Madison Square Garden Entertainment Corp. and Sphere Entertainment Co. are gearing up to welcome a new general counsel. Laura Franco will be taking over the legal reins of the companies on February 20. Currently serving as the chief legal and compliance officer at popular dating app Bumble, Franco earns roughly $5 million in pay. According to Bloomberg Law, her remuneration will likely remain the same at MSGE.
She replaces Jamal Haughton, who left MSGE in November for a role at Charter Communications Inc. The company paid Haughton well over $1.7 million last year and awarded a further $3 million for his position as Sphere’s senior attorney.
However, despite the change in leadership, the implementation of the controversial policy banning the entry of attorneys litigating against James Dolan’s enterprises does not appear to be dwindling. Despite the controversial nature of the decision, employees were told it would remain in “full effect” after an appellate ruling favoring the policy.
Interestingly, this policy only impacts around 0.8% of New York City’s lawyers. MSGE says attorneys embroiled in suits against them will regain their welcome once their cases are resolved.
Only the future will tell if Franco, in her new role as general counsel, can persuade her superiors to abandon this contentious policy. Congratulations to her on this new venture.