Assistant General Counsel

Socket.dev; New York (NY); On-site; USD 180,000 - 240,000; Full time

Job summary

Circular Services, based in New York City, seeks an Associate General Counsel to build and lead its legal department. The role covers corporate transactions, regulatory compliance, and risk management across the U.S., with some travel to other operating locations.

The ideal candidate is a hands‑on corporate generalist with experience in manufacturing, recycling, organics, or similar industries, and will collaborate with senior leadership to drive growth while maintaining strong governance and

Qualifications

• 10+ years as a licensed attorney with corporate/general counsel experience
• Experience supporting industrial/manufacturing and services operations
• Demonstrated success managing complex deals and contracts
• Ability to lead a legal function and manage outside counsel

Responsibilities

• Oversee day‑to‑day legal matters for facilities across the U.S., including contracts, governance, compliance, risk management, and M&A
• Collaborate with CIO/Executive team to mitigate legal risks and align processes with company growth
• Represent Circular Services before state and federal regulatory bodies
• Stay updated on laws and regulations affecting the company
• Manage outside counsel and legal budget as needed

Skills

Communication skills

Negotiation

Contract management

Analytical thinking

Strategic thinking

Regulatory/compliance

Education

J.D. from an accredited law school

Licensed to practice in New York

Additional state bar licenses a plus

Tools

Ironclad CLM

MS Office

Job description

About Circular Services

Circular Services is a leading developer and operator of circular economy infrastructure and services and the largest private recycling and organics company in the U.S. with operations across the country. We help businesses and municipalities reduce and divert waste, lowering disposal costs and fueling local supply chains by ensuring materials are recovered, recycled, and reused.

About the Role:

Circular Services is seeking an Associate General Counsel as its builds its legal department, partnering with facility leadership on commercial transactions and regulatory compliance. The ideal candidate is a hands‑on corporate generalist with extensive experience in recycling, organics and material management, or similar industrial industry.

The role will be based in New York City, New York, and require some travel to other operating locations.

Responsibilities:

• Oversee day‑to‑day legal matters of the facilities across the U.S., including RFPs, contract terms negotiation, playbooks and templates (including government, vendor, customer, commodities, transportation, NDAs, financing, HR, technology), HS&E (including OSHA, State and Municipal Departments of Environmental Protection/Conservation/Sanitation/Recycling) M&A and integration, corporate governance policies and procedures, compliance, training, risk mitigation, real property, intellectual property, cybersecurity and privacy, labor and employment, insurance matters, procurement, communications, marketing, regulatory, sustainability, and dispute resolution.
• Collaborate with the Chief Legal Officer, executive team and cross-functional teams to identify and mitigate legal risks, proposing new solutions and processes that align with the company's overall mission and growth trajectory and drive operational excellence and efficiency, blending legal expertise with business acumen.
• Represent Circular Services before state and federal regulatory bodies and related organizations.
• Stay apprised of changes to laws and regulations that may impact the company.
• Manage outside counsel in specialized areas as needed, ensuring the company seeks necessary and prudent advice while well‑managing its legal expenses.

Minimum Job Qualifications:

• 10+ years as a licensed attorney
• Extensive experience with the legal and business needs of an industrial/manufacturing and services operating company
• Demonstrated success guiding complex deals and partnerships, including management of contracts & agreements
• Highly analytical, with sharp attention to detail
• Exceptional communication, negotiation, and interpersonal skills, with the ability to build strong relationships with clients and internal stakeholders
• Extremely high level of integrity & professionalism, and excellent communication skills
• Ability to manage multiple priorities and work effectively in a fast‑paced, dynamic environment
• Strategic thinker with a passion for driving business growth and improving organizational processes
• Substantial knowledge and experience working with Ironclad or similar CLM, and MS Office.
• J.D. from an accredited law school and licensed to practice in the state of New York, additional state bar licenses a plus

Preferred Job Qualifications:

• Experience working for a waste, recycling and/or organics company
• Preference for corporate or commercial transactions counsel experience
• Preference for a mix of in‑house and top‑tier law firm experience
• Knowledge and experience contracting with municipalities and recycling facilities a plus
• Experience building/growing a legal department or working with or in a high‑growth or start‑up company and a large public or private equity‑backed company

EEOC:

Circular Services is an Equal Opportunity Employer and Prohibits Discrimination and Harassment of Any Kind: Circular Services is committed to the principle of equal employment opportunity for all employees and to providing employees with a work environment free of discrimination and harassment. All employment decisions at Circular Services are based on business needs, job requirements and individual qualifications, without regard to race, color, religion or belief, national, social or ethnic origin, sex (including pregnancy), age, physical, mental or sensory disability, HIV Status, sexual orientation, gender identity and/or expression, marital, civil union or domestic partnership status, past or present military service, family medical history or genetic information, family or parental status, or any other status protected by the laws or regulations in the locations where we operate. Circular Services will not tolerate discrimination or harassment based on any of these characteristics.