General Counsel

Gelber Group•Chicago, IL

5d•Hybrid

About The Position

As Gelber Group's General Counsel, you will serve as a key member of the executive leadership team at one of the industry's leading proprietary trading firms. The General Counsel serves not only as the firm's chief legal advisor, but also as a trusted business partner whose judgment shapes important decisions across the organization. The role offers meaningful influence over the firm's strategic direction and the opportunity to make a lasting impact. We empower the General Counsel to shape the future of the legal function as an indispensable contributor to the business. Like all our executives, the General Counsel at Gelber embraces challenges of exceptional breadth. You will encounter a wide range of sophisticated legal, regulatory, governance, employment, commercial, and strategic issues. We have created an executive role that is intentionally hands-on, where leadership and execution go hand in hand. You will lead regulatory initiatives, protect Gelber's intellectual property, advise senior leadership on employment, governance, and organizational strategy, negotiate important agreements, and help shape complex business decisions. Proprietary trading is an outcomes business and we measure success by results. We expect our General Counsel to ensure that Legal serves as a foundational driver of Gelber's success. We believe exceptional work begins with exceptional relationships. You will work alongside highly analytical traders, researchers, technologists, and business professionals who genuinely enjoy solving difficult problems together. We combine the pace and intellectual challenge of sophisticated financial markets with the accessibility and collegiality of a relatively small organization. Our leaders remain visible, approachable, and engaged across the firm, investing in people and building high-performing teams. We also believe sustained excellence requires balance, and we foster an environment where demanding, rewarding work coexists with a healthy work-life balance. Above all, you'll join a team of talented people who trust one another and take pride in building something exceptional.

Requirements

Juris Doctor from an accredited law school and licensed (or eligible for admission) in Illinois
Approximately 10–20 years of relevant legal experience, including substantial in-house and/or regulatory experience
Deep experience supporting sophisticated financial markets businesses, ideally including proprietary trading, hedge funds, exchanges, regulators, or similar environments
Strong knowledge of financial markets regulation, including the SEC, CFTC, FINRA, exchange rules, and related regulatory frameworks
Experience leading legal teams, managing projects, building organizations, and partnering with senior stakeholders
Experience advising on corporate governance, commercial contracts, intellectual property, technology licensing, data governance, vendor relationships, employment matters, and international legal issues
Proven ability to balance legal risk with commercial objectives and deliver practical, business-oriented advice
Experience directing outside counsel and specialized legal resources
Unquestioned integrity, intellectual curiosity, humility, accountability, responsiveness, and sound business judgment

Responsibilities

Serve as a trusted advisor to executive leadership on legal, regulatory, governance, and strategic matters
Lead the firm's Legal function and oversee the Compliance function through a collaborative partnership with the Chief Compliance Officer
Partner with business leaders to assess risk, solve problems, and support commercial objectives
Advise on financial markets regulation, exchange matters, corporate governance, and strategic initiatives
Lead or oversee regulatory inquiries, examinations, investigations, and enforcement matters
Draft, review, and negotiate a broad range of commercial, technology, licensing, employment, vendor, and other business-critical agreements
Protect Gelber's competitive assets, including its technology, intellectual property, trading strategies, confidential information, talent, and reputation
Advise on employment, restrictive covenants, intellectual property ownership, and other workplace matters
Develop and maintain legal processes that are practical, scalable, and aligned with the firm's business objectives
Direct the firm's use of outside counsel and specialized legal resources
Remain actively engaged in substantive legal work while building the long-term capabilities of the Legal and Compliance functions

Benefits

Traditional and Roth 401(k) retirement program with discretionary employer match
Comprehensive health benefits including medical coverage provided by Blue Cross and Blue Shield (PPO and HDHP/HSA) and dental coverage; generous employer cost-sharing
Tuition reimbursement for Undergraduate and Graduate courses
Flexible Spending Accounts for health care and dependent care; pre-tax commuter benefits for parking and transit expenses
Life insurance and long-term disability coverage
Health club membership with on-site facilities (and reciprocal memberships)
Generous vacation time (23-day accrual in first full calendar year of employment; prorated accrual in initial year), paid holidays, and paid maternity/paternity leave
Weekly catered lunches and monthly continental breakfasts
Social events including sponsored 5k races and annual company party
Enjoyable work environment including golf simulator
Employee referral bonus program
Charitable giving and company matching opportunities
Casual, relaxed dress code