Choice Hotels Former GC Simone Wu Wins ALIS Lifetime Award

Simone Wu, the former general counsel, corporate secretary, and senior vice president of external affairs at Choice Hotels International Inc., will receive the Lifetime Achievement Award at the 13th-annual ALIS Law conference [1]. Hotel Business reported that the gathering takes place on January 24-25, 2027, at the Courtyard/Residence Inn Los Angeles L.A. LIVE [1].

Why is Simone Wu receiving this legal honor?

Wu is being recognized for producing notable impacts in hospitality investment, hotel development transactions, and post-deal business operations [1]. According to Hotel Business, the ALIS Law Lifetime Achievement Award singles out professionals who have advanced transaction structures across the lodging legal field [1]. During her career, Wu helped steer complex business combinations while maintaining corporate standards across hospitality boardrooms [1].

Jonathon S. Zink, chief operating officer of The Hotel Investment Group by Northstar, stated that few legal leaders have created a comparable impact on lodging transactions, corporate governance, and ethics [1]. The group produces the primary Americas Lodging Investment Summit along with sister events ALIS Law and ALIS DESIGN+ [1].

What did Wu achieve during her tenure at Choice Hotels?

Wu spent more than 14 years serving as an executive officer at Choice Hotels International [1]. In her executive capacity, she acted as an advisor to both the chief executive officer and the board of directors [1]. Wu directed corporate legal teams, governance, board operations, compliance programs, risk management frameworks, and government affairs advocacy [1].

Her operational purview at Choice Hotels also covered external communications, corporate events, public relations, and procurement services [1]. On the regulatory and operational side, Wu directed enterprise policies covering crisis response, insider trading rules, Regulation FD disclosures, corporate ethics, anti-corruption compliance, privacy mandates, cybersecurity standards, disaster recovery, and continuity planning [1].

Which major hotel transactions did Wu direct?

Wu led large capital markets activity and corporate mergers for Choice Hotels, highlighted by the company's $675 million purchase of Radisson Americas [1]. That acquisition shifted Choice Hotels deeper into upscale and full-service segments across the Americas [1]. The table below outlines Wu's career timeline, executive responsibilities, and board appointments across industries:

What was Wu's professional path before entering hospitality?

Before entering lodging with Choice Hotels, Wu served as general counsel for telecommunications provider XO Communications, which was later acquired by Verizon [1]. Her earlier legal work included business and corporate legal roles at AOL and MCI Communications, which was also acquired by Verizon [1]. She built her early transactional practice at the corporate law firm Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom [1].

What corporate and non-profit boards does Wu serve on?

Wu serves as an independent director on the board of Alarm.com, sitting on its Compensation Committee after earlier work on its Audit Committee [1]. She also serves on the board of directors for Reading is Fundamental, the oldest and largest children's literacy non-profit organisation in the United States, participating on both its governance and initiatives committees [1].

Her board appointments across hospitality trade associations include the American Hotel & Lodging Association and the International Franchise Association [1]. Wu has also worked on the boards of the Minority Corporate Counsel Association, the American Corporate Counsel Association National Capital Region chapter, and The Inkwell, a non-profit incubator designed to develop playwrights and stage productions [1].

When will the ALIS Law conference take place?

The 13th-annual ALIS Law conference will run across Sunday and Monday, January 24-25, 2027, in downtown Los Angeles [1]. Hosted at the dual-branded Courtyard/Residence Inn Los Angeles L.A. LIVE, the program stands as the first of three ALIS gatherings conducted throughout that summit week [1].