Legal Counsel — Biocontainment
Senior counsel for biocontainment regulatory compliance, cultivar intellectual property, partner and client service contracts, liability exposure, and the legal review of containment incidents.
Role Summary
The Legal Counsel — Biocontainment is the facility's specialist attorney for the legal exposure that comes with operating the largest curated living plant collection in the biosphere. Reporting to the General Counsel within Legal & Compliance, this counsel owns biocontainment regulatory compliance, the cultivar intellectual-property portfolio, partner and client service contracts, liability and indemnity posture, and the legal review of containment incidents and breach post-mortems. The role partners closely with the Biosafety & Containment Officer (VC-HR-J030) to translate the GCL-1 through GCL-4 control framework into defensible legal positions and regulatory filings. It is primarily an office-based role; GCL-2 clearance is required for vault-incident review and controlled-area document collection.
Key Responsibilities
- Advise on biocontainment regulatory compliance across the GCL-1..GCL-4 framework and own permits, filings, and regulator correspondence.
- Manage the cultivar intellectual-property portfolio — patents, plant-variety rights, trade secrets, and weaponized-grade research disclosures under controlled handling.
- Draft, negotiate, and steward partner and client service contracts, licensing, and supply agreements, including liability and indemnity terms.
- Lead legal review of containment incidents and breach post-mortems, coordinating with Biosafety and the incident-command chain on findings and disclosure.
- Govern the facility's liability and insurance posture for toxin, breach, and biosphere-release exposure and maintain the legal-hold and evidence-preservation program.
- Partner with the Biosafety & Containment Officer (VC-HR-J030) on regulatory readiness, audit response, and control-framework interpretation.
- Advise the Directorate on legal risk for new programs, partnerships, and dual-use research initiatives.
- Maintain regulatory-change watch and brief the General Counsel and Compliance on emerging biocontainment law.
Required Qualifications
- J.D. and active bar admission in good standing; 8+ years practicing, with 4+ years in life-sciences, biotech, environmental, or regulated-industry law.
- Demonstrated command of regulatory compliance, IP, and complex commercial contracting.
- Experience advising on incident, liability, and disclosure matters under regulatory oversight.
- Able to obtain and hold GCL-2 clearance for controlled-document and vault-incident review.
Preferred Qualifications
- Background in plant-variety rights, biosafety/BSL regulation, or hazardous-materials law.
- Experience with dual-use or export-controlled research programs.
- Familiarity with containment-integrity metrics and breach incident-command processes.
Certifications Required
Certification curricula are delivered through the Verdant Academy; currency is tracked on the HR Training Matrix.
| Certification | Status at Hire | Renewal |
|---|---|---|
| Active Bar Admission | Required | Per jurisdiction |
| Biocontainment Regulatory Awareness | Required ≤90d | Annual |
| GCL-2 Facility Orientation | Required ≤45d | 24 months |
| Emergency Response — Basic | Required ≤90d | Annual |
Physical & Hazard Requirements
- Standard office work with occasional escorted entry into GCL-1/GCL-2 controlled areas for incident review.
- Pass GCL-2 medical fitness and complete facility orientation before any controlled-area access.
- Tolerate time-critical incident-response engagement and after-hours legal-hold activation.
Compensation Band
Career Path
Legal Counsel — Biocontainment (M4) advances toward General Counsel within Legal & Compliance, and partners across the containment mission with the Biosafety & Containment Officer (VC-HR-J030). Adjacent moves include senior compliance and regulatory-affairs leadership.