Legal Counsel, Office of the General Counsel

Alberta Securities Commission•Calgary, AB

1d•Hybrid

About The Position

The Alberta Securities Commission (ASC) is the industry-funded regulator responsible for administering the province's securities laws. It is entrusted with fostering a fair and efficient capital market in Alberta and with protecting investors. As a member of the Canadian Securities Administrators (CSA), the ASC works to improve, coordinate and harmonize the regulation of Canada's capital markets. The Office of the General Counsel (OGC) is the in-house legal, policy, strategy and risk management resource for the ASC. The OGC provides legal advice to the Chair and CEO, Commission Members, Executive Director and employees on a wide range of issues, including statutory interpretation, administrative law, securities regulation, corporate/commercial law, information technology/intellectual property law, procurement law and privacy law. In addition, the OGC is responsible for the corporate secretarial and legislative functions at the ASC, and provides advice on corporate governance matters and the application of the Access to Information Act (Alberta) and the Protection of Privacy Act (Alberta) to the ASC. Reporting to the General Counsel, the successful candidate will be part of the OGC team providing legal advice to ASC Executive Management, Commission Members and employees on a wide range of issues and regulatory matters, including ASC procurements, with a focus on IT vendor contracts, SaaS agreements and open tendering, as required, and providing general corporate / commercial legal services support to the ASC.

Requirements

A law degree and approximately five to eight years of relevant legal experience.
Membership in good standing (or be eligible for membership) with the Law Society of Alberta.
Understanding of securities laws.
Experience in a combination (or at least more than one) of the following areas: corporate/commercial law, technology law, privacy law, administrative law, securities law.
The ability to negotiate and advocate a position while working collaboratively with others.
The ability to provide advice and support to operational / business teams in a commercial manner.
Strong, up-to-date research skills, and highly developed analytical and problem-solving skills.
Excellent verbal and written presentation skills.

Nice To Haves

Experience working on an in-house legal team would be beneficial.
Experience in a regulatory environment or the financial technology sector would also be beneficial.

Responsibilities

Supporting the procurement and contracting needs of the ASC, including advising operational divisions on open tendering requirements and facilitating ASC open tenders to ensure compliance with applicable legal requirements, and reviewing/negotiating ASC vendor agreements.
Drafting and reviewing IT service agreements, including but not limited to, software licensing, cloud computing, and IT managed and professional services agreements, as well as data processing and cyber security arrangements.
Advising on and negotiating IT vendor agreements in support of key organizational initiatives to mature ASC IT infrastructure.
Developing and updating ASC standard form agreements and templates, as well as internal guidelines respecting data governance, cyber security and vendor management risk mitigation.
Supporting the ASC in its role as designated principal administrator of the intellectual property related to the CSA national technology systems, and providing legal and risk-assessed advice on contractual arrangements in relation thereto.
Supporting senior lawyers with research and drafting of responses to inquiries made by the Minister, Deputy Minister and staff of Treasury Board and Ministry of Finance, including reporting requirements for Alberta public agencies under applicable provincial statutes
Supporting the Privacy & Access Officer in overseeing the ASC’s Privacy Management Program, including policies, practices and legal requirements relating to records management, vendor management and data governance, as well as matters relating to the application of the Access to Information Act (Alberta) and the Protection of Privacy Act (Alberta).
Providing legal advice and drafting in respect of various third-party commercial contracts, intergovernmental agreements, memoranda of understanding, and business correspondence of a legal nature in support of the ASC’s operational divisions.
Providing legal services regarding any of the matters for which the OGC is responsible.

Benefits

100 per cent employer-paid benefits
comprehensive health and dental
employee life insurance
short-term and long-term disability
retirement benefits
travel insurance
paid vacation time
flex and sick days
an employee family assistance program
transportation allowance
generous flexible spending account
professional development through subsidized courses, conference, workshops, seminars and in-house training
ASC Social Club initiatives
annual United Way Campaign