Lead Legal Counsel, Upstart

• Experience drafting and negotiating complex B2B SaaS agreements is required
• Experience drafting and negotiating commercial agreements involving financial services and/or technology licenses in a heavily regulated environment is a big plus
• If you have the confidence, creativity, and flexibility to tackle ambiguity and craft innovative legal arrangements with a bias towards action, this could be the right opportunity for you
• J.D. degree with solid academic credentials and a state bar membership (NY or CA preferred)
• 7+ years of experience at a law firm in a transactional practice area (ideally technology transactions, capital markets, or similar) or some combination of in-house/law firm experience with a focus on transactional/commercial matters
• Demonstrated ability to act as legal point during intense/complex negotiations and to work effectively with sales leadership to manage expectations and goals
• Experience reviewing, drafting and negotiating complex B2B SaaS agreements, preferably in a regulated environment or while licensing into a regulated environment
• Not just an issue‑spotter but an issue‑solver, with a “can‑do” mindset, a habit of moving quickly, and ownership to drive matters from start to finish; and
• An exceptionally high bar for your own work product and a desire to work with teammates who operate at a similarly high standard

Desirable

• As a Lead Legal Counsel, Lending Partnerships at Upstart, you’ll be joining a close-knit, collaborative team of attorneys who work in a fast-paced innovative environment
• You will act as a key point person for our Lending Partnerships business, while also handling a broad range of commercial, business development, and transactional legal matters across the entire organization
• This position is unique because it offers exposure to new legal issues and the opportunity to work on diverse tasks such as contract drafting and negotiation and a number of projects that will arise as we continue to scale
• Build a deep understanding of our Lending Partnerships (LP) business and collaborate effectively with internal clients to understand and support their goals
• Act as a key member of our LP commercial team to provide legal and strategic advice to assess and mitigate legal risks while driving business growth
• Review, draft, and negotiate a wide variety of commercial agreements, including purchase agreements, loan sale agreements, servicing agreements, master services agreements, software licenses, SOWs, and other agreements
• Engage with numerous internal stakeholders to escalate and resolve issues quickly and efficiently during negotiations; and
• Develop processes and templates for commercial transactions to support and drive rapidly growing business