Senior Counsel Corporate Affairs

LawZero; Montreal; On-site; CAD 120,000 - 180,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Health benefits

20 days vacation per year

Employer retirement contribution 4%

8% additional retirement/bonuses

Job summary

LawZero, a Montréal-based nonprofit advancing safe-by-design AI research, seeks an experienced Assistant Corporate Secretary to shape governance, entity management, and cross-border affairs. You will collaborate with the VP and external counsel to implement governance practices as LawZero expands globally.

Fluency in French and English, and Bar admission in Quebec or another jurisdiction, are required. This role offers meaningful impact, competitive benefits, and a central office in Little Italy.

Qualifications

• 6 to 10 years of relevant experience in corporate and cross-border governance and entity management.
• Barreau du Québec or another law society with eligibility to practise in Québec.
• Experience coordinating multinational structures and advising across legal, tax, financial and operations functions.
• Ability to lead complex matters independently and seek input when needed.
• Clear communication in French and English to directors and executives.

Responsibilities

• Support LawZero’s global corporate governance and entity matters, including subsidiary governance, entity establishment and restructuring, board and membership matters, corporate approvals, delegated authorities, signing frameworks and ongoing entity maintenance.
• Support intercompany affairs, including intercompany agreements, funding flows, transfer pricing, tax matters and cross-border activities, with Finance, tax advisors and external counsel.
• Act as Assistant Corporate Secretary to the Board and governance bodies, preparing meeting materials, minutes and resolutions, maintaining governance documents.
• Support evolution and design of governance as a multi-stakeholder global AI safety organisation, and support member recruitment and onboarding.
• Support fundraising and financing initiatives including government grants and global philanthropy.
• Build and implement a practical compliance and risk management framework with policies and procedures.
• Manage external counsel across jurisdictions with clear mandates and budget oversight.

Skills

Corporate governance

Cross-border governance

Entity management

French & English communication

Independent leadership

Education

Barreau du Québec / law society

Job description

Build the corporate governance structure behind an international AI safety organization. At LawZero, you will shape how new entities are established, funded and governed, and turn complex cross-border advice into decisions the team can implement.

LawZero is a Montréal-based non-profit advancing safe-by-design AI research under the scientific direction of Professor Yoshua Bengio. Launched in 2025, LawZero is growing fast and expanding into a global non-profit operating at the cutting edge of AI.

In this role, you will be supporting a global portfolio of corporate governance, entity and intercompany matters, as well as compliance and risk management. Many processes are still being built, and you will have the opportunity to build governance practices and tools that support LawZero’s growth into a global AI safety organiserion.

Your contribution

• Support LawZero’s global corporate governance and entity matters, including subsidiary governance, entity establishment and restructuring, board and membership matters, corporate approvals, delegated authorities, signing frameworks and ongoing entity maintenance.
• Support LawZero’s intercompany affairs, including intercompany agreements, funding flows, transfer pricing, tax matters and other cross-border activities, working closely with the Finance Team, tax advisors, and external counsel.
• Act as Assistant Corporate Secretary to the Board and other governing bodies of the organisation, preparing meeting materials, minutes and resolutions, maintaining governance documents.
• Support the evolution and design of LawZero’s governance as a multi-stakeholder, high-impact global AI safety organisation, and support member recruitment and onboarding.
• Support fundraising and financing initiatives including government grants and global philanthropy.
• Build and implement a practical compliance and risk management framework, including the development, implementation and monitoring of policies, processes and practices to ensure LawZero’s compliance with regulations, contractual obligations and its mission.
• Manage external counsel across jurisdictions, ensuring clear mandates, effective delivery and budget oversight.

What you bring

Core requirements

• 6 to 10 years of relevant experience, with strong corporate and cross-border governance and entity management experience.
• Member in good standing of the Barreau du Québec, or of another law society with eligibility to practise in Québec.
• Experience supporting complex multinational structures, coordinating local and specialist counsel, and bringing legal, tax, financial and operational advice together into clear recommendations.
• Ability to lead complex matters independently, identify priorities and involve the VP, General Counsel, other leaders or external specialists when needed. You ask focused questions, assess advice and turn it into practical next steps.
• Clear communication in French and English, including the ability to explain complex issues to directors, senior leaders and colleagues across functions.

Helpful, not required

• A combination of law firm and in-house experience.
• Experience in high-growth environments, the non-profit sector, and/or corporate secretariat.
• Experience in technology, AI or another regulated industry, and an interest in using technology, data and AI to improve legal processes.

What we offer

• The chance to contribute meaningfully to a globally critical initiative
• Comprehensive health benefits (including mental health and wellness management account)
• 20 days of vacation per year upon start
• Employer contribution of 4% to your retirement savings, with no required employee match
• Additional compensation totaling 8% of your salary to apply towards additional retirement savings or bonuses (independent of group and individual performance)
• A team of passionate world-class experts in their field
• A collaborative and inclusive work environment in our vibrant office space in the heart of Little Italy, in the trendy Mile-Ex district, close to public transportation

About LawZero

LawZero is a non-profit organization committed to advancing research and creating technical solutions that enable safe-by-design AI systems. Its scientific direction is based on new research and methods proposed by Professor Yoshua Bengio, the most cited AI researcher in the world. Based in Montreal, LawZero’s research aims to build non-agentic AI that learns primarily to understand the world rather than to act in it, giving truthful answers to questions based on transparent and externalized probabilistic reasoning. Such AI systems could be used to accelerate scientific discovery, to provide oversight for agentic AI systems, and to advance the understanding of AI risks and how to avoid them. LawZero believes that AI should be cultivated as a global public good—developed and used safely towards human flourishing. For more information, visit www.lawzero.org

You belong here

At LawZero, diversity is important to us. We value a work environment that is fair, open and respectful of differences. We welcome applications from highly qualified individuals interested in working towards our mission in a respectful, inclusive and collaborative setting.

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