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Legal Counsel
Please do not apply if you are not Raleigh-based and have a Juris Doctor (J.D.) from an accredited law school with active admission to practice law in North Carolina (NC bar or eligible for NC in-house counsel license)
Role Overview
We are seeking a versatile and proactive Legal Counsel to join our legal team in Raleigh, NC (in office at least 3 days/week). This intermediate role is ideal for an attorney with 2–4 years of experience looking to blend high-volume commercial deal-making with broad corporate governance and specialized functional support.In this role, you will independently draft and negotiate core commercial agreements while partnering cross-functionally across corporate governance, privacy, regulatory compliance, and policy management. You will serve as a critical liaison between commercial execution and corporate strategy, streamlining processes and providing key legal counsel to internal business stakeholders.
Key Responsibilities
- Commercial & Transactional Execution (Primary Focus)
- Independent Negotiation: Independently draft, review, and negotiate complex buy-side (vendor contracts, SOWs) and sell-side (customer sales agreements and orders) contracts, balancing legal risk with commercial goals.
- Template & Playbook Drafting: Create, own, and update standard commercial templates, playbooks, and fallback language to accelerate deal cycles.
- Process Optimization & Management: Streamline and operationalize the contracting lifecycle, managing contract repositories, reporting, and mapping to procurement and sales tools.
- Specialized & General Counsel Support
- Global Regulatory Compliance: Monitor international regulations and operationalize applicable regulatory requirements, including industry-specific rules relevant to the Company or its customers.
- Privacy & AI Governance: Interpret and manage domestic and international privacy regulations, support incident management, and provide legal advice in privacy-with a special focus on expanding legal considerations related to AI.
- Import/Export Controls: Operationalize import/export regulations and ensure compliance amid evolving rules driven by changes in foreign relations.
- Entity Maintenance: Assist with baseline corporate governance and entity management, including creation, dissolution, and routine annual maintenance across subsidiaries.
- Policy Management: Draft, review, and maintain functional compliance policies (HR, Finance, InfoSec, Privacy) on an annual or ad hoc basis for leadership review.
- Dispute Resolution: Support internal business teams in resolving standard vendor, commercial, and employee disputes efficiently.
Qualifications & Requirements
- Education & Bar: Juris Doctor (J.D.) from an accredited law school and active admission to practice law (NC bar or eligible for NC in-house counsel license).
- Experience: 2–4 years of relevant legal experience, with a heavy emphasis on drafting and negotiating commercial contracts (in-house or law firm experience preferred).
Required skills:
- Demonstrated ability to independently manage end-to-end commercial contract negotiations.
- Familiarity with broader corporate functional areas, including employment law basics, IP oversight, and corporate governance.
- Strong legal drafting skills with an appetite for process improvement and template creation.
- Excellent interpersonal and communication skills to effectively collaborate with sales, procurement, HR, and executive leadership.
- Self-sufficient but a team player.
At Couchbase, we believe innovation thrives when diverse perspectives are at the table. We actively encourage applications from individuals of all backgrounds—including women, people of color, LGTBQIA+ professionals, veterans, and individuals with disabilities. If you see a role that excites you, but don’t meet every qualification, we still encourage you to apply.
Studies show underrepresented talent is less likely to apply unless they meet all the criteria. We encourage you to apply if you’re excited about the role and can bring strong contributions to our team.
If you require reasonable accommodations during the recruitment process, please let your recruiter know—we’re happy to support you.
We value diverse educational and career backgrounds. If your experience aligns with the role’s goals—even if it doesn’t follow a traditional path—we’d love to hear from you.
Why Couchbase? Modern customer experiences need a flexible cloud database platform that can power applications spanning from cloud to edge and everything in between. Couchbase’s mission is to simplify how developers and architects develop, deploy and consume modern applications wherever they are. We have reimagined the database with our fast, flexible and affordable cloud database platform Capella, allowing organizations to quickly build applications that deliver premium experiences to their customers– all with best-in-class price performance. More than 30% of the Fortune 100 trust Couchbase to power their modern applications and build innovative new ones. See our recent awards to learn why Couchbase is a great place to work.We are honored to be a part of the Best Places to Work Award for the Bay Area and the UK. Couchbase offers a total rewards approach to benefits that recognizes the value you create here, so that you in turn may best serve yourself and your family. Some benefits include:- Generous Time Off Program - Flexibility to care for you and your family
- Wellness Benefits - A variety of world class medical plans to choose from, along with dental, vision, life insurance, and employee assistance programs*
- Financial Planning - Retirement program* and Business Travel Insurance
- Career Growth - Be valued, Create value approach
- Fun Perks - An ergonomic and comfortable in-office / WFH setup. Food & Snacks for in-office employees.
- And much more!
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Investors Disclaimer: Couchbase is committed to being an equal opportunity employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, national origin, sexual orientation, gender identity, disability and protected veterans’ status, or any other characteristic protected by law. Join an impact initiative group and experience the amazing feeling of Couchbase can-do culture. By using this website and submitting your information, you acknowledge our Candidate Privacy Notice and understand your personal information may be processed in accordance with our Candidate Privacy Notice following guidelines in your country of application.