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Vice President, Legal

Brisbane, California, United States

About Xaira Therapeutics

Xaira is an innovative biotech startup focused on leveraging AI to transform drug discovery and development. The company is leading the development of generative AI models to design protein and antibody therapeutics, enabling the creation of medicines against historically hard-to-drug molecular targets. It is also developing foundation models for biology and disease to enable better target elucidation and patient stratification. Collectively, these technologies aim to continually enable the identification of novel therapies and to improve success in drug development. Xaira is headquartered in the San Francisco Bay Area, Seattle, and London.

About the Role

Xaira is hiring a Vice President, Head of Legal and Secretary as its first in-house attorney.  This position will play a key role in positioning the company for growth and success. This position will report to the Chief Operating Officer  [and will be a member of the senior management team]. The successful candidate will have prior experience in a head of legal/general counsel and corporate secretary role, substantial training in corporate and transactional law, and experience as a business partner to product development teams.

Responsibilities

Leadership; Corporate, Commercial and General

  •  Oversee all legal support for Xaira and its subsidiaries, operating as the intake point for all company legal needs and either directly handle legal advice or oversee the appropriate level of external legal support, depending on the matter.
  •  Lead corporate governance and corporate secretarial functions including Board cycle preparations.
  •  Draft and negotiate commercial contracts, offer letters and other employment-related agreements.
  • Create efficient and well-documented processes for legal support, implementing third party productivity tools as needed.
  • Manage outside counsel, and related budgets and, where applicable, negotiate rates, project fees, and timelines.
  • Oversee legal support for the company’s stock administration and equity compensation functions, in collaboration with the company’s HR and finance functions
  • Oversee compliance with relevant laws and draft and implement policies as needed
  • Advise and collaborate with the Executive Team and functional teams to provide legal support for projects impacting all business functions. 

 Intellectual Property

  • Oversee external IP counsel, in collaboration with scientific and business teams, in developing a multi-layered strategic approach to identifying and protecting the company’s intellectual property
  • Draft and negotiate (or oversee external counsel in doing so) intellectual property agreements, including CRO and MTA agreements, licenses, collaboration agreements, research and development agreements
  • Advise on IP-related employment matters
  • Maintain awareness of the evolving intellectual property landscape and anticipate the impact on future challenges and risks to the company

Qualifications

  • Must be a member of the California Bar or eligible for California's Registered In-House Counsel program. Membership in good standing with at least one U.S. state bar is required. Additionally, the ideal candidate will have experience working with cross-jurisdictional legal matters, including those relevant to the U.S. and U.K
  • Minimum of 15 years of combined private practice at a recognized law firm and in-house experience, with substantial experience in corporate and transactional matters (financings, M&A, governance, commercial); prior experience as a head of legal or GC and corporate secretary for a biotech or pharmaceutical company. 
  • Intellectual property transactions in the life sciences or pharmaceutical industry and/or experience overseeing patent strategy and/or patent portfolio is a plus
  • Undergraduate major or minor or advanced degree in a relevant scientific domain (biological sciences or computer science) is a plus
  • Experience managing external counsel, including with specialities outside of your core expertise
  • Growth-oriented mindset and desire to embrace the responsibilities of a sole internal legal advisor in a fast-paced, dynamic environment

Compensation

We offer a competitive compensation and benefits package, seeking to provide an open, flexible, and friendly work environment to empower employees and provide them with a platform to develop their long-term careers. A Summary of Benefits is available for all applicants. The base pay range for this position is expected to be $300,000 - $350,000 annually; however, the base pay offered may vary depending on the market, job-related knowledge, skills and capabilities, and experience.

Xaira Therapeutics an equal-opportunity employer. We believe that our strength is in our differences. Our goal to build a diverse and inclusive team began on day one, and it will never end.

TO ALL RECRUITMENT AGENCIES: Xaira Therapeutics does not accept agency resumes. Please do not forward resumes to our jobs alias or employees. XairaTherapeutics is not responsible for any fees related to unsolicited resumes.

Xaira Therapeutics is an equal opportunity employer.  We value diversity at our company. We do not discriminate on the basis of race, religion, color, national origin, sex, gender, gender expression, sexual orientation, age, marital status, veteran status, or disability status. We will ensure that individuals with disabilities are provided reasonable accommodation to participate in the job application or interview process, to perform critical job functions, and to receive other benefits and privileges of employment. Please contact Human Resources to request accommodation.[4]

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