Chief Counsel, Health (San Diego)

UC San Diego

Chief Counsel, Health

Hiring Pay Scale: $372,180 - $472,000 / Year

Reporting to the Chief Campus Counsel and the Deputy General Counsel – Health Affairs & Technology Law, the Chief Counsel, UC San Diego Health (Chief Health Counsel) serves as the principal legal advisor for UC San Diego Health and provides strategic legal leadership across the health sciences enterprise, including the health system, Student Health and Counseling Services, and the Schools of Medicine, Pharmacy, and Public Health.

As a member of the UC San Diego Health executive leadership team, the Chief Health Counsel partners with senior leaders to provide practical, solutions-oriented legal counsel that supports the organization's mission of patient care, education, research, and innovation.

Key Responsibilities

• Serve as the chief legal advisor on healthcare, regulatory, compliance, governance, risk management, and operational matters.
• Advise executive leadership on strategic initiatives, affiliations, transactions, and organizational priorities.
• Provide counsel on clinical operations, academic medicine, research activities, privacy, cybersecurity, healthcare innovation, and emerging technologies.
• Collaborate with leaders across the health system, campus, and the University of California on complex legal and policy matters.
• Lead and develop a team of attorneys and legal professionals supporting the health enterprise.

Leadership and Impact

The Chief Health Counsel is a trusted strategic partner to executive leadership and plays a critical role in helping UC San Diego Health navigate an increasingly complex healthcare landscape. The successful candidate will bring sound judgment, exceptional leadership skills, and the ability to balance legal risk with operational and strategic objectives.

The position requires a collaborative leader who can build strong relationships across diverse stakeholder groups, influence decision-making at the highest levels of the organization, and provide clear, practical advice in support of UC San Diego Health's mission and values.

Why UC San Diego Health

UC San Diego Health is consistently recognized among the nation's leading academic health systems for excellence in patient care, research, education, and innovation. As part of University of California San Diego, the health system brings together world-class clinicians, researchers, educators, and staff dedicated to improving health and advancing medicine.

This role presents an exceptional opportunity to influence the future of academic healthcare, support groundbreaking clinical and research initiatives, and contribute to the strategic direction of a rapidly evolving and nationally recognized health enterprise.

Qualifications

• Must possess a J.D. from an accredited law school.
• Minimum of 10 years of experience in healthcare, preferably related to operation of academic medical centers.
• Must be a member in good standing of the California Bar. (Out-of-state hire would be afforded time to pass the Bar within a reasonable period.)
• Previous management or supervisory experience and / or significant project management experience.
• Outstanding skills in the ability to lead by influence and consensus.
• Ability to exercise good judgment and to make good decisions quickly, often with incomplete information available and under circumstances where different stakeholders have inconsistent positions.
• Deep knowledge of health and hospital law and extensive experience developing and managing complex health care transactions.
• Superior academic qualifications, with strong analytic, writing, and client consultation skills. Demonstrated ability to distill large quantities of often imperfect information and to generate creative approaches to legal challenges facing Health Sciences, including the Medical Center, the Medical Group, the Schools of Medicine, Pharmacy, and Public Health in the areas of healthcare, including clinical service and contracting.
• Demonstrated ability to collaborate and work cooperatively with other attorneys, groups, clients and constituencies with differing priorities and perspectives.
• Outstanding interpersonal skills to interact effectively and develop and maintain productive working relationships with an array of diverse interests, individuals, and constituencies.
• Ability to communicate effectively with diverse stakeholders including board members, donors, politicians, physicians and other care providers, staff, executives, and others, often in tense situations.
• Demonstrated ability to think creatively to assist the UCSD Health executive team and UC Legal leaders in solving problems of the greatest complexity.
• Demonstrated ability to act as a team player in all circumstances, as defined by contributing to the successful outcome of initiatives, accountabilities, and operations of others. Ability to work collaboratively across administrative and academic units and to build consensus.
• Additional responsibilities as assigned.

Special Conditions

• Job requires dedication and hard work. Long hours in highly stressful, high-stakes settings are a norm, not an exception.
• Occasional out-of-area travel, typically to Northern California but occasionally to other parts of the country.
• The Chief Health Counsel must model ethics and integrity in all of their dealings.
• Compliance with the University of California Statement of Ethical Values and Standards of Ethical Conduct, conflict-of-interest rules, and the California Rules of Professional Conduct is a baseline expectation and requirement.
• Support, collaboration, and coordination with UC San Diego’s and UC San Diego Health’s compliance and quality programs is expected.
• Job offer is contingent upon satisfactory clearance based on Background Check results.

To foster the best possible working and learning environment, UC San Diego strives to cultivate a rich and diverse environment, inclusive and supportive of all students, faculty, staff and visitors. For more information, please visit UC San Diego Principles of Community.

The University of California is an Equal Opportunity Employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability, age, protected veteran status, or other protected status under state or federal law.