CHICAGO — Cars.com has appointed James F. Rogers as the company’s chief legal officer. Rogers, who will officially begin his new position on Monday, will be responsible for directing all areas of legal and compliance, which includes legal-related aspects of strategic initiatives and acquisition-related legal and integration matters.

"We are thrilled to welcome Jim to the Cars.com family as we prepare to become an independent, publicly-traded company once we spin from TEGNA," said Alex Vetter, president and CEO of Cars.com. "It's an important time in the history of our company and we are confident Jim's extensive legal experience and understanding, particularly in the public company sector, will make him a tremendous addition to our leadership team as we continue to grow."

Rogers brings more than 30 years of legal experience, with considerable expertise in preparing companies for initial public offerings. Most recently, he served as senior vice president and general counsel for Orbitz Worldwide, where he oversaw legal, compliance, corporate communications and government relations, according to the company.

"Cars.com is an innovator and leader in the rapidly expanding digital automotive industry, and I'm pleased to be joining the team," said Rogers. "I look forward to helping to navigate the opportunities presented as the company enters this new phase in its storied history."

The hiring of a CTO with experience preparing companies for initial public offerings comes a little more than a month after the third-party lead site's parent company, TEGNA Inc., announced plans to spin off the Cars.com into its own publicly traded company.  

During the company’s September announcement, it stated that, as an independent company, Cars.com will be able to “focus more sharply on its key strategic priorities,” which include rapid innovation and “active evaluation and pursuit of acquisitions to open up new, adjacent opportunities.”