Staff Attorney

Recording Academy; United States; Remote; USD 96,000 - 107,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Medical, dental, vision benefits

401(k) match

Generous paid time off

Job summary

The Recording Academy is seeking a Staff Attorney to support the Chief Legal Officer and the Legal Affairs team with day-to-day transactional needs. You will draft, review, and negotiate a range of contracts including vendor and services agreements, programming, events, licensing, technology, and new initiatives.

Ideal candidates hold a Juris Doctor, are licensed or license-eligible in the U.S., and bring 2–3 years of transactional law experience, preferably with music/entertainment matters.

Qualifications

• Juris Doctor degree from an accredited law school.
• License to practice law (or ability to become licensed) in state of residence.
• 2–3 years’ experience practicing transactional law at a law firm or in-house.
• Experience advising on music and entertainment business matters preferred.

Responsibilities

• Draft, review and negotiate commercial contracts (vendor/services, programming, events, licensing, tech, new initiatives).
• Advise business teams on contract interpretation and obligations.
• Issue-spot and escalate to seniors when needed.
• Streamline contract processes and maintain contract playbooks.
• Maintain organized records of executed contracts and related documents.
• Collaborate to maintain contract templates for business use.
• Assist with implementing/updating policies and procedures for compliance.
• Stay informed about relevant legal developments.

Skills

Contract negotiation

Legal drafting

Transactional law

Communication

Problem solving

Independent & team work

Education

Juris Doctor

Job description

WHO WE’RE LOOKING FORThe Staff Attorney will support the Chief Legal Officer, Associate General Counsel, Senior Managing Director of Legal Affairs, and overall Legal Affairs team with the Academy’s day-to-day transactional needs. Utilizing your excellent judgment, team collaboration skills, and commitment to the highest level of honesty, fidelity and integrity, you will provide legal advice to the Academy and its affiliates on a range of contracts.WHAT YOU’LL DODraft, review and negotiate commercial contracts covering a range of Academy and affiliate activities, including vendor and services agreements, programming, events, licensing, technology and new initiatives under development.Advise business teams on contract interpretation and obligations, explaining legal issues to non-lawyers in a digestible manner.Issue spot and quickly assess when to escalate matters to more senior members of the Legal Affairs department.Work with the team to streamline contract processes from commencement to conclusion, including maintaining contract playbooks and using technology to standardize processes.Maintain organized records of executed contracts and related documents.Collaborate intra- and inter-departmentally to maintain appropriate contract templates for business team use.Assist with implementing and updating Academy and affiliate policies and procedures to ensure compliance and efficient administration of resources.Stay informed about legal developments relevant to the Academy’s and its affiliates’ business operations.SKILLS & EXPERIENCEJuris Doctor degree from an accredited law school.License to practice law (or ability to become licensed) in state of residence.2-3 years’ experience practicing transactional law at an established law firm and/or in-house in a corporate legal or business affairs department.Experience advising on music and entertainment business matters strongly preferred.Excellent verbal and written communication skills, including an established track record of superior legal draftsmanship and negotiation, and the demonstrated ability to conclude matters efficiently and beneficially for the client.Must be a forward-thinking individual with sound, practical, and business-minded judgment including the ability to “think outside of the box,” come up with intelligent solutions to problems, master new technologies utilized to streamline contract systems, and assess and explain the business and legal impact of alternative options.Ability to work well both independently and as part of a greater team, moving projects forward diligently and proactively.PHYSICAL DEMANDS FOR CERTAIN ROLESThe physical demands described here are representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential functions of this job. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.While performing the duties of this job, the employee is occasionally required to stand, walk, and sit for long periods of time, and work at a computer for long periods of time.SALARY AND BENEFITSThe starting salary for this position is $95,600 to $106,500 per year , benchmarked against industry standards. Salaries for positions required to be in specific geographic locations reflect the corresponding labor market.The actual offer extended will depend on the candidate's experience, qualifications, and the role's requirements. Positions working 20+ hours per week also receive our comprehensive benefits package (with medical, dental, and vision coverage, a 401k match, generous paid time off, and more).Explore our career opportunities to join a team that values creativity, innovation, and diversity.ABOUT THE RECORDING ACADEMY AND ITS AFFILIATESRECORDING ACADEMYThe Recording Academy represents the voices of performers, songwriters, producers, engineers, and all music professionals. Dedicated to ensuring the recording arts remain a thriving part of our shared cultural heritage, the Academy honors music's history while investing in its future through the Grammy Museum, advocates on behalf of music creators, supports music people in times of need through MusiCares, and celebrates artistic excellence through the Grammy Awards—music's only peer-recognized accolade and highest achievement. As the world's leading society of music professionals, we work year-round to foster a more inspiring world for creators.LATIN RECORDING ACADEMYThe Latin Recording Academy is an international, membership-based organization comprised of Spanish- and Portuguese-speaking recording artists, musicians, songwriters, producers and other creative and technical recording professionals. The organization is dedicated to improving the quality of life and cultural condition for Latin music and its makers. In addition to producing the Latin Grammy Awards to honor excellence in the recorded arts and sciences, The Latin Recording Academy provides educational and outreach programs for the Latin music community either directly or through its Latin Grammy Cultural Foundation.LATIN GRAMMY CULTURAL FOUNDATIONThe Latin Grammy Cultural Foundation is a charitable organization established by the Latin Recording Academy in 2014. The organization is dedicated to creating opportunities for the next generation of Latin music creators through scholarships, educational programs, grants, and access to creators and industry executives.MUSICARESA friend and ally of the music community, MusiCares was established by the Recording Academy to safeguard the health and well-being of all music people. A four-star charity and safety net in times of need, MusiCares offers confidential preventative, recovery, and emergency programs to address financial, medical, and personal health issues. Through the generosity of our donors and volunteer professionals, our dedicated team works across the country to ensure the music community has the resources and support it needs.GRAMMY MUSEUMThe Grammy Museum is a nonprofit organization dedicated to celebrating and exploring music from yesterday and today to inspire the music of tomorrow through music preservation, education, exhibitions, and public programming and aims to create a world in which shared love of music sparks curiosity, creativity, and community. Programs include Grammy in the Schools education programs that are offered year-round for students, teachers, and schools throughout the United States.EQUAL OPPORTUNITYThe Recording Academy, its affiliates, and the music industry have a strong culture of inclusion and respect for everyone. The Recording Academy makes intentional, courageous, and principled decisions for stronger business outcomes and ensures that all creators and professionals live and work in a fair and safe environment. It is the Recording Academy's policy to provide equal employment opportunities for all applicants and employees. The Recording Academy does not discriminate on the basis of race (nor traits historically associated with race, including, but not limited to hair texture and protective hairstyles), color, religion (including religious dress and grooming), creed, sex (including pregnancy, childbirth or related medical conditions), national origin, ancestry, age, physical disability, mental disability, medical condition, family care status, military or veteran status, marital status, sexual orientation, gender, gender identity, gender expression, genetic information or any other characteristic protected by law. The Recording Academy will make reasonable accommodations for qualified individuals with known disabilities unless doing so would result in an undue hardship to the Recording Academy. This policy governs all aspects of employment, including selection, job assignment, compensation, promotion, discipline, termination, access to benefits and training, recruitment, hiring, transfer, and social and recreational programs.