Legal Operations & Contracts Manager

CRISTA Ministries•Shoreline, WA

6d•Onsite

About The Position

The Legal Operations & Contracts Manager manages CRISTA’s contract administration function and the Legal Department’s day-to-day operational infrastructure under the direction and supervision of the department’s attorneys. The role administers contract and legal-request intake, routing, workflow coordination, records management, reporting, and process improvement. It prepares routine and standardized contract requests using attorney-approved templates and procedures, identifies nonstandard terms or potential risks for attorney review, and coordinates revisions and follow-up with internal stakeholders. The position does not provide legal advice or independently make legal determinations. The manager maintains legal matter, document, contract, and knowledge-management systems; develops and implements approved procedures, templates, workflows, controls, and service standards; tracks deadlines and operational metrics; and evaluates process and technology improvements. The role also coordinates cross-functional legal requests and projects, supports outside-counsel administration as directed, and provides high-level operational and administrative support to the Legal Department. This position requires strong organization, attention to detail, discretion, judgment, communication, and the ability to manage concurrent matters in a complex, multi-ministry organization. CRISTA is a Christian religious organization, and employees must support its Statement of Faith and Christian Community Policy and conduct themselves in accordance with its religious beliefs and practices.

Requirements

Bachelor’s degree in business, legal studies, paralegal studies, operations, project management, or a related field, or an equivalent combination of education and relevant experience.
3–5 years of experience in legal operations, contract administration, paralegal support, legal administration, business operations, or a related field.
Experience administering contract-management, document-management, workflow-automation, or legal-operations systems.
Experience developing business processes, workflows, standard operating procedures, dashboards, and operational reporting.
Experience coordinating high-volume contracts, vendor agreements, projects, approvals, records management, or legal-department operations in a complex or matrixed organization.
Current notary commission or ability to obtain one within a reasonable period after hire.
Strong proficiency with Microsoft Office, including Outlook, Word, Excel, SharePoint, and Teams.
Ability to learn and effectively use contract-management, document-management, and other organizational systems.
Exceptional organizational and time-management skills, strong attention to detail, and commitment to accuracy.
Excellent written and verbal communication skills and ability to manage multiple priorities and deadlines in a fast-paced environment.
Ability to exercise discretion, maintain strict confidentiality, and work effectively with attorneys, ministry leaders, employees, and others.
Ability to travel occasionally within Washington state and lift materials or equipment as needed.
Ability to pass background checks relating to the DSHS Secretary’s List of Crimes and Negative Actions under WAC 388-113.
Committed Christian faith, including belief that Jesus Christ is Lord and Savior, dedication to continued spiritual growth, and alignment with and support for CRISTA’s Statement of Faith and Christian Community Representative Commitment.

Nice To Haves

Experience in a corporate legal department, nonprofit, educational institution, healthcare or senior-living organization, media organization, or similarly complex organization.
Experience developing workflows, standard operating procedures, contract playbooks, or templates.
Experience supporting multiple business units, subsidiaries, ministries, or locations.
Experience coordinating outside counsel and legal vendors.
Paralegal certificate or equivalent legal training.
Project management experience or certification.
Experience with contract lifecycle management (CLM) or matter-management systems.
Familiarity with legal terminology and contract structures.

Responsibilities

Manage contract intake, administration, tracking, approval, execution, and recordkeeping throughout the contract lifecycle.
Serve as the operational point of contact for contract submissions and guide internal stakeholders on contract-administration requirements.
Review contract requests for completeness, triage and route them according to established procedures, and administer routine contracts using approved templates and guidelines.
Escalate nonstandard terms and matters requiring legal judgment, and obtain attorney approval as required before execution.
Coordinate contract revisions and communications among ministries, departments, and the Legal Department; track contracts through review, negotiation, approval, signature, and completion.
Maintain an organized repository of executed contracts and related documentation and monitor contractual deadlines, including expirations, renewals, and notice periods.
Develop and maintain contract metrics, reports, dashboards, and key performance indicators; identify recurring issues, bottlenecks, and opportunities for improvement.
Assist attorneys with contract preparation, comparison, formatting, organization, and execution; support development and maintenance of approved templates and clause libraries.
Coordinate contract administration with Accounting, Finance, Human Resources, IT, Facilities, ministry leadership, and other departments.
Administer contract-management and tracking systems and maintain standardized intake requirements, approval workflows, procedures, and records practices.
Manage the centralized legal-request intake process and operational workflows within delegated authority and attorney oversight.
Receive, categorize, organize, route, and track legal requests, matters, projects, deadlines, filings, renewals, and other critical dates.
Develop, document, implement, and maintain Legal Department procedures, workflows, checklists, standard operating procedures, and service expectations.
Administer, maintain, optimize, and support contract, matter, document, and other legal technology systems.
Produce operational reports on contract volume, legal requests, turnaround times, outstanding matters, renewals, and related metrics.
Maintain legal files in accordance with department procedures and applicable records-retention requirements.
Assist with outside-counsel coordination and administrative management as directed by attorneys.
Coordinate legal operations projects, process improvements, knowledge-management initiatives, and technology enhancements.
Monitor general Legal Department inboxes and correspondence; schedule meetings and coordinate meetings with attorneys, leaders, executives, vendors, outside counsel, and other stakeholders.
Prepare meeting materials and follow-up items; process mail and correspondence; assist with document preparation, filing, copying, scanning, and electronic organization.
Coordinate Legal Department invoices, expense reports, purchase orders, contact lists, calendars, directories, and other administrative resources.
Provide administrative support for board, committee, executive, and other organizational meetings and assist with special projects.
Serve as a professional first point of contact for routine legal requests, help internal stakeholders understand submission processes, and ensure requests reach the appropriate Legal Department member.
Follow up on missing information, documents, approvals, signatures, and other outstanding items; provide status updates in accordance with attorney direction and escalate matters requiring legal analysis or attorney involvement.
Develop working relationships across ministries and departments and deliver training and communications on contract administration, legal intake, templates, and legal operations systems.
Maintain a centralized library of approved legal forms, templates, checklists, workflows, and reference materials; document recurring processes and support internal training.
Recommend operational improvements based on contract volume, request trends, feedback, and department needs.
Maintain strict confidentiality and handle privileged and sensitive information appropriately; follow records, security, and information-management procedures and escalate potential legal, compliance, or risk issues to an attorney.
Perform duties consistent with CRISTA’s mission, values, policies, and applicable laws, and carry out other assigned legal-support and operations duties that do not constitute the practice of law.