Lead Counsel, Corporate

Canva; San Francisco (CA); Hybrid; USD 228,000 - 345,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Equity packages

Health benefits plans

401(k) retirement plan

Inclusive parental leave policy

Vibe & Thrive allowance

Flexible leave options

Job summary

Canva, a global design platform, seeks an experienced Managing Counsel, Corporate, to lead our Corporate Legal Team. You will own complex matters end-to-end, mentor attorneys, and shape our governance, equity, and growth initiatives across jurisdictions.

You’ll drive strategic transactions, advise the board, and partner with stakeholders to align legal strategy with Canva’s long-term vision while embracing AI-enabled workflows. The role offers cross-border exposure and global impact.

Qualifications

• JD required and admitted to a U.S. state bar.
• 8+ years of corporate legal experience at venture-backed or high-growth tech firms, with in-house exposure.

Responsibilities

• Lead complex corporate securities matters, including governance and compliance.
• Own end-to-end M&A, including cross-border deals.
• Drive global expansion strategy with internal and external teams.
• Advise the board on governance, equity, and cap table matters.
• Oversee capitalization events and share transfers.
• Lead employee equity, executive compensation, and related programs.
• Advise on Canva Foundation matters and related governance.
• Design processes, agreements, and AI-enabled workflows for transactional work.
• Oversee Canva's corporate insurance program.
• Manage external counsel and mentor the legal team.

Skills

Corporate law

M&A

Venture financing

Governance

Equity & cap table

Cross-border experience

Legal leadership

AI adoption in legal

Education

Juris Doctor (JD)

Active U.S. bar license

Tools

G Suite

Slack

Microsoft Word

Excel

Board portals

Subsidiary management databases

ChatGPT / Claude

Job description

Job Description

Job Description

Join the team redefining how the world experiences design.

Hello, g'day, mabuhay, kia ora, 你好, hallo, vítejte! Thanks for stopping by. We know job hunting can be a little time consuming and you're probably keen to find out what's on offer, so we'll get straight to the point.

Where And How You Can Work

Our flagship office is in Sydney, Australia, but we've made our way from down under, to a hub in San Francisco, which is now home to our US operations. We offer flexibility in how and where you work. We trust our Canvanauts to choose the balance that empowers them and their team to achieve their goals.

What You’d Be Doing In This Role

As Canva scales, change continues to be part of our DNA. But we like to think that's all part of the fun. So this will give you the flavor of the type of things you'll be working on when you start, but this role will likely evolve.

As Managing Counsel, Corporate, You Will Be a Seasoned, Trusted Adviser And a Leader Within Our Corporate Legal Team. You'll Take End-to-end Ownership Of Our Most Complex, Novel And High-stakes Matters, Lead Company-wide Initiatives, Shape How The Legal Function Operates, And Mentor And Develop Attorneys Across The Team, Including

• Leading the most complex corporate securities matters, including secondary sales and tender offers
• Owning and leading our most strategic mergers and acquisitions, end-to-end
• Shaping and driving global expansion strategy, partnering with our global entities team and local counsel to grow our business worldwide
• Advising the board and leadership on corporate governance matters, including board and stockholder actions and communications
• Overseeing company capitalization matters, including the execution of share transfers
• Leading employee equity and executive compensation programs, working with our equity ops, employment legal and total rewards teams
• Advising on matters relating to the operation and governance of the Canva Foundation
• Designing and redefining the processes, agreements, frameworks and AI-enabled ways of working the broader team and business rely on for transactional and governance matters
• Overseeing the company's corporate insurance program
• Managing external counsel, and mentoring and developing attorneys across the team

You’re probably a match if

• You have 8+ years of corporate legal experience, ideally trained at a law firm specializing in venture-backed or high-growth technology companies, with deep in-house experience — you know how to move fast, handle complexity, and keep up with demanding clients. You know what it’s like on both sides of the table.
• You have extensive experience leading corporate transactions, including venture financings, secondary transactions and acquisitions — you understand cap table mechanics, investor rights and how the pieces fit together; deep cross-border experience is a huge plus.
• You are fluent in equity and cap table management — you may not be doing the day-to-day administration, but you know the rules, understand the mechanics and can spot an issue before it becomes one.
• You are sought out for your technical and regional expertise — the person others turn to for the most complex, novel or ambiguous matters — and you guide colleagues (whether or not they report to you) on Canva context and market practice.
• You lead significant, company-wide initiatives that redefine how we work, anticipating future legal risks and opportunities and aligning legal strategy with Canva’s long-term vision.
• You’re all in on AI — you love finding new ways to save time and are always exploring how to leverage tools like Claude, ChatGPT, Glean, and others to automate and streamline how work gets done, and you champion adoption across the team.
• You can jump into the chaos, clean things up, add structure and run a tight ship — working with the team to keep minute books and subsidiary records in great shape across multiple jurisdictions, rallying your teammates to make sure everything stays that way.
• You have a Juris Doctor (JD) from an accredited law school and active membership in at least one U.S. state bar.
• You apply the law commercially and pragmatically, give strategic advice that weighs the wider business impact, and are risk aware, not risk averse — exercising sound, independent judgement on risk appetite.
• You create a culture of mentoring and development across the legal team — sharing knowledge and best practice, modelling two-way feedback, and helping others grow.
• You are highly collaborative with a positive attitude, humor, humility and the desire to build, lead and make an impact — and you’re recognised, internally and often externally, as a thought leader in your field.
• You are fearless, love a new challenge and are not afraid to get your hands dirty - no task is too big or too small.
• You are resourceful and self‑motivated and have exceptional time management and organizational skills.
• You are comfortable working at an international company, with its headquarters in Sydney, AU, and shifting your calendar, when necessary (not always), to ensure overlap with stakeholders – which means you may need to attend some meetings later in the evenings and earlier in the mornings.
• You have exceptional written and verbal communication skills and influence confidently and autonomously at the most senior levels — including founders, the board and investors — as a trusted adviser, bringing people along using storytelling, design and data.
• You are a self‑starter and quick learner with the ability to operate independently and as part of a team in a fast‑paced environment, appropriately prioritizing and managing numerous projects simultaneously under deadline pressure with minimal guidance.
• You have excellent technology skills with proficiency in G Suite, Slack, Microsoft Word, Excel; experience with board portals and subsidiary management databases is a plus.

About The Team

With big goals, come big ideas. And our Legal team is there every step of the way - ideating, providing strategic legal advice and collaborating with Canvanauts across the globe to bring our ideas to life.

• The Corporate Legal Team specifically works closely with Canva's leadership, Finance, Tax, People and Total Rewards teams (and many more!) across a broad range of projects, helping to empower Canva to meet its crazy big goals. From supporting our financings, acquisitions and global expansion, to advising our board of directors and managing employee equity, we strive to be collaborative, creative and strategic partners for the business and its stakeholders.

What's in it for you?

Achieving our crazy big goals motivates us to work hard - and we do - but you'll experience lots of moments of magic, connectivity and fun woven throughout life at Canva, too. We also offer a range of benefits to set you up for every success in and outside of work.

Here’s a Taste Of What’s On Offer

• Equity packages - we want our success to be yours too
• Health benefits plans to support you and your wellbeing
• 401(k) retirement plan with company contribution
• Inclusive parental leave policy that supports all parents & carers
• An annual Vibe & Thrive allowance to support your wellbeing, social connection, office setup & more
• Flexible leave options that empower you to be a force for good, take time to recharge and supports you personally

Check out lifeatcanva.com for more info.

At Canva we value fairness, and we strive to provide competitive, market-informed compensation whilst ensuring internal equity within the team in each region. We make hiring decisions based on your skills, experience and our overall assessment of what we observed and learnt in the hiring process. The target salary range for this position is $228,000 - $345,000. When calculating offers, we make salary decisions based on market data and candidates' skills and experience.

Other Stuff To Know

We make hiring decisions based on your experience, skills and passion, as well as how you can enhance Canva and our culture. When you apply, please tell us the pronouns you use and any reasonable adjustments you may need during the interview process.

We celebrate all types of skills and backgrounds at Canva so even if you don’t feel like your skills quite match what’s listed above - we still want to hear from you!

Please note that interviews are conducted virtually.