Counsel – Staples, Inc.

Function: Legal Location: 500 Staples Drive, Framingham, 01702, Massachusetts Date posted: 02/11/2014 Type: Full-time Permanent / Contract: Regular Job number: 854535

Please use the link below to apply: https://staples.taleo.net/careersection/2/jobdetail.ftl?lang=en&job=854535&src= PA-17562

Position summary: Staples Inc is looking to hire Counsel in our Framingham, Ma office. This position is appropriate for law school graduates (with bar certification in good standing in one of the 50 states) with experience in a law firm or in house law department with transactional experience. The associate must be competent with complex commercial contracts, ecommerce/online retailing, marketing, and antitrust issues and have general experience and familiarity with safety regulations applicable to consumer products, including consumer product recall requirements. Additionally, the associate must manage a category of work for the merchandising and private label business units (working on a variety of issues, including product procurement and manufacturing agreements, services contracts, consumer product safety regulations, and general advisory work). Work will involve some project-oriented tasks, and complex contract drafting, negotiation and issue spotting. Will have direct relationship with internal clients with only moderate attorney supervision.

Primary responsibilities:

Core Practice Area 

Assist Managing Counsel in providing legal services relating to company’s merchandising and private label products divisions, including:

Contract Review and Negotiation

Review, draft and negotiate standard (form) and non-standard contracts, primarily with vendors for the supply and/or manufacture of goods and services and marketing services for ecommerce based on requests from various business units. Identify issues raised by requested changes to standard form agreements. Advise clients on effect of such changes. Understand and provide advice to clients regarding legal requirements and standard documentation practices. Communicate directly with vendors, when requested, in order to resolve contract negotiations.

Consumer Product Safety Compliance

Monitor and analyze proposed legislation and enacted laws and regulations primarily in the areas of consumer product safety laws and Customs and FTC regulations. Advise and assist clients with ongoing compliance with regulations as well as in implementing changes required by new laws.

Additional responsibilities

• Review of marketing and packaging materials for compliance with legal requirements
• Draft and negotiate intellectual property licenses
• Act as a liaison among logistics, accounting, and other business units and clients as necessary to resolve issues
• Prepare and maintain standard contract forms
• Design and implement client trainings as appropriate on legal and regulatory compliance, contracts, etc
• Maintain workload status report

Qualifications: Basic:

• J.D. Required
• Minimum 6 + years of experience in Corporate Contract negotiation and Regulatory compliance

Preferred:

• Previous background in a Consumer Product industry
• Possess excellent judgment, knowing when to escalate issues to the supervising attorney. Suggest alternative solutions and recommendations to supervising attorney when a matter has been escalated
• Excellent analytical skills and be capable of providing solutions to identified problems
• Associate must have competency (or demonstrate ability to attain competency) in regulatory research and compliance
• Experience reviewing and advising on consumer product safety and recall issues, FTC and other governmental regulatory issues
• Ability to effectively draft and negotiate commercial contracts
• Experience with customs and international product sourcing and support operations desirable. Understanding of intellectual property issues and ability to draft and negotiate intellectual property licenses
• Capable of understanding the business details of each internal client and must be willing to self-educate and self-start in terms of keeping up with his/her respective clients’ businesses
• Associate must be able to articulately and positively communicate with clients
• Capable of engendering trust by the client and become part of the client’s “team”
• Good computer skills and be able to do his/her own word processing
• Ability to maintain confidentiality requirements is key for all positions in the Legal Department
• Sound judgment and inspire trust in clients. Ability to work collaboratively with others
• Solutions-oriented and be able to give practical, actionable advice to clients