About Verra.
At Verra, we've created a culture of flexibility + autonomy. You'll be able to work with remote teams from diverse countries and industries. Wherever possible, we aim to find mutually agreeable solutions for international hiring.
Verra is a global leader helping to tackle the world’s most intractable environmental and social challenges. As a mission-driven non-profit organization, Verra is committed to helping reduce greenhouse gas emissions, improve livelihoods and protect natural resources across the private and public sectors. We support climate action and sustainable development with standards, tools and programs that credibly, transparently and robustly assess environmental and social impacts and enable funding for sustaining and scaling up projects that verifiably deliver these benefits. We work in any arena where we see a need for clear standards, a role for market-based mechanisms, and an opportunity to generate significant environmental and social value.
Verra manages a portfolio of standards, including the:
Job Title: Legal Counsel (US)
Location: Remote with substantial overlap with US business hours
Start Date: Immediately
Reports to: Legal Director
The Opportunity.
As an integral member of Verra’s legal team, you will be responsible for providing authoritative substantive advice about the organization’s legal affairs. The role will involve identifying legal risks and developing legal responses to mitigate such risks, providing legal advice to all levels of the organization, instructing and working closely with external counsel, and mentoring and supporting junior staff.
A day at Verra might include…
- Reviewing a counterparty’s markup of an agreement with a view to providing reasoned responses in accepting, modifying, or rejecting changes.
- Instructing external counsel on steps that Verra should take to protect its intellectual property in relation to a trademark violation.
- Assessing Verra’s program documents to identify a commercially reasonable, legally sound way to respond to a stakeholder’s concerns.
- Interpreting due diligence findings relating to an entity that seeks to do business with Verra.
- Considering the legal implications of regulatory changes.
Specific functions you will be responsible for:
Members of the legal team will jointly cover the following functional areas:
- Commercial contracts: managing Verra’s templates (e.g., non-disclosure agreements, consultancy contracts, partnership agreements, memoranda of understanding, linking agreements); instructing staff on their negotiation and use; clearing requests for deviations from templates.
- Corporate:conducting general corporate legal work (e.g., conflicts of interest, internal policy review).
- Due diligence: drafting and revising robust due diligence criteria and processes; conducting due diligence on counterparties and other entities.
- Intellectual property: managing templates; negotiating agreements with licensees; monitoring the use of Verra’s IP and addressing violations; filing and renewing trademarks.
- Litigation:managing and/or advising senior staff on contentious matters, which may include potential litigation or other forms of dispute resolution.
- Regulatory:ensuring compliance with regulatory requirements applicable in the jurisdictions where Verra does business; obtaining necessary regulatory approvals, including engagement with regulators and specialized counsel.
- User-facing policies:providing a legal interpretation of contractual and programmatic provisions relating to Verra’s lines of business; continually updating and optimizing integrity-related procedures (e.g., KYC, Anti-Bribery and Corruption); facilitating the implementation of such policies by relevant staff members.
What will you bring?
- Qualification to practice law. Candidates without a qualification to practice law in the United States will not be considered for this role.
- Three or more years of relevant legal work experience in a law firm or in-house legal department. Candidates with different profiles and experience in adjacent fields may also be considered.
- Technical competence in several of the functional areas listed above. It is recognized that not all candidates will necessarily have experience in all areas.
- The mindset of a generalist who enjoys working in multiple functional areas. Related to this is a willingness to learn about new fields of law.
- Strong organizational and time-management skills, and an ability to work independently.
- A track record of influencing, building and maintaining relationships with, and communicating with a diverse group of people.
- Familiarity with environmental and social markets such as carbon markets, carbon crediting, and offsetting, ideally gained through a series of in-depth assignments and/or work experience over multiple years in this field, is an asset.
In this role, you will grow and expand your expertise by...
- Understanding and protecting the legal position of a growing organization that aims to be a leader in environmental and social markets worldwide.
- Ensuring that Verra acts with a high degree of integrity and is in full regulatory compliance in all jurisdictions where it conducts business.
- Collaborating closely with a dynamic, committed, and focused group of highly committed professionals constantly looking for ways to fight climate change and promote sustainable development solutions around the world.
How will you know you're successful?
- Verra’s legal position is respected and protected.
- Verra’s staff are well informed about their legal responsibilities.
- The legal team is motivated and works seamlessly with the other teams in the organization to deliver high-quality work products.
- Verra’s senior staff are regularly informed about relevant legal developments.
- Verra’s legal work is implemented optimally, in a timely fashion, and on budget.
You will join a team ...
- From diverse locations and backgrounds, including carbon market experts, ex-government representatives, auditors, and more.
- Committed to driving finance to advance climate action and sustainable development through high-quality standards and programs.
- That embodies the values Verra has established for itself, and which include Teamwork, Results, Integrity, Balance, and Exploration.
Compensation at Verra
To help us attract and retain top talent, Verra pays employees competitively to the market. In return, we expect each employee to, at a minimum:
- Meet expectations in terms of work effort and performance;
- Take the initiative to build the skills and knowledge needed to do their job effectively; and
- Embody Verra’s values.
Salary is one component of Verra’s total compensation package which also includes:
- Health, vision and dental care, and life insurance;
- Verra contributions to each employee’s retirement plan;
- Verra contributions as required by national labor laws in countries where staff are located;
- Paid Time Off (PTO) comprising 22-30 days plus ten floating holidays, sabbatical after five years of service, and other leave allowances; and
- Funds to support professional development.
Staff members may work from anywhere with an internet connection. Verra prefers candidates who are licensed to practice law in a U.S. state.
How to apply
To apply, please send us the following:
- Cover letter (maximum one page)
- Resume/CV (maximum two pages)
Verra provides equal opportunity for all job applicants and employees and is committed to providing a work environment free of discrimination. As such, we conduct our recruitment and hiring without regard to race, color, religion, gender identity, sex, sexual orientation, national origin, age, marital status, pregnancy, physical or mental disability, genetics, veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by applicable federal, state, and local law.