Legal Counsel

WHO WE ARE

Element was founded by the team behind the Matrix protocol, a groundbreaking project redefining how the world communicates through open, secure and decentralised messaging.

The mission behind Matrix is simple but powerful: make messaging as open and accessible as email. That means giving people and organisations the freedom to choose where their data is hosted, enjoy truly private conversations, and stay in control of their communications.

Today, Element helps major organisations run Matrix securely at scale, from the French, German and British governments to international institutions like NATO and the UN.

THE ROLE

We are looking for a Legal Counsel to join our Legal & Business Operations team and be an integral partner to a variety of departments, providing pragmatic advice and legal support as Element continues to scale.

This role is ideal for someone who has a keen eye for detail, thrives on coming up with practical solutions and loves to own and manage complex projects. Reporting to the Head of Legal and Business Operations, this is a phenomenal opportunity to be part of our legal team working on cutting edge issues in a fast-paced, globally distributed and ever-changing environment.

Responsibilities:

• Provide legal support on a variety of commercial and corporate matters under time-sensitive conditions.
• Assist both our Head of Legal & Business Operations and our Head of Policy & Compliance with contract and policy reviewing and drafting (including services agreements, NDAs, DPAs, SaaS license agreements, employment contracts, commission plans), and project manage contract issuances.
• Develop, implement and maintain standard templates, forms and processes.
• Draft, review and amend internal guidelines, standard terms and policies, employment contracts, commission plans and other legal documents.
• Handle legal queries from all areas of the company, involving other members of the Business Operations team and/or outside counsel as needed.
• Manage external legal counsel in various jurisdictions as necessary.
• Handle licensing queries around open source, dual licensing or proprietary licensing.
• Contribute towards designing legal and business processes that enable Element to scale.  
• Work with other members of the team on ensuring our legal records are up to date.
• Support with ad-hoc legal and/or business operations projects as needed.

WHAT YOU WILL BRING

• Qualified UK solicitor or similar qualification ( 3 to 6 years PQE).
• Experience in either an in-house team or private practice, ideally, with experience advising on a range of commercial matters including ideally those involving licensing, Open Source Software (OSS) and SaaS.
• You are business minded and practical in addressing legal issues. You can differentiate between legal and commercial issues and understand when to escalate. 
• You have exceptional interpersonal skills, including outstanding verbal and written skills in English.
• You are highly detail-oriented, and adept at spotting inconsistencies and anomalies. 
• Highly organised with the ability to balance and prioritise multiple tasks.
• You are autonomous and at the same time a good team player
• You are naturally curious and want to work on a broad variety of matters, with teams across various business functions.
• Interest or experience in technology.
• Energised by a dynamic, fast-paced, and remote-first workplace.

BONUS POINT IF YOU ALSO HAVE

• Knowledge of Labour law and employment issues.
• Knowledge of and experience working with global data protection laws. 
• Speak German or French.
• International and cross-jurisdictional experience.

LOCATION

The team operates remotely and we can consider applicants only from the United Kingdom. Please note you must possess the right to work in the UK as we are unable to provide visa sponsorship at this time.

COMPENSATION

£75,000 - £99,000

• 32 days of annual leave (total of 40 days with bank holidays)
• Private healthcare
• Share options
• L&D budget
• Access to Plumm, a Wellbeing Platform
• Home office allowance

OUR VALUES

• We care about the greater good
• We work together in the open
• We are proud of how we serve our customers
• We are ambitious and iterate rapidly

EQUALITY, DIVERSITY & INCLUSION

Element does not discriminate on the basis of race, sex, colour, religion, age, national origin, marital status, disability, veteran status, genetic information, sexual orientation, gender identity or any other reason prohibited by law in provision of employment opportunities and benefits.

Your personal data will be processed in accordance with our career privacy policy.