether you are presenting to executive leadership, handling a crucial conversation, facing a deadline, or negotiating a settlement, you are rarely flustered, always professional and polished in your approach.

Business Acumen and Financial Awareness: You will continuously assess the needs of the business in your management of the Litigation function to ensure the strategy aligns with business interests. You will rigorously manage litigation costs by ensuring accurate accruals, negotiating and tracking Alternative Fee Arrangements, updating forecasts, and managing to budget.

Specific duties, responsibilities and requirements include:

• Trusted advisor and business partner to KBR executive leadership with overall responsibility for the litigation function of NYSE-listed global company with more than 38,0000 employees working in over 40 countries.

• Member of General Counsel Leadership Team responsible for the strategy and provision of legal services. Coordinate with other members of GCLT on litigation related matters.

• Lead the Litigation Department which is responsible for a variety of U.S. and international government contracting, construction, and personal injury litigation and arbitrations. The work of the department includes managing outside counsel and directing case strategy; conducting fact finding and legal analysis; participating in witness interviews and depositions; overseeing document retrieval and e-discovery; reviewing and editing pleadings and discovery; budgeting and tracking costs.

• Overall responsibility for managing and developing Litigation Team members including attorneys and other legal professionals.

• Partner with business unit attorneys on pre-litigation disputes with clients, vendors, and other third parties and provide other advice as requested.

• Reviewing and approving dispute resolution provisions in contracts with customers, vendors, and other parties.

• Provide ongoing advice and training on construction, government contracting, and commercial claim avoidance and claim preparation.

• In collaboration with Risk Management, oversee insurance claims process for professional and general liability claims, build and manage relationships with insurers, and lead recovery efforts.

• Responsible for litigation-related SEC disclosure processes including review of loss contingency reserves. Member of Disclosure Committee and lead interface with external auditors on material litigation matters.

• Prepare and present executive level reports, briefings, and other materials including to the CEO, Executive Leadership Team, and Board of Directors.

• Draft, review and provide legal advice on policies, procedures, communications, and contract language.

• Review and provide advice on safety related policies, procedures, incident reports and direct safety related investigations.

• Respond to third party subpoenas and requests for documents.

• Lead or participate in cross-functional teams on specific issues or projects.

• Lead or support other projects as requested from time to time by the General Counsel

Experience & Skills

• At least 15 years of experience in litigation in a law firm or in-house environment including first chair trial/arbitration experience.

• At least 10 years of experience managing a team of attorneys and other legal professionals.

• Significant substantive experience in at least one of the following:

• U.S. government contracting litigation, including claims against the U.S. government and government contracting vendors.

• Engineering, Procurement, Construction, Project/Construction Management (EPC/EPCM) litigation including preparing and responding to claims.

• Experience in one or more of the following areas is also a plus:

• Intellectual property litigation (trade secret, software, licensing, etc.)

• Personal injury and/or toxic tort litigation

• International arbitration and/or litigation in jurisdictions outside the United States

• Experience dealing with general liability and professional liability/indemnity insurance policies and claims.

• High level expertise of e-discovery tools and processes.

• Ability to analyze and evaluate complex disputes and issues and provide practical, business focused legal advice.

• Exceptional oral and written communication skills including the ability to communicate and interact effectively at all levels and across all functions within an organization and the ability to convey complex legal concepts clearly and succinctly.

• Adept in use of business tools such as Microsoft 365, Microsoft Office products (Word, PowerPoint and Excel), OneDrive, SharePoint, etc.

• Proven leadership and people management skills.

• Self-driven, operates with a sense of urgency and resourcefulness.

• Ability to develop and maintain productive working relationships.

• Team player and positive attitude.

• Foreign language skills a plus.

Additional Requirements:

• Must be willing to travel domestically and internationally

• Undergraduate degree and completion of JD

• Background Check required

• License to practice law in state of residence

Location:

Ideally, you will be located in either the Washington, DC or Houston, TX area. That said, KBR strives to maintain a global, flexible, diverse, and sustainable working environment for our people. KBR currently offers flexible working arrangements, including hybrid, remote working and virtual delivery, to help reinforce our strong commitment to becoming a more socially sustainable company and allow us to provide greater work-life balance and flexibility.

KBR Benefits​

KBR offers a selection of competitive lifestyle benefits which could include 401K plan with company match, medical, dental, vision, life insurance, AD&D, flexible spending account, disability, paid time off, or flexible work schedule. We support career advancement through professional training and development.​

Click here to learn more: KBR Benefits (https://careers.kbr.com/us/en/kbr-benefits)

Inclusion and Diversity at KBR​

At KBR, we are passionate about our people, sustainability, and our Zero Harm culture. These inform all that we do and are at the heart of our commitment to, and ongoing journey toward being a more inclusive and diverse company. That commitment is central to our team of team’s philosophy and fosters an environment of real collaboration across cultures and locations. Our individual differences and perspectives bring enhanced value to our teams and help us develop solutions for the most challenging problems. We understand that by embracing those differences and working together, we are more innovative, more resilient, and safer. We Deliver – Together. ​

Click here to learn more: Inclusion and Diversity at KBR (https://www.kbr.com/en/who-we-are/our-people/inclusion-and-diversity)

KBR is an equal opportunity employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, disability, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, age, national origin, veteran status, genetic information, union status and/or beliefs, or any other characteristic protected by federal, state, or local law.