Appointments: November 2016

James Rogers

James Rogers becomes chief legal officer at Cars.com

Cars.com has appointed James Rogers as its chief legal officer. He now oversees the company’s legal and compliance functions, including relevant aspects of strategic initiatives and acquisitions.

Before Cars.com, Rogers was senior vice president and general counsel at Orbitz Worldwide. He came to Orbitz from LASIK provider TLC, where he was senior vice president and general counsel. From 1981 until 2010, he practiced law in the Washington, DC office of Latham & Watkins, where he became a corporate partner in 1988 and chaired the firm’s mid-Atlantic emerging company practice group.

Prior to that, he was clerk to both the Hon Charles Clark of the US Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit and the Hon Ruth Bader Ginsburg of the US Court of Appeals for the DC Circuit, following a law degree from Columbia Law School, a master’s in public administration from Princeton and a bachelor’s in economics from Yale University.

Tricia Suvari

Global Blood Therapeutics appoints Tricia Suvari as chief legal officer

Ted Love, president and chief executive officer of Global Blood Therapeutics, has announced the appointment of Tricia Suvari as chief legal officer.

‘Tricia brings a wealth of experience managing the complex legal and business situations that arise in rapidly growing biopharmaceutical companies,’ Love says. ‘Her knowledge and expertise managing business development opportunities, financings and commercial compliance responsibilities will serve her well in this role as we continue to grow as a company.’

For the past four years, Suvari was vice president of land transactions and general counsel for the Peninsula Open Space Trust. She also has long experience in the life sciences sector, and has held several senior roles, most recently at CV Therapeutics, where she became senior vice president, general counsel and chief compliance officer. Previously she was senior counsel at Genentech. She has also practiced as an independent consultant, supporting biopharmaceutical companies ranging from early-stage private companies to public companies.

She has a BSc in geology and geophysics from Yale University and a JD degree from Harvard Law School.

Laura Quatela

Laura Quatela is Lenovo’s new chief legal officer

Laura Quatela is the new chief legal officer for Lenovo, the heir to IBM’s PC business. She takes the position after a time as co-founder of Quatela Lynch Intellectual Property, through which she worked as executive vice president for Alcatel-Lucent. She remains a director of Technicolor, a position she has held since 2013.

Prior to Quatela Lynch, she was with Eastman Kodak, where she had been general counsel of the company from 2011. Before Kodak, she worked at Clover Capital Management, SASIB Railway GRS and Bausch & Lomb. She also has experience as a defense litigator specializing in mass tort cases.

Quatela graduated from Denison University with a BA in international politics in 1979, and Case Western Reserve University School of Law awarded her a JD in 1982.

James Small

James Small to take corporate helm at International Seaways

James Small will become chief administrative officer, corporate secretary and general counsel of International Seaways, which will be a leading international crude and product tanker company with 55 vessels when it is spun off from the Overseas Shipholding Group (OSG).

Small joined OSG in March 2015 after almost 20 years with Cleary Gottlieb. In his new role, he reports to Lois Zabrocky, president and chief executive officer of the new company. ‘James has provided invaluable counsel to the organization and has been a driving force behind numerous corporate initiatives at OSG,’ she says. ‘He will be a critical part in helping to drive the future success of International Seaways.’

A member of the bar in New York, Small won a JD (with distinction) from Stanford Law School in 1996, where he was senior editor of the Stanford Law Review and a member of the Stanford Journal of International Law. He graduated with a BA in astrophysics and political science from Williams College in 1990.

Alan Tse

Petco announces appointment of Alan Tse

Alan Tse has joined Petco, the pet specialty retailer, as senior vice president, general counsel and corporate secretary. He now oversees all legal, corporate governance and regulatory affairs for the company, replacing Darragh Davis, who will retire from the company in January 2017, after 13 years as general counsel for Petco.

‘Alan is an accomplished leader with an impressive background as corporate counsel and we’re excited to welcome him to the Petco team,’ says Brad Weston, president, chief merchant and CEO-elect. ‘His extensive legal expertise, strong business acumen and experience working in a variety of diverse businesses will help Petco as we continue to evolve and grow.’

With more than 20 years of corporate legal experience, Tse joins Petco from Churchill Downs in Louisville, Kentucky, where he served as executive vice president, general counsel and corporate secretary. Previously he worked as general counsel for LG Electronics Mobilecomm USA, Ligos Corporation and Centerpoint Broadband Technologies.

He began his career as a corporate securities attorney at Brobeck Phleger & Harrison in Palo Alto, California. He has a JD from Harvard Law School and a bachelor’s in economics and political science from the University of California at Berkeley. He is on the boards of the Association of Corporate Counsel and the Asian American Legal Foundation.

‘I’m privileged to bring my experience to a company that has built a well-deserved reputation for excellence in the pet category, and excited about the many growth opportunities that lie ahead,’ says Tse. ‘I look forward to becoming part of the company’s leadership team and doing all I can to continue strengthening and protecting the company’s already stellar brand and reputation.’

John Florence

John Florence takes role at Sonoco

John Florence has taken on the role of corporate vice president, general counsel and corporate secretary at Sonoco, one of the largest diversified global packaging companies. Florence’s appointment comes upon the retirement of Sonoco’s previous vice president, treasurer and corporate secretary, Ritchie Bond. In addition to managing legal work for the company, Florence now manages Sonoco’s corporate secretary and governance function.

‘John has worked with Sonoco for more than a decade, first at Haynsworth Sinkler Boyd and recently as our corporate attorney,’ says company president and CEO Jack Sanders, to whom Florence now reports. ‘His legal expertise and advice are invaluable, and he is an important member of our management team.’

Florence holds an MBA from the University of South Carolina, a JD from Samford University and a BA in English from Presbyterian College. He is a member of the American Bar Association, South Carolina Bar Association, Richland County Bar Association and the Association of Corporate Counsel.