Senior Counsel, Privacy and Compliance

About the role

The Impact You’ll Make
Recursion is currently seeking a Counsel role specializing in data privacy and compliance work to support the expansion of its clinical trials and compliance infrastructure.

Responsibilities

• Data Privacy
  Develop and maintain infrastructure to comply with varying data privacy regulations in Europe and new countries in support of clinical trial plans.
  Review and negotiate data protection terms, DPAs, vendor agreements, customer agreements, security addenda, and other contracts from a privacy standpoint.
  Monitor and advise on privacy and compliance developments, including U.S. state privacy laws, GDPR, CCPA/CPRA, sector-specific privacy rules, and emerging AI and cybersecurity requirements.
  Support incident response, data subject rights requests, privacy impact assessments, transfer impact assessments, and regulatory inquiries.
  Support vendor onboarding and maintenance for vendors processing personal data.
  Maintain the company’s Record of Processing Activity.
  Counsel on privacy-by-design reviews, data mapping, vendor onboarding, AI/data use cases, and new geographical expansions.
• Compliance
  Draft policies and perform trainings to support data protection compliance
  Assist the Legal team in drafting and implementing corporate compliance policies, training and follow-up
  Partner closely with Human Resources and other functions to identify needs for policies or guidance
  Collaborate closely with internal stakeholders on creating a “right size” compliance function that enables business growth while protecting against risk

Requirements

The Experience You’ll Need
At least four years of experience in data privacy counseling in the biotech or pharmaceutical industry, at a law firm or preferably in-house
Strong working knowledge of privacy and data protection laws, including U.S. state privacy laws, GDPR, CCPA/CPRA, and related regulatory frameworks.
Experience reviewing and negotiating privacy, security, and data protection provisions in commercial agreements.
Ability to provide clear, practical advice in a fast-moving business environment.
Strong judgment, attention to detail, and ability to manage multiple projects independently.
Excellent written and verbal communication skills.
IPP/US, CIPP/E, CIPM, or similar privacy certification preferred.
Experience building or scaling privacy and compliance programs in-house preferred
Admitted to practice in at least one state and eligible to practice law in Utah as in-house counsel

Qualifications

The Team You’ll Join
You will be joining a dynamic team of attorneys and stock administration professionals.
The team works closely and collaboratively with one another on overall legal and compliance strategy, departmental budget, projects, and professional development.
The team relies on a communicative and supportive atmosphere to enable nimble advice and prioritization aligned with business goals.

Pay

The estimated current annual base range for this role is $251,900 to $309,760 (USD).

Schedule

Working Location & Compensation: Making SLC or NYC your home base is ideal; however, we will consider remote work for this position. We ask that remote employees commit to regular on-site visits for routine work and departmental events.

Benefits

In addition to base salary, this role is eligible for an annual bonus and equity compensation, as well as a comprehensive benefits package.

Values

We act boldly with integrity. We are unconstrained in our thinking, take calculated risks, and push boundaries, but never at the expense of ethics, science, or trust. We care deeply and engage directly. Caring means holding a deep sense of responsibility and respect - showing up, speaking honestly, and taking action. We learn actively and adapt rapidly. Progress comes from doing. We experiment, test, and refine, embracing iteration over perfection. We move with urgency because patients are waiting. Speed isn’t about rushing but about moving the needle every day. We take ownership and accountability. Through ownership and accountability, we enable trust and autonomy—leaders take accountability for decisive action, and teams own outcomes together. We are One Recursion. True cross-functional collaboration is about trust, clarity, humility, and impact. Through sharing, we can be greater than the sum of our individual capabilities.