Lead Specialist, Legal Counsel
About The Position
Support Pearson's enterprise sales organisation through complex customer contracting, strategic partnerships, and commercial legal guidance. This role will serve as a practical, business-minded legal partner, helping to accelerate revenue while managing legal, commercial, intellectual property, AI, data privacy and operational risk. Working closely with Sales, Finance, Product, Security, Privacy, Operations and other cross-functional stakeholders, you will support complex enterprise transactions from initial opportunity through to contract execution and ongoing commercial support. You will play a key role in enabling business growth while ensuring commercial agreements remain scalable, compliant and aligned with Pearson's broader strategic objectives.
Requirements
- Juris Doctor (JD) from an accredited law school and active membership in good standing with at least one U.S. state bar, or equivalent legal qualification.
- Significant experience drafting and negotiating Commercial Technology Agreements, SaaS Agreements, Subscription Agreements, Licensing Agreements, and Enterprise Customer Contracts.
- Strong understanding of Enterprise Sales Cycles, Procurement Processes, Commercial Contracting, and Complex B2B Negotiations.
- Demonstrated ability to balance legal risk with commercial objectives.
- Strong commercial judgement and practical problem-solving capability.
- Excellent written and verbal communication skills.
- Ability to explain legal concepts effectively to non-legal stakeholders.
- Ability to manage multiple priorities within a fast-paced environment.
- Strong stakeholder management and relationship-building skills.
Nice To Haves
- Previous in-house legal experience supporting Enterprise Sales, Technology Businesses, SaaS Organisations, Digital Learning Platforms, or Commercial Contracting Functions.
- Experience building or improving Contract Playbooks, Templates, Legal Workflows, or Automation Processes.
- Experience negotiating with large enterprise customers, strategic partners or public sector organisations.
- Experience supporting global teams and cross-border commercial activity.
Responsibilities
- Draft, review, revise and negotiate a broad range of commercial agreements, including Master Services Agreements (MSAs), Subscription Agreements, Order Forms, Amendments and Renewals, Non-Disclosure Agreements (NDAs), Professional Services Agreements, Reseller and Channel Agreements, and Strategic Partnership Arrangements.
- Support customer negotiations through direct participation in calls and commercial discussions.
- Develop negotiation positions and help resolve escalated legal or commercial issues.
- Advise on contract risk while balancing commercial objectives.
- Advise stakeholders on Intellectual Property, Warranties, Indemnities, Limitations of Liability, Service Commitments, Payment Terms, Termination Rights, Assignment Provisions, Data Privacy, AI-related contractual considerations, and Regulatory and compliance obligations.
- Translate complex legal concepts into clear, practical, business-focused guidance.
- Develop and maintain contract templates, playbooks, clause libraries and approval matrices.
- Improve contracting workflows and processes to increase scalability and efficiency.
- Support legal operations initiatives, including automation, intake processes, reporting and knowledge management.
- Monitor emerging legal and regulatory developments affecting enterprise sales, SaaS, AI and commercial contracting.
Benefits
- Annual incentive program
- Information on benefits offered is here [https://nam02.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https://pearsonbenefitsus.com/&data=04|01|[email protected]|2c256513c79f4679be7c08d9e7287ebb|8cc434d797d047d3b5c514fe0e33e34b|0|0|637794983376381246|Unknown|TWFpbGZsb3d8eyJWIjoiMC4wLjAwMDAiLCJQIjoiV2luMzIiLCJBTiI6Ik1haWwiLCJXVCI6Mn0=|3000&sdata=t1YQPUL7BgoclUd7yE2i86QAirLf4z3z8OEWgr42q7c=&reserved=0]
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What This Job Offers
Job Type
Full-time
Career Level
Senior
Education Level
Ph.D. or professional degree
