Senior Counsel, Contracts

Sumitomo Pharma Co., Ltd. is a global pharmaceutical company based in Japan with key operations in the U.S. (Sumitomo Pharma America, Inc.), Canada (Sumitomo Pharma Canada, Inc.) and Europe (Sumitomo Pharma Switzerland GmbH) focused on addressing patient needs in oncology, urology, women's health, rare diseases, psychiatry & neurology, and cell & gene therapies. With several marketed products in the U.S., Canada, and Europe, a diverse pipeline of early- to late-stage assets, and in-house advanced technology capabilities, we aim to accelerate discovery, research, and development to bring novel therapies to patients sooner. For more information on SMPA, visit our website https://www.us.sumitomo-pharma.com or follow us on LinkedIn.

Job Overview

We are currently seeking a dynamic, highly motivated, and experienced individual for the position of Senior Counsel, Managing Counsel of Contracts.  The position reports to the Head of Legal, Corporate Law & Technology. The Senior Counsel, Managing Counsel of Contracts will be part of a team of attorneys and legal professionals, and will help support the contracts function at Sumitomo Pharma America, Inc. The location of the position is to be determined. This individual will be instrumental in supporting the business.  This individual will manage contract review team as well as serve as an attorney and internal client contact for contracting matters across the organization.  He or she will help the team member in drafting, negotiating, and managing contracts related to commercial and operational activities and will help the team in managing issues escalated by the business related to agreements for a variety of business groups. 

Job Duties and Responsibilities

Management of Contracts Team

• Oversight of the contracting function which includes review, negotiation and general support for corporate contracts, general agreements and related matters
• Provide advice and guidance to the Contract Team members in their review and negation of contracts.
• Assist in implementing new contracts policies and procedures
• Train and guide business teams on the use of contract templates, relevant legal issues, processes, and good contracting practices
• Ensure contract terms are consistent with company policies and best practices
• Involve relevant stakeholders in evaluating legal, compliance, financial, and business risks associated with contracts to the best protect company interests, and facilitate the escalation and resolution of complex issues as needed
• Serve as a liaison with outside counsel and manage vendors
• Generate reports, presentations, spreadsheets, memos and other documents for the Legal Department, clients and/or the senior management team
• Complete special projects such as collaborating on department-wide or company-wide initiatives
• Coordinate and conduct legal research
• Manage one’s own contracts and requests within a contract lifecycle management database/platform
• Support the company’s Strategic Sourcing group in their partnership in the contracts management process

Commercial Contracts

• Provide advice and guidance to the Contract Team members in their draft, review, negotiate, and finalize a high volume of commercial contracts, including NDA’s, MSA’s, SOW’s, procurement agreements, consulting agreements, HR agreements, Data Protection Addenda and other privacy agreements, SaaS/technology agreements, and a variety of other agreements common in the pharmaceutical industry
• Provide practical, solution-oriented business and legal advice

Management of Privacy

• Oversight of the privacy topics which includes privacy impact assessment by Privacy Counsel, review, negotiation and general support for Data Protection Addendum, legal advice related to U.S. and global privacy laws and regulations

Key Core Competencies

• Treats team members and other people with respect and inspires the trust of others; ability to build strong relationships with business partners and other members of the team
• Exercises management skills and human relation skills to encourage the team member to achieve the higher goals