Overview
An organization is seeking an Assistant General Counsel to join their transaction-focused legal practice. This role involves leading the review, negotiation, and resolution of complex and high-risk professional services and technology-related agreements. The Assistant General Counsel will serve as an escalation point for transactional matters and manage key aspects of the contracting process. Acting as a trusted advisor to partners, business unit leaders, and senior leadership, the role balances commercial objectives with legal, regulatory, and reputational risk.
This position reports to the leader of the Legal Department’s commercial transactions function within the Firm Risk Management enabling function. It requires collaboration with a globally located legal and contract support team, including colleagues based in India, and necessitates reasonable availability during overlapping business hours for effective communication.
Responsibilities
- Develop a deep understanding of the organization’s service lines, technology offerings, and business strategies, including associated risk profiles.
- Lead and negotiate complex, bespoke, and high-value agreements such as master services agreements, engagement letters, confidentiality agreements, business associate agreements, SaaS agreements, data protection agreements, software licenses, subcontractor agreements, government contracts, and related statements of work.
- Serve as an escalation point for non-standard, high-risk, or novel commercial issues, partnering with Legal Department leadership on material risk decisions.
- Negotiate vendor agreements with consideration of operational, regulatory, and information security risks.
- Review requests for proposals (RFPs) to identify risks and advise on risk-based, commercially practical mitigation strategies.
- Apply U.S. and international privacy and data protection laws and collaborate with information security, privacy, and risk teams during contract review and negotiation.
- Own, maintain, and improve contract templates, standard terms, and fallback positions; draft new templates and provisions as business needs evolve.
- Evaluate and enhance contracting processes and workflows using technology, automation, offshore resources, contract lifecycle management (CLM), and AI-enabled tools to improve efficiency and scalability.
- Assist in maintaining and expanding commercial contracting playbooks, ensuring consistent application of approved negotiation positions while allowing for risk-based flexibility.
- Provide leadership, guidance, supervision, and mentorship to Senior Counsel, Counsel, and other legal professionals, including workload prioritization, issue escalation, and career development.
- Influence and align stakeholders across the firm through credibility, judgment, and strong relationships, even without direct reporting lines.
Requirements
- Minimum of nine (9) years of relevant experience in a law firm or in-house counsel role, with demonstrated expertise in handling complex commercial transactions and advising senior stakeholders.
- Admission to a U.S. state bar in good standing; preference for candidates admitted to the Illinois bar and located in the Chicago area, though remote candidates admitted elsewhere will be considered.
- Strong organizational skills, business judgment, strategic thinking, and exceptional written and verbal communication skills tailored to senior audiences.
- Ability to set priorities, manage workload amid competing demands, and make risk-based decisions aligned with the firm’s risk profile and business objectives.
- Solutions-oriented and relationship-focused negotiation style, maintaining positive professional relationships with internal stakeholders, clients, and opposing counsel.
- Demonstrated leadership ability, including leading through influence and credibility.
- Experience leveraging technology to improve legal service delivery is strongly preferred; familiarity with Microsoft Office is required, and knowledge of CLM platforms and AI-assisted contract review tools is a plus.
Preferred Qualifications
- Experience with state or federal government contract requirements and compliance.
- Background in governmental, accounting, or financial regulatory sectors.
- Experience with cross-border or multi-jurisdictional contracting.
- Knowledge of intellectual property matters related to marketing, trade secrets, licensing, patents, and copyright.
- Experience in public accounting, consulting, or other professional services environments.
- Familiarity with regulated or compliance-driven contracts, including government contracts.
- Experience improving contracting processes, working with contract management or AI tools, or collaborating with global or offshore teams.
- Knowledge of data privacy regulations or certifications such as CIPP-US or CIPP-E.
Compensation & Benefits
- Estimated salary range: $149,400.00 - $317,100.00 per year. Compensation decisions consider skill sets, experience, training, licensure, certifications, and organizational needs.
- Comprehensive total rewards package including benefits.
Location
- Preference for candidates located in the Chicago area; however, candidates admitted to any U.S. state bar in good standing may be considered.
Additional Information
- The application deadline is February 28, 2026.
- Employment eligibility verification is required; sponsorship for work authorization is not available.
- The organization is an equal opportunity employer and prohibits discrimination and harassment based on protected characteristics.
- Candidates with criminal histories will be considered in compliance with applicable state and local laws.
- Reasonable accommodations are available for applicants requiring assistance during the application process.