Senior Corporate Counsel
About Toptal
Toptal is a global network of top talent in business, design, and technology that enables companies to scale their teams, on-demand. With $200+ million in annual revenue and team members based around the globe, Toptal is the world’s largest fully remote workforce.
We take the best elements of virtual teams and combine them with a support structure that encourages innovation, social interaction, and fun. We see no borders, move at a fast pace, and are never afraid to break the mold.
Job Summary:
This is a fully-remote, senior-level, in-house Legal Counsel position that will be primarily responsible for drafting and negotiating complex commercial contracts with Toptal’s larger and more sophisticated Enterprise clients as well as its vendors and assisting with strategic transactions, including mergers and acquisitions. The Senior Corporate Counsel will also provide ongoing legal counsel and support to existing and new Enterprise clients, including in various areas such as data privacy (GDPR, CCPA), security and risk. This position involves substantial cross-team collaboration.
This is a remote position. We require applicants and the person in this position to reside within the US. We do not offer visa sponsorship or assistance. Resumes and communication must be submitted in English.
Responsibilities:
The following information is intended to describe the general nature and level of work being performed. It is not intended to be an exhaustive list of all duties, responsibilities, or required skills.
Our ideal candidate has demonstrated commercial contracting expertise (preferably in the staffing or contingent worker area), substantial experience supporting fast-paced business negotiations, outstanding legal and business acumen, excellent customer service and leadership skills, and a positive, proactive, “can-do” attitude. Additionally, our ideal candidate must have strong experience in mergers and acquisitions. She or he must be a self-starter and bring her or his expertise to bear to identify, manage, and mitigate risks by a business-practical application of Toptal’s policies, processes, and procedures. The ability to understand risks, balance competing interests, and provide appropriate, succinct, and actionable advice is critical to success for this position. She or he will have significant responsibility for the development and on-going review of relevant commercial contracting processes, guidelines, and procedures.
This is an important, client-facing position. Like all roles within Toptal’s Legal department, it requires collaboration with others across many functional areas but ultimately will entail direct work more than managing the work of others. It is expected that the Senior Corporate Counsel will cultivate productive relationships with our clients and business partners and foster a customer-centric approach that is simultaneously protective of Toptal’s legal and business interests and reputation.
In the first week, expect to:
- Onboard and integrate into Toptal and the team.
- Obtain an understanding of organizational tools and processes.
In the first month, expect to:
- Begin to familiarize yourself with our commercial Enterprise agreements and the organizational best practices relating to negotiation points and all aspects of Toptal’s data privacy, compliance, security, M&A and other relevant programs and policies.
In the first three months, expect to:
- Begin to take on assignments and negotiations with increasing levels of responsibility and complexity, with a focus on familiarity with recognizing and implementing Toptal’s best practices, primarily on negotiations based on Toptal’s contract templates or vendors and all related data privacy matters.
- Develop strong personal relationships with other legal team members and with the sales team to help drive the documentation that supports our sales and talent network efforts.
- Develop strong personal relationships with the risk/compliance and security team members in order to help drive best practices in Toptal’s data privacy program and policies.
- Participate on deal work, including due diligence requests and reviews, purchase agreement negotiations, and similar tasks, as available.
In the first six months, expect to:
- Be prepared to lead increasingly more complex negotiations and finalize agreements with our commercial partners, with a focus on negotiations centered on client contract templates.
- Be prepared to evaluate vendors and how their processes interact and comply with Toptal’s data privacy and security requirements.
- Be prepared to review and respond to large, complex requests for proposals.
- Provide ongoing advice on day to day Enterprise client matters, while exercising discretion and independent judgment.
- Review and provide comments on purchase agreements.
In the first year, expect to:
- Be viewed as a go-to expert in the privacy and commercial contract negotiation space, with additional expertise developed in one or more areas such as regulatory compliance matters.
- Continue to identify areas to improve efficiency and uplevel the speed and efficiency of the negotiation process.
- Be called upon to assist Sales and Account Management teams with interpretation and implementation of contract terms and resolution of client queries and disputes.
- Help run an acquisition deal from beginning to end, including integration.
Qualifications and Job Requirements:
- Bachelor’s degree is required.
- Admission to a U.S. State or the District of Columbia bar.
- A minimum of 7 years of experience across both law firm and corporate settings.
- Experience structuring and advising clients on complex transactions, including master service agreements, statements of work, NDAs, licensing agreements, and partnership agreements.
- Strong experience negotiating and drafting commercial contracts.
- Strong experience in mergers and acquisitions.
- Strong experience advising on data protection and privacy laws globally, negotiating privacy related agreements, and providing relevant, actionable guidance on changing data privacy landscape.
- Excellent customer service (internal and external), interpersonal, and organizational skills.
- The ability to quickly master and integrate legal, business, technical, and practical analysis.
- An extremely sharp eye for detail with exceptional business judgment and a knack for coming up with creative solutions.
- The ability to support and scale in a fast-growing company with a focus on execution.
- Outstanding written and verbal communication skills.
- Ability to work in a fast-paced, rapidly growing company and handle a wide variety of challenges, deadlines, and a diverse array of contacts.
- You must be a world-class individual contributor to thrive at Toptal. You will not be here just to tell other people what to do.
Essential Job Functions
- Regularly and reliably attend scheduled virtual team meetings on camera.
- Work independently with minimal supervision.
- Use all required digital collaboration tools.
- Prioritize and self-manage workflows and deadlines.
US FLSA Classification: Full-Time/Exempt
The US-based salary range for this full-time position is $225,000 - $275,000 per year. Our salary ranges are determined by role, level, and location. The range displayed on each job posting reflects the minimum and maximum target for new hire salaries for the position across all US locations. Within the range, individual pay is determined by work location and additional factors, including job-related skills, experience, and relevant education or training.
Applications are accepted on an ongoing basis. Please note that the US-based salary range does not include the value of Toptal’s benefit offerings. In the US, Toptal’s benefit offerings include participation in a 401(k) retirement plan; medical, dental, and vision health insurance plans; basic life insurance coverage and short-term and long-term disability coverage; access to flexible spending, dependent care, and health savings accounts; access to telehealth virtual doctors; an employee assistance program; and flexible paid time off.
