ARI has hired James R. Wells as general counsel to manage the fleet management company's legal affairs, including providing guidance the senior management team.

Wells will oversee and manage legal affairs for ARI across the globe and provide support in a range of areas including regulatory and compliance, mergers and acquisitions, international law, intellectual property, employment matters, governance, litigation management and risk evaluation.

His responsibilities include negotiating and drafting complex transactional agreements; supporting the creation, implementation and maintenance of corporate legal compliance programs; identifying and mitigating risk across all of the company’s business units; serving as the primary liaison for all external legal relationships; and providing perspective and guidance with regard to implementing the strategic goals of the company.

Wells joins ARI from Environmental Tectonics Corporation (ETC), a public company operating in the defense, aerospace and medical sectors, where he was vice president, general counsel and chief compliance officer.

Prior to ETC, Wells worked at Aramark for more than 20 years, starting initially as an assistant general counsel and serving in a variety of roles, eventually going on to serve as vice president and associate general counsel. He served as general counsel to Aramark's largest business group and global supply chain function.