Assistant/Associate General Counsel

TransWork; Philadelphia (Philadelphia County); Hybrid; USD 140,000 - 200,000; Full time

Job summary

The Barnes Foundation seeks an Assistant/Associate General Counsel to provide day-to-day legal support across nonprofit and cultural-institution law, reporting to the Senior Vice President, Legal and Government Affairs & General Counsel.

This generalist in-house role drafts and negotiates contracts, supports compliance and governance, prepares board materials, and advises on employment, IP, cultural property, and risk management. Hybrid work from Philadelphia campus and remote.

Qualifications

• J.D. from an accredited law school and PA bar admission or eligibility
• Minimum 4 years of post-JD legal experience for Assistant General Counsel; 8 years for Associate
• Demonstrated contract drafting and negotiation experience
• Excellent writing and judgment; ability to explain complex issues to non-lawyers
• Collaborative across curatorial, operations, development, finance and HR
• Willingness to learn new practice areas and work as part of a small legal team

Responsibilities

• Draft, review, negotiate, and interpret contracts including exhibitions, loans, acquisitions, sponsorships, services, and vendor agreements
• Ensure compliance with nonprofit regulations and IRS requirements
• Support governance activities: board materials, resolutions, trustee communications and regulatory filings
• Provide legal counsel on employment/HR matters in coordination with HR
• Provide guidance on intellectual property, rights clearances, and cultural property basics
• Support fundraising initiatives with gift agreements and donor restrictions
• Manage major institutional partnerships and day-to-day contractual, governance, and compliance matters

Skills

Contract drafting

Negotiation

Legal research

Written & verbal communication

Cross-department collaboration

Education

Juris Doctor (J.D.)

Bar admission (PA or eligible)

Tools

Contract management software

Office productivity tools

Job description

Primary Function: The Assistant/Associate General Counsel will report to the Senior Vice President, Legal and Government Affairs & General Counsel and will provide day-to-day legal support and counsel across a wide spectrum of matters affecting the Barnes Foundation. This is a generalist in-house counsel role, offering broad, hands-on exposure to nearly every area of nonprofit and cultural-institution law, with substantial opportunity to learn new practice areas, take on increasing responsibility, and grow professionally. Responsibilities include drafting and negotiating contracts; supporting compliance and governance by preparing board and committee materials, maintaining bylaws and policies, coordinating trustee communications, and assisting with regulatory filings. The role also includes advising on employment, intellectual property, cultural property, insurance, and gift agreements; managing legal aspects of major institutional partnerships and initiatives; and contributing to risk management policies and procedures. The ideal candidate will have experience working with nonprofit organizations and a strong understanding of the unique legal challenges faced by cultural institutions, who already has a strong foundation in at least one core substantive area, including corporate and commercial transactions, intellectual property transactions, exempt organizations, and/or labor and employment.

The expected salary range for this position is $140,000 - $160,000 per year for an Assistant General Counsel or $175,000 - $200,000 per year for an Associate General Counsel. The successful candidate will be offered a salary within this range based on specific factors such as their individual qualifications, experience, and internal equity considerations.

Requirements

Job Qualifications

• Juris Doctor (J.D.) from an accredited law school.
• Admission to the Pennsylvania Bar (or ability to obtain admission).
• Minimum of 4 years of post-JD legal experience for Assistant General Counsel; or minimum 8 years for Associate General Counsel.
• Demonstrated contract drafting and negotiation experience (vendor/services, licensing, exhibitions/loans, consultants, sponsorships).
• Excellent writing and judgment, with the ability to explain complex legal issues clearly to non-lawyers and collaborate across curatorial, operations, development, finance, and human resources departments.
• Legal research, negotiation, analysis, communication, and organizational skills.
• Curiosity and enthusiasm for generalist in-house practice, including a demonstrated willingness to learn new practice areas.
• Ability to work collaboratively, as part of a small legal team.

Preferred

• Top tier academic credentials, with demonstrated achievement at each institution.
• Legal training received working at one or more law firms.
• Intellectual property competence: copyright, trademark, licensing, image/rights clearances.
• Experience working in or advising nonprofit organizations, including cultural institutions, and an interest in visual and performing arts.
• Familiarity with privacy/data protection issues and legal compliance.
• Familiarity with accessibility, anti-discrimination, and fair procurement compliance and operations.
• Experience with contract management software implementation, and contract drafting and research tools, clause libraries, and document automation; ability to learn and adopt emerging technologies.
• Experience with insurance and risk management.

Clearances: Criminal Background-National

Physical Activities to Perform Essential Functions: To perform this job successfully, an individual must be able to perform each essential job duty satisfactorily. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable qualified individuals with disabilities to perform essential job functions.

Moving

• Approximately 80%+ of time is spent seated while working at a desk.
• Ability to occasionally transport up to 25 lbs. of files, equipment or supplies. Ability to move to access files, equipment or supplies.

Vision Requirements

• This position requires extended time on the computer.

Communication Requirements

• Clearly communicate in person, by phone, and by video conference.
• Communicate with others in conversational and written English.

Working Conditions

• Position operates in hybrid work setting comprised of the Barnes’ Philadelphia campus and remote work setting indicated by the employee at their documented home address.
• Position requires extended time on the computer.

Job Responsibilities

• Draft, review, negotiate, and interpret contracts, including those related to exhibitions, loans, acquisitions, sponsorships, services, and vendor agreements.
• Assist in ensuring compliance with nonprofit regulations, including IRS requirements, charitable solicitation laws, and local ordinances.
• Support institutional leadership, and board and committee governance, maintaining bylaws and policies, drafting resolutions, coordinating trustee communications, and assisting with regulatory filings.
• Provide legal counsel on employment/HR matters, including policy development, wage/hour compliance, and benefit plan compliance, in coordination with HR.
• Provide guidance on intellectual property matters, including copyright, trademark, licensing, rights clearances, and cultural property basics.
• Provide legal support for fundraising initiatives, including gift agreements, donor restrictions, naming rights, and endowment compliance.
• Manage legal aspects of major institutional partnerships — including cultural collaborations, service/vendor relationships, and other strategic arrangements — with responsibility for day-to-day contractual, governance, and compliance matters.
• Contribute to institutional risk management by assisting in the development of policies and procedures to mitigate legal and operational risks.
• Draft and maintain a form contract library, using advanced software tools.
• Liaise with outside counsel on specialized matters as needed.
• Perform additional duties as required.

Organization-Wide Competencies

• Accountability:
• Prepares for work assignments and meetings,
• Conducts thorough fact-finding, decision-making and/or follow through,
• Admits mistakes and errors and informs others when one is not able to meet a commitment.
• Job Quality:
• Dependably demonstrates job knowledge necessary for the position,
• Produces timely, accurate, high quality work output,
• Prioritizes work responsibilities effectively and produces work quantity expected for the role.
• Service:
• Identifies problems and collaborate with others to devise and create effective solutions.
• Interacts and communicates with fellow employees in a manner that promotes a harmonious and cooperative working environment in accordance with our Core Values.
• Facilitates open communication and keeps an open mind about new ideas.
• Leadership:
• Sets a good example for others,
• Demonstrates ethical decision-making and communication,
• Makes decisions. Uses a solution-oriented, collaborative approach.
• Collaboration:
• Seeks win-win outcomes in decision-making,
• Shows a proactive, inclusive, helpful, and respectful attitude to colleagues, guests and others,
• Takes initiative to contribute to diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility initiatives.
• Empowerment (Supervisors):
• Directs others’ work effectively with adequate goalsetting, accountability, delegation, supervision, conflict resolution, accessibility to support and resources,
• Motivates team to meet short- and long-term goals: individual, department and strategic plan,
• Creates environment for staff development.
• Administration (Supervisors):
• Meets goals related to revenue targets, expense control, program fees, etc.,
• Develops/manages budget in keeping with organizational priorities,
• Follows protocols and reporting requirements set by other departments (HR, IT, Facilities, etc.),
• Collects and analyzes data effectively,
• Documents work accurately and consistently, shares information appropriately.