Legal - Contracts Specialist

Overview

This exempt Legal Department position serves as a Contracts Specialist with responsibility for independently reviewing, analyzing, and drafting third-party and vendor contracts of varying complexity. The role ensures alignment with applicable laws, regulatory requirements, and internal contracting standards, and coordinates contract review and risk mitigation across Legal and key stakeholder groups.

Responsibilities

• Independently review, analyze, and draft contractual documents of varying complexity, including:
  • Master Services Agreements (MSAs)
  • Statements of Work (SOWs)
  • Order Forms
  • Non Disclosure Agreements (NDAs)
• Interpret and assess terms and conditions of routine and non-routine agreements, identifying:
  • Contractual risk exposure
  • Control gaps
  • Required escalations
• Serve as the primary contract resource for vendor engagements by partnering closely with:
  • Credit union attorneys
  • Compliance specialists
  • Enterprise Risk Management
  • Subject matter experts
• Influence contract structuring and language strategy by assisting with development, refinement, and standardization of contract clauses and templates—particularly those related to:
  • Risk
  • Privacy
  • Security
  • Business continuity
  • Regulatory compliance
• Administer the end-to-end contract review process for higher-risk and complex matters, coordinating internal and external parties to ensure timely, compliant review by required stakeholders (e.g., Legal, Compliance, Information Security, Enterprise Risk Management).
• Support contract data integrity and governance within contract management systems, ensuring accurate risk classification, audit readiness, and traceability—especially for contracts subject to enhanced scrutiny or regulatory review.
• Develop and maintain strong, trusted advisory relationships with key stakeholders across business units and corporate functions.
• Maintain working knowledge of applicable state and federal laws and regulations impacting credit unions, vendor contracting, privacy, information security, and compliance, as appropriate to higher-risk contract matters.
• Monitor and apply emerging trends and best practices in third-party risk, vendor contracting, and contract management, translating insights into practical improvements for complex vendor relationships.
• Promote enterprise awareness of contract review and vendor management programs, including educating stakeholders on:
  • Risk-based contract requirements
  • Escalation thresholds
  • Expectations for higher-risk engagements.
• Perform other duties as required to support the Legal Department.

Requirements

• Bachelor’s Degree in business, Finance, Accounting, Legal Studies, or a related field required.
• 5+ years of progressively responsible experience in contract management, legal operations, procurement, or as a corporate paralegal.
• Demonstrated experience handling complex, higher-risk vendor contracts required.

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience in financial services or other highly regulated industries strongly preferred.

Compensation & Benefits

• Pay Range: $103,100.00 - $107,000.00 Annually
• Provides a market-competitive and internally equitable total rewards compensation package, including:
  • Comprehensive compensation package
  • Well-being and work-life balance
  • Career development and growth
  • Rewards and recognition
  • Commitment to Diversity, Equity and Inclusion

Location

California (as applicable to the employer’s work supporting California objectives).