GC Sidebar: Theresa Shea, Chief Legal Officer at Utz Brands

In this GC Sidebar Season 2 episode, Paragon Legal CEO Trista Engel speaks with Teresa Shea, Chief Legal Officer at Utz Brands, about planning for the unexpected, earning a seat at the executive table, and what it means to bring your whole self to the GC role.

Teresa shares why “special situations prep” has become a growing focus for her team—building the muscle to respond to everything from weather events to shifting nutrition regulations, so that when a crisis hits, the company can stay calm and act from a plan rather than react in a panic. She discusses how the most valuable thing a legal leader offers often isn’t legal expertise at all, but judgment, steadiness, and the ability to help people find their way to the right answer.

She also reflects on a pivotal shift in how she shows up in the room—introducing herself first as an executive at Utz, not as the company’s lawyer—and why building a legal team from the ground up taught her to think as much about where the business needs a thought partner as where it needs outside counsel.

Teaser now available. Full episode drops on September 2nd.