Avison Young recently announced that Nicole White has been appointed Chief Legal Officer (CLO) and Corporate Secretary, effective January 1, 2022. White has been with the firm since 2015, most recently as Principal and Legal Counsel. She will lead Avison Young’s global legal function.
“In her time at the firm, Nicole has earned a reputation as a brilliant legal strategist, a forward-looking business advisor and a calming and inspiring leader,” said Principal, Chair and CEO Mark Rose. “She represents the absolute best of Avison Young through her commitment to creating real value for our clients, her unwavering push for diversity, equity and inclusion and her belief in the positive impact real estate can have on people’s lives.”
As CLO, White will be responsible for the overall management of Avison Young’s legal affairs, providing legal guidance that enables the firm’s objectives including leveraging multidimensional data, technology and consultative solutions to enable clients to achieve their unique, rapidly transforming goals. She will help shepherd the organization through its ongoing evolution while mitigating risk and furthering the firm’s corporate culture rooted in trust and integrity.
Commenting on her appointment White shared, “At Avison Young, we harness the power of our intelligent collective – and that extends to the CLO role. The firm recognizes that today’s chief legal officer is more than just the top lawyer, but in fact, is a business strategist that offers alternative perspectives to help navigate the existing and changing conditions in which we operate. I could not be more thrilled to take on this critical role within an organization I value so much.”
White will also maintain her seat on the firm’s Diversity and Inclusion Steering Committee and her leadership position as a founder of the firm’s Black Professionals’ Resource Group. Prior to Avison Young, White was an attorney for the Allstate Corporation where she provided advice and counseling on a range of employment, regulatory, restrictive covenant and trade secret matters. She is based in Houston, Texas.