Overview
The Executive Director, Associate General Counsel, Payer and Strategic Transactions will lead legal support for payer contracting activities and strategic business development transactions, as well as general commercial contracting and other matters as business needs arise. This role serves as the primary legal advisor for market access, including commercial and government payer contracting, corporate accounts, specialty pharmacy, and distribution arrangements. It also leads legal support for strategic partnerships, licensing transactions, corporate development initiatives, and other key agreements. The position requires an attorney capable of managing transactions end-to-end, from due diligence through negotiation and closing, and serving as a trusted strategic advisor to commercial and business development leadership.
This high-visibility role involves close collaboration with commercial leadership, market access, business development, and finance teams during the scaling of a pharmaceutical franchise. The position offers the opportunity to shape contracting strategy, build scalable processes, and drive strategic transactions in a fast-growing organization.
Responsibilities
- Lead legal counsel for payer, value-based, and specialty pharmacy contracting, including commercial and government payer agreements, PBM contracts, rebate arrangements, formulary agreements, and administrative fee arrangements.
- Collaborate with business teams to draft, negotiate, and manage contracts with corporate accounts.
- Advise market access, trade, and distribution teams on channel strategy and 340B program considerations.
- Lead strategic business development transactions end-to-end, including licensing agreements, collaborations, manufacturing agreements, and other commercial and R&D agreements; coordinate cross-functional teams and external counsel to drive deals to completion.
- Monitor, anticipate, and advise on regulatory and market developments affecting commercial contracting, including federal and state PBM reform legislation, FTC enforcement trends, safe harbor changes, and pricing transparency requirements; proactively assess legal and commercial impact on payer contracting strategy.
- Develop and maintain contract templates, playbooks, and approval workflows to enable efficient contracting at scale.
- Advise on healthcare fraud and abuse laws (Anti-Kickback Statute, False Claims Act) and Medicaid best price implications in the context of commercial arrangements.
Requirements
- Juris Doctor (JD) from an accredited law school and active bar membership in at least one U.S. jurisdiction.
- Minimum of 12 years of relevant legal experience, with the majority in-house at a pharmaceutical, biotechnology, or life sciences company.
- Extensive experience drafting and negotiating managed care, PBM, and payer contracts.
- Strong knowledge of healthcare fraud and abuse laws, Medicaid best price, and government pricing programs.
- Experience leading or significantly contributing to business development transactions, including licensing agreements, strategic collaborations, and other corporate development deals.
- Familiarity with specialty pharmacy, limited distribution, 340B, and most favored nation (MFN) pricing provisions and their implications for contract negotiations and pricing strategy.
- Preferred experience with outcomes-based or value-based contracting arrangements.
- Preparedness to discuss representative payer, PBM, and/or business development transactions where served as lead counsel or significant contributor.
Competencies & Skills
- Ability to provide solution-oriented guidance with strong cross-functional collaboration skills and build trusted relationships.
- Enterprise mindset with willingness to engage hands-on in a small team environment.
- Ability to prioritize and manage multiple responsibilities simultaneously and follow through on issues promptly.
- Strong business judgment with the ability to translate legal risk into actionable guidance; anticipate regulatory and market changes affecting payer contracting and assess their impact.
- Excellent negotiation skills with demonstrated ability to drive complex payer and business development transactions to closure under time pressure.
- Clear and effective written and verbal communication skills, including explaining complex legal issues to non-lawyers.
- Proven ability to handle highly confidential information with discretion, including deal terms and pricing data.
- Willingness to travel up to 25% of the time.
Compensation & Benefits
Details regarding compensation and benefits are not specified in this description.
Location
Location details are not specified in this description.
This job description outlines the general nature and level of work performed by employees in this position and is not a comprehensive inventory of all duties, responsibilities, and qualifications required. The employer is an Equal Opportunity Employer and does not discriminate based on race, color, sex, age, national origin, religion, sexual orientation, gender identity, veteran status, disability, or any other protected class under federal, state, or local law.