Private Equity Resource Attorney

About the role

Cooley is a leading global law firm with offices across the US, Europe and Asia. Our clients range from entrepreneurs to emerging companies, private equity funds and their portfolio companies, and Fortune 50 corporations. We partner with clients on transformative deals, complex IP and regulatory matters, and high-stakes litigation where innovation meets the law. The firm maintains one of the oldest and most active private equity fund practices in the U.S., organized into Business and Litigation departments with specialized practice groups. To support our commitment to quality, efficiency, and staying at the leading edge of the law, we augment selected practice groups with resource attorneys whose primary responsibility is to enable practicing attorneys to be more informed and efficient without billing time to firm clients.

Responsibilities

• Experience Management: Work with the M&A resource attorney and knowledge management team to assist with M&A/PE data input and maintenance.
• Form and Precedent Drafting/Management: Prepare drafts or revise existing precedent documents; curate and organize the PE group’s forms, precedents, and other know-how; cross-check overlays with other practice groups.
• Legal Updates: Monitor legal and regulatory developments relevant to private equity and the firm’s core industry verticals (including software and SaaS, fintech, telecom, and education); prepare summaries and alerts; ensure new legal requirements are reflected in practice resources.
• Internal Practice Page: Develop and maintain the internal landing page for the PE group.
• Legal Education: Coordinate with Cooley’s legal education team to brainstorm and prepare content for associate trainings and firmwide training efforts related to private equity.
• Marketing/Business Development: Work closely with the PE/M&A marketing team to strategize on Cooley PE promotion; assist in creating content for pitches and teach-ins (e.g., PPTs, articles, books); tailor PE pitch materials to key industry verticals.
• Coordinating Activities:
  • QA Group: Work with the quantitative analyst group on matters specific to PE funds and PE sponsor-initiated transactions.
  • Resource Attorneys: Collaborate with resource attorneys in other practice groups on best practices and overlapping initiatives.
  • Innovation Team: Partner with the innovation team on AI and tech-enabled processes and workflows.
  • Individual Attorney Requests: Field day-to-day requests from attorneys for precedents, templates, and other resources.
  • New Initiatives: Participate in resource, knowledge management, and practice innovation projects.
  • Perform other duties as assigned.

Requirements

• Licensed attorney with at least 7+ years of experience in a US private equity corporate/transactional practice.
• Basic understanding of private equity, including M&A, portfolio company management (including regulatory issues), partnership-based equity compensation and tax issues (including profits interests), M&A acquisition financing (including mid-market LBOs), general corporate and alternative entity matters, and other financial transactions.

Qualifications

• Mastery of the substantive area of practice within the Private Equity practice group.
• Knowledge of the industries Cooley regularly advises (e.g., software and SaaS, fintech, telecom, education).
• Excellent written and verbal communication and drafting skills.
• Confident and engaging presenter.
• Strong intellectual ability, interpersonal and technical skills.
• Self-starter with strong organizational and time management skills; attention to detail.

Pay

The expected annual pay range for this position is $220,000 – $315,000. Final offer amount will be dependent on geographic location, applicable experience, and skillset of the candidate.

Benefits

• Elective benefits including medical, health savings account (with applicable medical plan), dental, vision, health and/or dependent care flexible spending accounts, pre-tax commuter benefits, life insurance, AD&D, long-term care coverage, backup care for children and/or adults, and other parental support benefits.
• Benefited employees receive firm-paid life insurance, AD&D, long-term disability, short-term medical benefits, accruing vacation (four weeks per year), sick time (two weeks per year), and 10 paid holidays.
• Generous parental leave and fertility benefits.
• New employees attend a detailed benefit orientation to learn about available benefits and resources.