Knowledge Attorney – Mergers & Acquisitions / Private Equity

Gibson Dunn•Washington, DC

2d•$250,000 - $300,000

About The Position

Gibson Dunn is hiring an experienced M&A and/or Private Equity lawyer to serve as the primary substantive owner of the Firm’s M&A and Private Equity forms and related drafting resources. Based in any U.S. office, with New York preferred, the Knowledge Attorney will keep these resources accurate, consistent, useful, and current with legal and regulatory developments, Firm precedent, and market practice. The role includes reviewing and prioritizing the existing forms collection, retiring or archiving outdated and duplicative materials, developing new forms and guidance, and coordinating reviews with partners, specialists, and outside Delaware counsel as appropriate. The Knowledge Attorney will use AI and other technology to compare Firm materials with internal precedent and public filings, identify potentially outdated or inconsistent provisions, and monitor drafting and market trends. The role works closely with the Legal Technology & AI Attorney – Mergers & Acquisitions / Private Equity on technical aspects, while substantive judgment and responsibility for the forms remain with the Knowledge Attorney. Related work includes curating transactional precedent, analyzing deal terms and drafting trends, developing checklists and guidance, and supporting practice discussions and training. The position reports to the Sr. Director & Counsel of Knowledge & AI.

Requirements

J.D., Bachelor of Laws, or equivalent, with strong academic credentials.
Admission to practice and good standing in the state where the candidate will be based.
At least seven years of significant M&A and/or Private Equity experience.
Substantial experience drafting and negotiating transaction documents.
Strong interest in legal drafting and precedent, including how customary language evolves.
Independent judgment on drafting issues, including distinguishing material from immaterial differences and making practical recommendations to senior lawyers.
Eagerness to use AI and emerging legal technology as a core part of substantive legal work.
Excellent legal research, writing, and analytical skills, with exceptional attention to detail.
Ability to work through large bodies of precedent and complex legal developments and reduce them to clear, usable drafting resources.
Ability to manage competing priorities and carry long-running substantive projects through to completion.
Ability to handle confidential and sensitive information with appropriate discretion.
Ability to build trusted working relationships with partners, practicing lawyers, specialists, technologists, and other members of the Knowledge Management & AI Group.

Nice To Haves

Experience across public M&A, private M&A, and Private Equity transactions is strongly preferred.
Prior experience with AI-assisted legal analysis, knowledge systems, or document automation is strongly preferred.
Prior knowledge management experience is helpful but not required.

Responsibilities

Serve as the primary substantive owner of the Firm’s M&A and Private Equity forms, maintaining their accuracy, quality, consistency, and practical usefulness.
Systematically review the existing collection, determine which forms should remain current Firm resources, retire or archive duplicative and outdated materials, and prioritize materials according to use and substantive importance.
Review maintained forms against current law, legal and regulatory developments, and Firm drafting standards, including consistency with related forms.
Develop new forms and drafting resources in response to recurring practice needs, using Firm precedent, public filings, and other appropriate sources.
Coordinate focused review with M&A and Private Equity lawyers and relevant specialist practices, including Securities Regulation and Corporate Governance, tax, benefits, executive compensation, and antitrust.
Manage scheduled and interim review cycles for maintained resources, including reviews prompted by significant legal, regulatory, or market developments.
Coordinate regular outside Delaware counsel review of core organizational documents.
Document substantive reviews, significant drafting decisions, and the status of items in the collection.
Monitor developments affecting M&A and Private Equity practice, including case law, statutory and regulatory changes, transaction structures, market terms, and drafting trends, and determine whether changes to Firm resources are needed.
Regularly review Firm transactions, publicly filed transaction agreements, market studies, and other sources to stay current on transaction structures, deal terms, and drafting trends.
Build working relationships across the practice so that drafting issues and developments in live matters are reflected in the forms collection.
Benchmark Firm forms and drafting resources against internal precedent, public filings, and evolving market practice using AI-assisted tools and structured review methods.
Use AI-assisted analysis to identify potentially outdated provisions, inconsistencies among related forms, recurring departures from Firm forms, and changes in market drafting.
Develop processes to identify relevant Firm deal documents and external precedent, including public company filings, and incorporate them into benchmarking and review.
Structure forms, precedent, and related content to support document automation, AI-assisted drafting, and other transactional tools.
Test technology-assisted approaches to forms development and maintenance, subjecting proposed changes to substantive lawyer review.
Curate high-value transaction precedent and help lawyers identify useful Firm precedent and drafting resources.
Develop checklists, drafting guidance, and other know-how connected to the forms collection.
Analyze transaction terms and drafting trends where the findings can improve Firm forms or other transactional resources.
Participate in targeted training and practice discussions about significant changes to Firm forms and new drafting resources.
Work with Practice Group Management, Market Intelligence, and other teams to identify and analyze relevant M&A and Private Equity matter and deal data for benchmarking, precedent analysis, and other practice needs.