Strategic Counsel

Embedded Judgment for the CEO

Certain problems cannot be delegated. They sit at the intersection of legal risk, business reality, internal politics, and time pressure. They require judgment, discretion, and the ability to act.

Role
Direct Extension of Leadership

Snyder serves as strategic counsel to the CEO — operating as a direct extension of leadership to resolve issues that resist conventional processes.

Delegated judgment. Full visibility, full authority, full accountability.

Role
Direct
Advisor to CEO / Principal
Positioning
Embedded
Independent. Execution-oriented.
Term
Monthly
Ongoing engagement
Mandate

Snyder operates with clear authority: engaged directly by the CEO or principal, given visibility into the full situation, and empowered to coordinate across functions and stakeholders.

The objective is not analysis. It is movement.
What We Do

Snyder takes responsibility for special situations that require resolution: sensitive internal conflicts or leadership breakdowns. High-stakes negotiations where dynamics matter as much as terms. Cross-functional problems stalled by misalignment or indecision.

Situations involving legal exposure intertwined with business risk. Matters requiring discretion, speed, and control.

How We Operate

Rapid immersion into the facts and people involved. Direct engagement with key stakeholders. Clear framing of decisions and consequences. Removal of bottlenecks and artificial constraints. Continuous alignment with the CEO on objectives and tradeoffs.

Work is done quietly, without unnecessary process or visibility.

When This Is Used

Most effective when the issue is important but difficult to assign internally. When existing teams are capable but blocked. When the situation requires discretion and authority simultaneously.

When legal, business, and human factors are entangled — and the CEO needs a trusted operator, not another advisor.

Output

Decisions that get made. Situations that stabilize or resolve. Teams that regain direction. Risk that becomes understood and controlled.

Progress is measured in changed conditions, not activity.
Positioning

Targeted intervention by a senior operator working directly for the CEO. Litigation is one tool among many — where legal action is required, it is integrated into a broader strategy, not treated as the sole path to resolution.

Engagements begin with a focused discussion of the situation, followed — where appropriate — by immediate integration into the CEO’s operating cadence.

Fee Structure
$25,000–$50,000 per month, flat fee.
Monthly engagement. Scope and intensity calibrated to the situation.
Fees are always negotiated based on the particular circumstances. Quoted rates are guidance.
Principal
John H. Snyder

25+ years of federal trial practice. Former Proskauer Rose litigator. Federal judicial clerk. Brown University (Phi Beta Kappa), Harvard Law School.

Founder of Agnes Intelligence, which placed 4th of 1,000+ entries in the 2018 IBM Watson Build competition. Co-Managing Principal of Junto Opportunity Fund I LP, a Manhattan distressed multifamily real estate fund. Founder and Chairman of Junto Club USA LLC.

The Firm
John H. Snyder PLLC is an independent litigation and strategic advisory practice based in Manhattan. The firm serves a select roster of principals, family offices, and institutional clients in matters requiring senior judgment, discretion, and direct execution.
Contact inquiry@jhs.nyc
Strategy →