Harley-Davidson In-House Lawyer Jumps Into Top Legal Role

Harley-Davidson Inc., announced Paul Krause is the struggling motorcycle manufacturer’s new top lawyer.

Krause, an assistant general counsel at the Milwaukee-based motorcycle manufacturer since 2018, will take over immediately as chief legal and compliance officer and corporate secretary, the company said Tuesday. Krause had served as Harley-Davidson’s interim chief legal officer since November, when Paul Jones stepped down after more than a decade as the company’s top in-house lawyer.

Bloomberg Law reported Monday on Jones earning more than $3.17 million—including $516,771 in cash—during his final year at Harley-Davidson. Jones, now president and co-founder of the Strategic Consulting Group LLC in Milwaukee, in January became the first entrepreneur-in-residence at Marquette University’s 707 Hub, which is part of the school’s Office of Research and Innovation.

The following month, Harley-Davidson’s former CEO Matthew Levatitch stepped down amid declining sales at the company, which has watched its finances falter amid Trump administration tariffs and management turnover. Krause’s promotion this week was paired with the announced resignation of Michelle Kumbier, senior vice president and COO of subsidiary Harley-Davidson Motor Co. Inc.

Road to Harley-Davidson

Krause, who did not immediately respond to a request for comment about his new role, joined Harley-Davidson as senior legal counsel in April 2016.

The litigation and employment law expert spent the previous half-dozen years in-house at steel and mining giant ArcelorMittal USA Inc., according to Krause’s LinkedIn profile, which shows that he began his legal career in 2004 at Littler Mendelson after graduating that year from Marquette’s law school.

Harley-Davidson did not disclose how much Krause will be paid. As a matter of comparison, Stephen Boettinger, who previously served as an assistant general counsel at Harley-Davidson until leaving the company in early 2018, the same year that Krause moved into the role, earned $801,143 last year as general counsel and secretary for REV Group Inc. The Milwaukee-based vehicle manufacturer disclosed Boettinger’s 2019 pay package, which includes $414,911 in cash, in a recent proxy statement.

McGuireWoods and Quarles & Brady have handled nearly 40% of Harley-Davidson’s outside litigation work within the last five years, according to Bloomberg Law data, which shows that since 2007 both law firms have snagged more than 21% of the company’s litigation caseload. Foley & Lardner has counseled Harley-Davidson on roughly 6% of its litigation engagements during that timeframe.

Securities filings show that Foley & Lardner recently represented Harley-Davidson on a proxy fight initiated by New Canaan, Conn.-based hedge fund investor Impala Asset Management LLC, which was advised by Schulte Roth & Zabel. Both parties said Monday they had resolved their differences. An independent director mutually agreed upon by both Impala and Harley-Davidson will join the company’s board this summer, according to a March 30 securities filing signed by Krause on behalf of the motorcycle maker.