Michael Abril

About Michael Abril

I am the Chief Legal Officer/Corporate Secretary for Ember Education, a division of San Joaquin Valley College, Inc. Ember Education provides non student facing shared services to colleges owned by San Joaquin Valley College, Inc, including San Joaquin Valley College, headquartered in Visalia, CA and Carrington College, headquartered in Sacramento, CA.My duties include:C-Suite Counsel-I meet regularly with the CEO, COO, CFO, the College Presidents for San Joaquin Valley College and Carrington College, and the Board of Directors to provide legal counsel on an array of topics ranging from higher education law, corporate governance, strategic legal considerations, and mergers and acquisitions.Higher Education Law-The proprietary college sector is highly regulated by both the US Department of Education and state approval agencies. Further, each college is accredited by regional accreditors and many college programs are programmatically accredited. Corporate Governance-I advise the Board of Directors on changes in corporate law and lead the team that ensures the company\'s compliance with applicable state corporate law.Information Governance and Privacy-I am part of an interdisciplinary team that monitors the company\'s cybersecurity, data governance, artificial intelligence policy and usage, and privacy issues. I was the principal author of the company\'s Information Governance Policy.Real Estate Leasing-Working with the company\'s VP of Real Estate, I provide guidance on the company\'s approach with regard to approximately 40 leasehold interests. Law Department Management-I manage a team of three attorneys (including me) and two paralegals who have primary responsibility for legal compliance, entity management, the IP portfolio, employment law, and litigation monitoring, contract review and preparation, contract management, and privacy. The legal department also works closely with Human Resources, Purchasing, Real Estate, Compliance, Marketing, and career services personnel with each college. Finally, I identify, retain, and approve billing for outside counsel who assists the legal department on transactional matters, trademark applications, privacy law compliance, and higher education lawFamily Office-I provide legal advice for company owners, which includes forming family-owned entities (corporations and LLCs), estate planning, succession planning, and real estate transactions. I also practice business and real estate law for my outside clients through my professional law corporation-Michael S. Abril, APLC.

Experience

1. Chief Legal Officer and Corporate Secretary

   Ember Education - San Joaquin Valley College, Inc

   Jul 2018 — Present · Bakersfield, CA, US

   Ember Education is a division of San Joaquin Valley College, Inc. Ember Education provides non-student facing shared services to colleges owned by San Joaquin Valley College, Inc, including San Joaquin Valley College, a WSCUC (\"WASC Senior\") regionally accredited career college with headquarters in Visalia, CA with sixteen branch campuses located throughout California, and Carrington College, a WASC-ACCJC regionally accredited career college with nineteen campuses located in California and seven western states. As Chief Legal Officer, I provide general counsel to the SJVCi Board of Directors and the Ember Education Executive Leadership, oversee the six-person Ember Education Legal Department, and participate in SJVCI\'s government relations at the federal, state, and local levels.

Education

• University of California, Davis

  A.B., Economics & Political Science

  1978 — 1982

• USC Gould School of Law

  J.D., Law

  1982 — 1986

• USC Marshall School of Business

  MBA

  1984 — 1986

Skills

• Legal Documents
• Corporate Real Estate
• Commercial Leasing
• Commercial Lending
• Executive Management
• Creditors' Rights
• Mediation
• Social Networking
• Real Estate
• Small Business
• Mergers
• Start-Ups
• Higher Education
• Buying a Business
• Transactional
• Land Use Law
• Civil Litigation
• Restructuring
• Acquisitions
• Real Estate Financing
• Finance
• Corporate Governance
• Connecting People
• Legal Writing
• Litigation
• Mergers & Acquisitions
• Bankruptcy
• Real Estate Transactions
• Commercial Litigation
• Commercial Real Estate
• Corporate Law