Sr Counsel, Corporate & Strategic Transactions

Provides the organization with legal advice related to transactional law, prepares resolutions, and participates in major legal actions. Ensures that business activities are in compliance with all relevant laws and regulations to protect the organization's reputation and business interests. Structures and negotiates complex financial transactions involving private placements, private equity, hedge funds, derivatives and other products.

We are seeking a dynamic and experienced transactional attorney with a strong track record of delivering practical legal guidance and successfully executing complex deals. This role requires a versatile legal professional who thrives in a fast-paced environment, demonstrates sound judgment, and is eager to manage a diverse portfolio of transactional work. The ideal candidate will possess the agility to navigate a wide range of transaction types and the confidence to take ownership from inception through execution.

Responsibilities:

• Demonstrated ability to advise and guide senior leaders across divisions, manage complex projects and multiple workstreams from end-to-end, while executing on details of transactions. Can be trusted to issue spot across domains and provide internal decisionmakers with the appropriate information to make decisions and escalate issues.

• Ability to quickly come up to speed with business, technical, legal, and regulatory issues in the asset management and financial services industry, including intermedial distribution models for investment products and services. Comfort with continuous learning to support a diverse body of evolving work, including novel transactions for Vanguard.

• Strong business judgment, analytical skills, and ability to communicate effectively and translate legal or technical concepts into clear and actionable language for audiences at different levels of organization.

• Comfort with drafting and negotiating a wide range of legal documents such as buy-side/sell-side NDAs, Term Sheets, LOIs, funding/purchase agreements, transaction agreements, vendor contracts, governance committee memos, and correspondence of legal significance. 

• Effectively evaluate, leverage and direct outside counsel in a targeted manner, including reviewing and validating outside counsel findings, recommendations, and invoices. 

• Participate in cross-disciplinary and cross-divisional working groups, special projects, and performs other duties as assigned. 

Qualifications:

• Minimum of 6 years of experience in corporate and commercial law, with a focus on complex commercial, technology, cross-border, or M&A transactions.

• Prior exposure to in-house legal processes and the financial services industry is preferred.

• Proven ability to advise and influence senior leaders across business divisions.

• Quick learner with the ability to grasp business, technical, legal, and regulatory issues in the asset management and financial services industry.

• Willingness to continuously learn and adapt to support a broad and evolving range of transactions, including novel deal structures.

• Proficiency in drafting and negotiating a variety of legal documents, including NDAs, term sheets, LOIs, funding/purchase agreements, transaction agreements, vendor contracts, governance memos, and legal correspondence.

• Venture capital experience and familiarity with company formation, venture fundraising, and NVCA model documents is a plus.

• Strong understanding of intermediary distribution models for investment products and services, including broker-dealer and RIA aggregator relationships, platform access, omnibus arrangements, and related compensation structures is a plus.
  
  

Special Factors

Sponsorship

Vanguard is not offering visa sponsorship for this position.

About Vanguard

At Vanguard, we don't just have a mission—we're on a mission.

To work for the long-term financial wellbeing of our clients. To lead through product and services that transform our clients' lives. To learn and develop our skills as individuals and as a team. From Malvern to Melbourne, our mission drives us forward and inspires us to be our best.

How We Work

Vanguard has implemented a hybrid working model for the majority of our crew members, designed to capture the benefits of enhanced flexibility while enabling in-person learning, collaboration, and connection. We believe our mission-driven and highly collaborative culture is a critical enabler to support long-term client outcomes and enrich the employee experience.