Senior Commercial Counsel

KLDiscovery; Chennai; Hybrid; INR 4,000,000 - 8,000,000; Full time

Job summary

KLDiscovery seeks a Senior Commercial Lawyer to join its Legal team, focusing on EMEA and APAC matters. The role offers autonomy and close collaboration with Indian management, handling a broad range of commercial agreements and AI governance issues.

The ideal candidate will have 8+ years PQE, experience advising on APAC/EMEA matters, and strong drafting/negotiation skills in technology and SaaS contexts. Remote-friendly, with hybrid arrangements in many roles.

Qualifications

• Minimum of 8 years post-qualification experience, with 5 years in an international environment advising APAC/EMEA matters.
• Qualified lawyer with experience in a technology or SaaS company or reputable law firm.
• Strong drafting and negotiation skills across commercial and technology agreements.

Responsibilities

• Support EMEA and APAC commercial matters, including contract negotiation and risk assessment.
• Draft, review, and negotiate software licensing, SaaS, MSAs, DPA, NDA, and customer/vendor contracts.
• Advise on AI governance, data protection, and emerging AI regulation in commercial deals.
• Provide pragmatic legal risk assessments and mitigations for new products and features.
• Coordinate with external counsels and oversee CoSec work for India business.
• Collaborate with Sales, Product, Engineering, and Business teams on deal structuring and launches.

Skills

Drafting & negotiation

Data privacy

AI governance

Communication

Interpersonal skills

Commercial law

Education

Qualified lawyer (LL.B./equivalent)

Job description

KLDiscovery is a leading global provider of best-in-class eDiscovery, information governance, and data recovery solutions, serving AmLaw 100 firms, Fortune 500 corporations, and government agencies. Our technology-enabled services and software help these law firms, corporations and agencies solve complex data challenges. Our Nebula and RelOne platforms deliver SaaS-based legal technology underpinned by managed services and professional services. The company, with offices in 26 locations across 17 countries helps clients with their litigation, regulatory compliance, internal investigation and data recovery and management needs all around the world.

Serving clients for over 30 years, KLDiscovery offers data collection and forensic investigation, early case assessment, electronic discovery and data processing, application software and data hosting for web-based document reviews, and managed document review services. In addition, through its global Ontrack Data Recovery business, KLDiscovery delivers world-class data recovery, email extraction and restoration, data destruction and tape management.

KLDiscovery has been recognized as one of the fastest growing companies in North America by both Inc. Magazine (Inc. 5000) and Deloitte (Deloitte’s Technology Fast 500. Additionally, KLDiscovery is an Orange-level Relativity Best in Service Partner, a Relativity Premium Hosting Partner and Relativity’s 1st Service Provider partner, and maintains ISO/IEC 27001 Certified data centers.

What You’ll Do

We are looking for a Senior Commercial Lawyer to join our Legal team who is passionate about our mission and brings initiative, authenticity, and collaborative spirit to everything they do. If you’re fueled by innovation and committed to delivering exceptional results, KLDiscovery is the perfect place to grow your career. This is a senior position with real scope and autonomy. Working primarily with our EMEA business and supporting APAC, you will own matters end to end and be a trusted, decisive advisor to the business.

• Working close with the Legal Director to support the business in EMEA, through direct contract negotiation, assessing data privacy risks, provision of ad hoc legal advice and solving legal challenges as they arise, advising independently and with confidence
• Act as one of the primary point of contact for EMEA and APAC commercial legal matters
• Take lead with local Indian management to support the Indian business on the ground.
• Draft, review, and negotiate a wide range of commercial agreements, including software and technology licensing, SaaS, master services agreements, data processing agreements, Non-Disclosure Agreements, and customer and vendor contracts. Handle negotiations independently from first draft through to signature, including higher-value and non-standard deals.
• Provide legal counsel on the development, deployment, and commercialization of artificial intelligence and machine learning products and services, including advising on AI governance, responsible AI practices, and emerging AI regulation.
• Identify legal risks associated with new products, features, and business initiatives, and propose practical, business-oriented mitigation strategies.
• Give clear, decisive and commercially aware advice and stand behind it; spot risks and bring solutions proactively and manage stakeholders assertively and with confidence.
• Supervising and coordinating work of local external counsels as needed and manage litigation.
• Manage company secretarial (CoSec) work for the India business, working with external service providers and overseeing their delivery, cost and quality.
• Advise on data privacy, intellectual property, and regulatory compliance issues arising from commercial transactions and technology products.
• Partner with Sales, Product, Engineering, and Business teams to structure deals, support product launches, and provide day-to-day transactional support.
• Stay current on developments in AI law and data protection, proactively advising stakeholders on implications and best practices and updating documentation accordingly.
• Leverage AI tools and legal technology to improve productivity, decision-making, and legal service delivery.
• Collaborate with legal colleagues in all jurisdictions to provide support in other areas based on experience and interest.

Who You Are

• Minimum of 8 years experience post qualification experience, of which 5 years’ experience should be in an international environment, advising on APAC and EMEA commercial matters.
• Must be a qualified lawyer, with post qualified experience in a reputable law firm, and/or in-house in a technology or SaaS company.
• Strong, demonstrable experience advising on EMEA commercial matters (ideally including UK and/or EU law), including independent ownership of a substantial caseload.
• Experience advising on data privacy, artificial intelligence, machine learning, cloud computing with demonstrable depth in at least some of these areas and a strong desire to build expertise in them
• Strong drafting and negotiation skills across a range of commercial and technology agreements.
• Sound judgment and the ability to assess and communicate legal risk pragmatically in a fast-paced, high-tech environment. Commercially aware and decisive, with the confidence to give clear advice and stand behind it.
• Excellent interpersonal skills, with the ability to build trust and influence across all levels of the organization.
• Proactive and self-directed, taking ownership of matters from start to finish, picking up work without waiting for delegation and following through to resolution.
• Excellent communication skills with the ability to convey complex legal concepts in plain language to both legal and non-legal audiences.
• Ability to prioritize and manage multiple assignments simultaneously while maintaining commitment to deadlines, or experience in a fast-paced, high-tech company.
• Process-oriented mindset, with a drive to improve systems, workflows, and outcomes.
• Adaptability and intellectual curiosity, with a willingness to expand into new legal domains and support cross-functional initiatives.
• Collaborative team player, comfortable working in a proactive legal department and contributing to a broad range of legal issues.

Our Mission & Values

Our Mission: We bring clarity, trust, and meaning to data for clients navigating legal matters worldwide.

These four values guide how we operate, make decisions, and work together every day.

• Client is Always in the Room - We operate and make decisions as if the client is in the room. We anticipate their needs, consider their perspective, and prioritize their best interests.
• Own the Outcome - We bring an unwavering bias for action, act with urgency, and hold ourselves accountable to our clients, and each other.
• Better Every Day - We improve our tomorrow by always striving to be better than today. We embrace curiosity, question assumptions, and raise the bar constantly.
• Deliver Results Together - We collaborate obsessively to achieve shared success. We assume good intentions, debate ideas thoughtfully, treat each other with respect, and fully commit once decisions are made.

KLDiscovery is an Equal Opportunity Employer. We do not discriminate on the basis of race, color, creed, religion, national origin, ancestry, sex, gender identity, gender expression, sexual orientation, marital or family status, pregnancy, age, veteran status, disability, genetic information, or any other characteristic protected by applicable law. This commitment applies to all aspects of employment, including recruitment, hiring, compensation, promotion, training, discipline, and termination. Employment decisions are based on job-related qualifications, skills, and experience.

WHY YOU’LL LOVE WORKING FOR KLD

At KLD, our people are at the heart of everything we do. We believe that when our employees feel supported, valued, and empowered, they can thrive both personally and professionally. That’s why we’re committed to fostering a collaborative, inclusive workplace where you can grow your career, make meaningful contributions, and enjoy a healthy work-life balance.

Our competitive benefits and programs are designed to support your well-being and success. Depending on your location, these may include comprehensive health and wellness benefits, retirement and financial programs, paid time off and leave options, employee assistance resources, and professional development opportunities.

We also embrace flexibility, offering remote work opportunities for most employees to support work-life balance while keeping our teams connected and collaborative. Certain roles may require an office-based or hybrid schedule based on business and operational needs.

Wherever you’re located, you’ll be part of a global team that values your contributions, supports your growth, and celebrates your success.

Benefits and eligibility vary by country, location, employment status, and applicable plan or program requirements. India compensation is based upon the local competitive market.