Marriott recruits new general counsel

Marriott International has recruited Rena Hozore Reiss as executive vice president and general counsel, reporting to president and CEO Arne Sorenson and serving as a member of the hotel company’s executive team.

Reiss was most recently executive vice president, general counsel and corporate secretary at Hyatt Hotels, and will start with her new firm on December 4. She previously served in Marriott’s legal department from 2000 to 2010, most recently as senior vice president and associate general counsel.

Reiss will succeed Ed Ryan, who has been Marriott’s general counsel since 2006 and recently announced his retirement, according to the company. After early December he will transition to an advisory role to Sorenson through 2018.

In her most recent role, Reiss led a global legal team with offices in Chicago, Zurich, Hong Kong, Beijing and Delhi supporting Hyatt’s business, covering the areas of worldwide development, compliance and governance, operations, litigation, brand and marketing, intellectual property and information technology. She also oversaw the company’s risk-management team and corporate transactions group.

A spokesperson for Hyatt did not respond immediately to a request for comment.

‘Ed uniquely defined the [general counsel] role to fit both the complexity of our business and the company’s rapidly growing profile as an industry leader and a global company,’ Sorenson says in a statement. ‘Among his many accomplishments, one of the best is the development of his team – an exemplary in-house legal department.

‘We’re delighted to welcome Rena back to Marriott leading our legal function. Her extensive global and broad leadership experience combined with her 17 years in the hospitality industry will be a tremendous complement to our world-class legal team.’