Legal Manager

ABOUT DUST We're creating a new AI operating system that has the potential to change the way companies operate. Our mission at Dust is to transform how work gets done by letting any team and employee shape the exact agents they need to accelerate their work. With 70%+ weekly active users, people stick with Dust as much as they do with Slack and Notion. We already are a core part of their jobs. We're at an exciting stage of our journey and growing fast. We're serving great customers https://blog.dust.tt/tag/customer-stories/ like Cursor, Clay, Whatnot, and Persona, and aim to 5x our growth by the end of 2026. Dust is a Sequoia-backed company https://techcrunch.com/2024/06/27/dust-grabs-another-16-million-for-its-enterprise-ai-assistants-connected-to-internal-data/ with an experienced and determined team of optimists (coming from companies like Stripe and OpenAI) that likes to focus on users, getting great things done by shipping fast, and doesn’t take itself too seriously while doing so. SUMMARY As Dust's Legal Counsel, you'll be the architect of our legal infrastructure during a critical hyper-growth phase. You'll build the Legal function from the ground up, serving as an integral thought partner to leadership while establishing scalable legal processes that support our ambitious revenue growth trajectory. This is a hands-on role that combines strategic legal guidance with operational excellence. You'll work cross-functionally with Sales, GTM, Operations, and People teams to drive deal velocity, risk management, and legal discipline across our Paris and San Francisco operations while navigating the complex AI and privacy landscape. OUR CULTURE - Product-First: Unlike others focused on building foundation models, we're laser-focused on creating delightful product experiences with existing LLMs. - Small, High-Impact Team: Join a team of alumni from Stripe, Square, OpenAI, and other top tech companies. We're intentionally keeping our team small and mighty – every individual has massive scope and impact. - Transparency & Collaboration: Our repository is open source, and we leverage serendipity between team members. We believe the best ideas emerge when the team shares information and insights openly. - Proactive Problem-Solving: If you see something broken, fix it without waiting for permission. We don't wait for solutions - we create them. - Ship to Learn: We move fast and learn from real user feedback. - Intellectual Humility: We value strong convictions balanced with open-mindedness. Team members confidently advocate for their ideas while remaining receptive to new perspectives and evidence that might change their minds. If new data emerges, we adapt quickly. WHAT YOU’LL DO Drive commercial contracting - Review, draft, and negotiate a wide range of agreements, including SaaS (cloud and on-prem), DPA, channel, partnership, and vendor contracts - Partner closely with the sales, security and revenue teams to drive deals to close - Deliver creative, risk-based solutions that unlock revenue and protect the business - Handle disputes with partners when needed and manage partner relationships, including zero data retention policies with AI labs Partner on data, privacy, and AI - Provide pragmatic legal advice on GDPR, international data transfers, CCPA, and other global privacy frameworks - Advise cross-functional teams on the legal implications of AI in product development and go-to-market strategy - Help set a scalable, forward-looking approach to AI and privacy governance - Navigate emerging AI regulations across EU and US markets as we serve increasingly regulated customers (finance, healthcare, telecom) Build the foundations to scale legal as a business enabler and architect - Work with stakeholders across the company to solve legal questions in real-time with a builder mindset - Create the machine to handle growing requests: - Define who we should we partner with to handle Legal topic X and - Improve and maintain scalable legal templates, playbooks, and training materials - Help design and implement a self-serve legal system to support a fast-scaling global team - Build the foundation for Dust's legal function as we grow from 80 to 150+ employees globally REQUIREMENTS - Qualified lawyer (Europe-based): You're a qualified legal professional with 7+ years PQE (Post-Qualification Experience), ideally with both top-tier law firm and in-house startup experience - Commercial contracts expert: You have deep experience in SaaS agreements, open-source licensing, and commercial deal-making - AI- and privacy-savvy: You're confident navigating GDPR, CCPA, and emerging AI regulations in a practical, business-centric way - Builder mindset: You thrive in ambiguity, enjoy solving problems without a playbook, and constantly look for ways to improve how legal works - Cross-functional collaborator: You're empathetic, business-minded, and abl