Overview
This organization is hiring its first in-house attorney for a generalist commercial counsel role. The position is designed to address the volume and complexity of contract work—including MSAs, DPAs, renewals, and redlines with colleges and universities—that has outgrown what outside counsel and non-legal staff can handle alone.
You will own contract negotiation end to end and serve as the first point of contact for legal questions that arise in a growing SaaS business, including data privacy, insurance, and employment matters. Outside counsel will be engaged when specialized or higher-stakes expertise is required.
This role is not a General Counsel role. Corporate structuring, M&A, and financing transactions remain with outside deal counsel; this position supports and coordinates rather than owning those matters.
You will report to the CFO within Finance & Strategy and work closely with the Chief of Staff, IT, People Operations, Sales, and Accounting.
Responsibilities
Commercial contracts and MSAs (primary focus)
- Draft, review, and negotiate customer MSAs, order forms, DPAs, and amendments, including redlines with public and private higher-ed institutions and their counsel
- Manage a queue of concurrent negotiations, prioritizing by deal size, urgency, and risk
- Review and negotiate terms with resellers, integration partners, and data and technology vendors
- Build and maintain standard templates, fallback positions, and an approval playbook to resolve recurring issues (e.g., liability caps, indemnification, data-breach cost allocation, and insurance requirements) consistently and without creating a legal bottleneck
- Flag and resolve terms in state and public-institution paper, including systemwide or state-mandated terms
Data privacy and compliance
- Support FERPA, state student-data-privacy law, and GDPR compliance in customer contracts and internal data handling
- Advise on digital accessibility obligations for the platform and customer-facing content, including ADA Title II, Sections 504 and 508 of the Rehabilitation Act, WCAG 2.1 AA, and state-specific standards
- Track subprocessor agreements and ensure DPAs are executed and current everywhere a signed MSA references them
- Monitor and advise on emerging state AI regulations relevant to the product
Insurance and risk
- Own review of cyber and other insurance renewal applications with Finance and the CTO, ensuring representations are accurate and complete
- Help size and document risk exposure on large or unusual deals for leadership sign-off
Disputes and public records
- Manage potential customer disputes in their early stages, including responses to customer counsel, and escalate to outside litigation counsel when needed
- Own responses to public-records and FOIA requests from state-institution customers, including trade-secret and proprietary exceptions where appropriate
Employment and corporate support
- Advise on employment matters alongside People Operations
- Own the Proprietary Information and Invention Agreement program so every employee and contractor signs at onboarding and agreements stay current with the law
- Support board resolutions, corporate-secretary filings, and Economic Disclosure Statements, coordinating with outside counsel on structuring, M&A, and financing
Requirements (Must haves)
- J.D. and an active license to practice law in at least one U.S. state
- 5 to 10 years of commercial or contracts law experience; ideally in-house at a B2B SaaS company or in a law firm commercial practice serving SaaS clients
- Demonstrated experience negotiating MSAs, DPAs, and enterprise SaaS agreements, including with public-sector or higher-ed customers
- Working knowledge of FERPA, state privacy laws, and GDPR
- Ability to operate as a generalist and prioritize a high volume of concurrent matters with limited legal-team support
- Strong written and verbal communication, with the ability to translate legal risk into plain-language guidance for non-lawyers
Preferred Qualifications (Nice to haves)
- Experience in higher-ed technology, EdTech, or another regulated SaaS vertical
- Familiarity with insurance and cyber-coverage review and renewal processes
- Exposure to PE-backed company governance and reporting
Compensation & Benefits
- Home office allowance (remote-first)
- 20 days PTO
- 10 company holidays
- 4% 401(k) match
- Competitive medical, dental, and vision coverage
Location
Remote-first role. Home office required.