General Counsel

Job Description

About LeafLink

LeafLink is the regulated cannabis industry’s largest wholesale marketplace, providing licensed dispensaries the ability to order from their favorite brands, as well as a suite of software tools for those brands to manage and scale their operations.

With over 5,500 retailers and more than 1,600 brands across 26 territories in the US and Canada, LeafLink is setting the industry standard for how cannabis businesses grow together. LeafLink annually processes and manages more than $3 billion in wholesale cannabis orders.

Our team, backed by funding from leading VC’s, is poised to define the cannabis supply chain through technology. LeafLink was named one of Built In NYC's ‘Best Places to Work in 2020’, as well as one of Fast Company’s ’Top 10 Most Innovative Companies in Enterprise for 2018’, joining the ranks of Amazon, Slack, and VMWare - and we’re just getting started!

The Role

LeafLink is seeking a n experienced business-minded strategic adviser with a demonstrated track record of leading teams across multiple subject areas to serve as its first General Counsel and join our fast-growing executive leadership team. Reporting directly to the Chief Executive Officer, this individual will be responsible for the legal and compliance strategy and execution as we continue to scale rapidly across our growing number of business units. This role is unique in nature as the individual will be responsible for solving complex-legal matters in a collaborative and proactive manner within a highly regulated industry that is still early in its growth stage. As part of a highly regulated space one aspect that is critical for this role is to build a best-in-class compliance team, develop compliance programs, and conduct compliance training needed for an industry leading company. You need to be a hands-on independent, thoughtful problem-solver with excellent written and verbal communication skills and who is comfortable operating in a fast-paced and rapidly changing environment, managing multiple internal and external stakeholders with demanding deadlines.

This role involves leading and handling cutting-edge and complex legal projects and matters. You should thrive in an environment that requires you to adapt to changing priorities and organizational needs. In addition, you must have the ability to operate independently in a fast-paced, growing environment and be comfortable working collaboratively and proactively within the legal team as well as across other functional teams and with external stakeholders. In this role, you should also expect to interact with the senior leadership team and Board of Directors, and should be comfortable doing so.

Responsibilities:

• Provide guidance to the executive staff on all legal, business, and regulatory matters that affect the company
• Evaluate and weigh multiple inputs and potential impacts of any business decision or course of action with the goal of minimizing risk and advancing company strategic goals
• Become deeply familiar with cannabis and finance regulations and trends across U.S. and International . Experience navigating heavily regulated industries is preferred.
• Manage and help architect an enterprise compliance and risk program including a robust internal training program for all employees
• Build relationships with , manage, and serve as the main point of contact with external parties including government regulators, outside counsel, accountants, insurance brokers, lobbyists, politicians, vendors, and clients.
• Work cross functionally with department leaders from finance, operations, human resources, product, engineering, LeafLink Marketplace, LeafLink Financial, LeafLink Logistics and manage all related legal issues and identify proactive solutions to problems that will eliminate or mitigate risks
• Manage and handle any litigation (with the assistance of outside counsel as necessary) involving the company with the goal of resolving disputes quickly and in a cost-efficient and strategic manner
• Assist leadership team with mergers, acquisitions, and other strategic corporate transactions including structuring, preparing, and negotiating complex transactional agreements
• Prepare and negotiate vendor, independent contractor, non-disclosure, employee, license, partnership, and other transactional agreements and manage contract obligations and deadlines
• Attend executive level meetings related to the future direction of the company, pending mergers and acquisitions, policy changes and organizational structure across our portfolio of multiple revenue lines.
• Provide support to Board of Directors and investor relations and corporate governance processes, policies, and matters including preparation of board minutes and public disclosures

Qualifications:

• J.D. degree required along with admittance and good standing within a state bar association
• 10+ years of experience interfacing with senior business leaders on a daily basis and managing a legal team; in-house experience required, ideally at a growth stage startup or in a highly regulated industry; experience with cannabis industry a big plus
• Reliable professional that brings a point-of-view to the discussion, is not afraid to speak their mind and adept at making and communicating difficult decisions to business leaders
• Proven understanding of national and international labor, finance, privacy, and intellectual property laws
• Ability to anticipate legal issues or risks and to “see around the corner”
• Outstanding organizational, interpersonal, and presentation skills with ability to write clearly and concisely and synthesize complex information in a simple way.
• Self-starter and problem solver with a high degree of resourcefulness who can work independently without direct instruction is critical.

Benefits:

• Flexible PTO to give our employees a little extra R&R when they need it
• Competitive compensation and 401k
• Comprehensive health coverage (medical, dental, vision)
• Commuter Benefits through a Flexible Spending Account
• A robust stock option plan to give our employees a direct stake in LeafLink’s success

LeafLink’s employee-centric culture has earned us a coveted spot on BuiltInNYC’s Best Places to Work list. Learn more about LeafLink’s history and the path to our First Billion in Wholesale Cannabis Orders here .