University Counsel III

University of Southern California; Glendale (CA); On-site; USD 225,000 - 250,000; Full time

Job summary

University of Southern California is seeking a senior attorney in the Office of the General Counsel to lead Athletics-related matters and provide strategic transactional guidance across the university.

The role requires extensive in-house experience in higher education, negotiation of complex contracts, and the ability to advise senior leadership on diverse institutional needs, including research and compliance matters.

Qualifications

• J.D. degree required and membership in the California Bar.
• Extensive experience negotiating and drafting sophisticated contracts and transactions.
• Strong in-house transactional experience in higher education or similarly complex institutions.

Responsibilities

• Act as lead attorney on Athletics-related legal matters and advise on commercial transactions and athletics operations.
• Draft, negotiate, interpret, and advise on a broad range of contracts supporting university objectives.
• Provide transactional support to research and innovation units, including sponsored research agreements and technology collaborations.
• Counsel leadership on transactional and institutional matters across departments and universities units.
• Coordinate with outside counsel and manage budgets for transactional work and compliance.

Skills

Negotiation

Drafting

Contracting

Transactional law

Relationship management

Education

J.D.

California Bar admission

Job description

The University Counsel III - Athletics and Institutional Transactions is a senior attorney in the USC Office of the General Counsel (OGC) and reports to the Deputy General Counsel, Corporate. As a member of OGC's transactional practice, the attorney provides strategic, practical, and business-oriented legal counsel to university leadership on sophisticated commercial transactions, institutional initiatives, and operational matters.

The attorney serves as OGC's lead counsel on college Athletics-related legal matters while maintaining a diverse institutional transactional practice supporting academic schools, research units, and administrative departments across the university. The successful candidate will have substantial experience serving as in-house counsel in higher education or a similarly complex organization and will possess exceptional judgment, strong transactional skills, client-oriented service and communication, and the ability to provide practical legal advice to multiple institutional clients. Experience supporting research institutions, compliance, and research-related transactions is highly desirable but is not required.

Primary Responsibilities

• Serve as the Office of the General Counsel's lead attorney on Athletics-related legal matters, providing strategic legal counsel on commercial transactions, sponsorships, licensing, media and marketing agreements, employment contracts, games and events contracts, NIL-related institutional issues, conference matters, athletics operations, vendor relationships, facility use agreements, strategic partnerships, and other legal and business matters affecting the Athletics Department.
• Draft, negotiate, interpret, and advise on a broad range of sophisticated commercial and institutional agreements, including services agreements, procurement contracts, sponsorship agreements, licensing agreements, technology agreements, consulting agreements, confidentiality agreements, research agreements, memoranda of understanding, affiliation agreements, and other contracts supporting the university's academic, business, and operational objectives.
• Provide transactional legal support to the Office of Research and Innovation, including the Department of Contracts and Grants (DCG), the USC Stevens Center for Innovation, the Alfred E. Mann Institute (AMI), the Department of Animal Resources, and matters involving visiting researchers, and other research-related activities. Advise on sponsored research agreements, industry collaborations, technology commercialization, research compliance, export controls, conflicts of interest, Institutional Review Boards (IRBs), and related legal matters.
• Provide legal counsel to leadership of the university's health schools, including the Herman Ostrow School of Dentistry, Leonard Davis School of Gerontology, Keck School of Medicine, Alfred E. Mann School of Pharmacy, and the Suzanne Dworak-Peck School of Social Work, on transactional, operational, and institutional matters.
• Advise university departments and administrative units, including the Alumni Association, USC Museums, USC Shoah Foundation, Communications, USC Radio, Internal Audit, Information Technology Services (ITS), the Office of the Chief Information Security Officer (OCISO), the Marching Band, Global Initiatives (including immigration-related matters), the Office of Professionalism and Ethics (OPE), Bovard College and Online Education, and University Relations.
• Support major university initiatives and strategic partnerships by collaborating with university leadership and administrative partners to identify legal and business risks, develop practical solutions, and facilitate successful implementation.
• Draft and revise university policies, standard agreement templates, and guidance documents related to contracting, procurement, Athletics, and institutional operations.
• Coordinate with outside counsel on specialized transactional and regulatory matters, as appropriate, and manage outside counsel relationships and budgets.
• Develop and deliver legal training, educational resources, and consultation sessions on contracting, negotiation, Athletics-related legal developments, procurement, research transactions, compliance, and other transactional topics.
• Build collaborative relationships with university leaders, administrators, faculty, and staff across the institution and serve as a trusted legal advisor who encourages the proactive engagement of the Office of the General Counsel.
• Perform special projects and other legal assignments as requested.

Preferred Qualifications

• Juris Doctor (J.D.) and membership in the California Bar (or eligibility to register as California Registered In-House Counsel).
• Ten or more years of progressively responsible legal experience, including substantial experience negotiating and advising on sophisticated commercial and institutional transactions.
• Significant experience serving as in-house counsel within the legal office of a college, university, academic medical center, or similarly complex institution is strongly preferred. The ideal candidate will have demonstrated success advising senior administrators and diverse institutional clients while navigating the governance, culture, and operational environment unique to higher education.
• Demonstrated experience advising on athletics-related legal matters, including commercial partnerships, sponsorships, licensing, branding, media rights, vendor agreements, athletics operations, or other sports-related transactions. Experience representing Division I NCAA institutions, collegiate athletics programs, conferences, or professional sports organizations is highly desirable.
• Experience supporting sponsored research, research contracting, technology commercialization, innovation initiatives, or research compliance is strongly preferred but not required.
• Familiarity with the legal and regulatory framework governing institutions of higher education, including laws affecting commercial contracting, procurement, intellectual property, privacy, athletics, research, and university operations.
• Demonstrated ability to independently manage a sophisticated, high-volume transactional practice while balancing competing priorities and exercising sound legal and business judgment.
• Excellent negotiation, drafting, written and oral communication, relationship management, and project management skills, with the ability to provide practical, solution-oriented legal advice to senior leadership and clients across a decentralized organization.
• Exceptional interpersonal skills, sound judgment, discretion, and the ability to build trusted relationships while effectively representing the interests of the Office of the General Counsel and the university.

This position's annual base salary range is $225,000 - $250,000. When extending an offer of employment, the University of Southern California considers factors such as (but not limited to) the scope and responsibilities of the position, the candidate's work experience, education/training, essential skills, internal peer equity, federal, state, and local laws, contractual stipulations, grant funding, as well as external market and organizational considerations.

Minimum Education: J.D.

Minimum Experience: 7 years

Minimum Field of Expertise: J.D. and member of California Bar. General business law with extensive litigation experience.