Senior CounselSan Francisco, CA

Back to jobs New Senior Counsel San Francisco, CA Apply The Role We're hiring our first in-house attorney — and with that comes a rare opportunity to build Descript's legal function from the ground up. As Senior Counsel, you'll own most of Descript's day-to-day legal operations, with outside counsel supporting complex matters. This is a high-autonomy role. You'll be the go-to legal advisor across the company, partnering with sales, product, finance, and engineering teams on everything from commercial deals to AI product counsel to employment matters. You won't just run legal — you'll define how it operates, building the processes, templates, and frameworks that scale with the company. If you thrive as a pragmatic generalist who can move fast, exercise independent judgment, and wants to shape a legal function rather than inherit one, this role is for you. What You'll Do Commercial contracts : Draft, review, and negotiate SaaS agreements, licensing deals, partnership agreements, and vendor contracts. Enterprise sales support : Review and negotiate customer enterprise agreements to accelerate deal velocity Employment matters : Oversee offer letters, separation agreements, equity grants, and day-to-day employment questions (CA + multi-state) IP coordination : Manage trademark and patent matters in partnership with outside counsel Privacy & data protection : Own DPAs, data subject requests, and cross-border data transfer requirements AI & product counsel : Advise product and engineering teams on legal implications of AI/ML features, including model licensing, training data usage, generated content rights, and emerging AI regulations Compliance & risk management : Track and support the company's compliance posture across key frameworks (SOC 2, GDPR, CCPA). Monitor regulatory developments affecting AI/ML products, flag emerging risks to leadership, and coordinate cross-functional responses. Own the compliance calendar: renewals, certifications, audits, and regulatory filings. Corporate governance :Support board minutes, equity plan administration, and consent actions Outside counsel management — Interface with outside counsel on complex matters (Fundraising, M&A, litigation, regulatory), managing scope and spend Build the legal function : Design and implement scalable legal processes from scratch: contract templates, playbooks, intake workflows, and a contract lifecycle management system. What We're Looking For Required: JD from an accredited law school; active member of the California Bar (or ability to waive in) 7-10 years of legal experience, including at least 2-3 years in-house at a technology or SaaS company Law firm background (BigLaw or strong mid-market) plus in-house experience Strong commercial contracts experience — you can run a deal end-to-end without supervision Working knowledge of employment law (California required, multi-state a plus) Familiarity with IP basics (trademarks, patents) and privacy/data protection (DPAs, GDPR, SOC 2) Experience building or maintaining a compliance program (SOC 2, privacy frameworks, or similar) Comfortable operating as a solo legal practitioner with outside counsel as a resource, not a crutch Pragmatic judgment — you know when to push back and when to move fast Nice to Have: Familiarity with enterprise sales contracts and procurement processes M&A due diligence experience (even if not leading transactions) Experience at a company of similar stage (Series C-D, 100-500 employees) Why Descript Build from zero — You're not inheriting a legal department; you're creating one. Define the processes, tools, and culture of Descript's legal function. Direct executive access — Report to and partner with the VP of Finance & Operations; advise cross-functionally across sales, product, finance, and engineering. AI at the core — Work on novel AI/ML licensing, product counsel, and regulatory questions that most legal roles never touch. Growth trajectory — This role can evolve into Head of Legal ... (truncated, view full listing at source)