Associate General Counsel
Databases are the beating heart of every business in the world.
Cockroach Labs is the team behind CockroachDB, an open-source, distributed SQL database. We aim to build infrastructure that keeps pace with the world, so developers can focus on what matters most: building the best products. Join us on our mission to Make Data Easy. Are you ready to aim high and build to last?
About the Role
The Associate General Counsel will be the second member of the Legal team at Cockroach Labs and play a large role in shaping the Legal organization. You will oversee a broad portfolio of cutting-edge and complex technology, privacy, international, corporate, policy and regulatory matters. You will be a trusted partner to the business and develop a deep understanding of Cockroach Labs’ product and strategy. You will work closely with internal clients at all levels of leadership to assess legal and business risks and make sound decisions under tight deadlines. The Associate General Counsel will be on the ground floor of a newly formed function at a high growth startup and will have significant opportunities for growth.
You Will
- Lead complex, cross-border, commercial negotiations with some of the biggest brands in technology, e-commerce, banking, and other industries.
- Assist the People team on growing our international employee base, structuring our commission plans and employment contracts and managing other personnel issues.
- Build best-in-class runbooks and processes to allow our rapidly growing sales team to scale their go to market efforts quickly and responsibly.
- Support product, engineering and marketing teams in developing and launching new products and features.
- Ensure compliance with a variety of laws and regulations impacting database offerings, including intellectual property, privacy, security and government contracting.
- Define and roll out various legal programs designed to improve Cockroach Labs’ overall legal profile, such as a company code of conduct, whistleblower policy, employee training, and others.
- Work closely with the Finance team on managing our corporate entities and other legal matters.
- Help continually improve our standard form agreements and online T&Cs, legal processes, policies and training.
The Expectations
In your first 30 days, you will develop a strong understanding of our product offerings and the structure of our various internal functions. You will meet and begin to develop relationships with leaders within our Revenue, Finance and People organizations. You will become very familiar with our contracts and policies. You will shadow the General Counsel on a few customer negotiations and provide feedback on the current FY ‘22 legal plan.
In your first 60 days, you will have a firmer understanding of Cockroach Labs’ legal priorities and needs. You will take the lead in negotiating various of our commercial contracts and own executing on discrete parts of larger legal team initiatives. You will develop expertise in Cockroach Labs’ partnership and reseller programs and begin identifying opportunities for improvement. You will work closely with members of the People team on day to day legal matters that arise.
After 3 months, you'll be fully integrated into the team. You will be working on the legal team’s core priorities and start identifying new opportunities for the team’s initiatives. You will closely track functional objectives and plan ahead to ensure legal is prepared to effectively support those objectives where needed. You will regularly liaise with key stakeholders in other Cockroach functions, including Revenue and People.
You Have
- A broad range of direct experience with a variety of legal matters, ideally including commercial contract negotiation, employment, information security and compliance, corporate governance and entity management, intellectual property, international expansions, and privacy.
- A proven track record of driving complex cross-functional initiatives to successful completion.
- Experience identifying and implementing organizational systems designed to drive operational efficiencies.
- Excellent negotiating skills with both legal and financial/commercial issues.
- Exceptional interpersonal and presentation skills and an ability to communicate effectively with others at all levels of the organization.
- An entrepreneurial spirit and passion for technology and team building.
- Ability to offer clear and concise business-minded guidance around legal issues.
- Minimum 5 years experience at a top-tier law firm or in-house legal department. Prior tech experience is a plus.
- Member in good standing of the New York state bar or eligible to register as in-house counsel in New York State.
The Team
Reporting to Dan Hegwood - General Counsel
Dan has always been passionate about technology and is dedicated to building legal teams that empower and amplify inventive businesses and products rather than constrain it. At Cockroach Labs, Dan is dedicated to building a Legal function that achieves these goals. Dan has experience building legal teams in high growth tech environments and has a strong understanding of privacy and big data issues. Dan enjoys mentoring attorneys on his team and is proud that many of the lawyers he previously managed went on to General Counsel and other leadership roles at other tech companies. In his spare time, Dan loves spending quality time with his young kids, traveling, cooking and doing anything outdoors in nature.
Our Benefits
- 100% health insurance coverage (for you and your dependents!)
- Paid parental leave (with baby bucks)
- Flex Fridays
- Flexible time off & flexible hours
- Education reimbursement
- Relocation support
Cockroach Labs is proud to be an Equal Opportunity Employer, building a diverse and inclusive workforce. If you need additional accommodations to feel comfortable during your interview process, please email us at [email protected].