Associate General Counsel

Caltech is a world-renowned science and engineering institute that marshals some of the world's brightest minds and most innovative tools to address fundamental scientific questions. We thrive on finding and cultivating talented people who are passionate about what they do. Join us and be a part of the diverse Caltech community.

Caltech is an independent and privately supported research university located in Pasadena, California. Caltech has a student body of approximately 2500 students with more than 300 professorial faculty and approximately 2500 employees.

Caltech's Office of General Counsel (OGC) is seeking an experienced and highly versatile attorney to advise Caltech on a wide range of government contract issues as well as other sophisticated legal and transactional matters. In addition to the Campus, Caltech's OGC provides legal counsel and advice to Caltech's affiliated organizations, including the Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL), which is NASA's federally funded research and development center (FFRDC). The successful candidate will embrace Caltech's commitment to expand human knowledge and benefit society through research integrated with education in a collaborative, collegial, and innovative environment.

As part of Caltech's OGC, the successful candidate will serve as an integral part of Caltech's community of bright, curious, and passionate professionals. They will be part of a supportive, independent, committed, and collaborative group of professionals in which teamwork and building strong relationships with colleagues and clients is a priority.

This is an Organizational Critical position. In the event of an emergency on campus, an employee designated as organizational critical is expected to report to Campus as soon as possible to assist in division/department response and recovery efforts.

• Advise clients at Campus and JPL on laws, regulatory and compliance issues, and policies related to a research university and FFRDC. Offer guidance on government contracts, Federal Acquisition Regulations, business agreements, legal disputes, and commercial litigation.
• Support and counsel Campus's and JPL's contract administration, acquisitions, and procurement departments in obtaining, negotiating, modifying, enforcing and ensuring compliance with complex government and commercial contracts and subcontracts.
• Identify and mitigate risks, protect relationships with key partners, and negotiate and resolve issues relating to contract performance, breach of contract issues, and business disputes.
• Provide counsel on matters relating to governmental agency priorities and relationships.
• Counsel leadership, management, faculty, and other key stakeholders on a wide range of contractual and business-related matters.

• J.D. degree from an ABA accredited law school.
• Member of the California State Bar.
• 10+ years of relevant legal experience in government contracts, commercial contracts, and related business transactions.
• Familiarity with the Federal Acquisition Regulations and federal and state regulations, laws, policies, practices, and industry standards relevant to higher education, FFRDCs, and national labs.
• Excellent judgment and decision-making skills, ability to assess and balance the interests of the Institute, stakeholders, and costs and benefits when considering options and potential actions to pursue.
• Effective oral and written communication skills, ability to communicate information and ideas clearly and persuasively to clients, leadership, and other parties, including government representatives.
• Ability to work collaboratively with colleagues and clients in a manner that builds trusting relationships.
• Strong critical thinking and problem-solving skills with ability to be creative, flexible, and innovative in finding solutions.

• 12+ years of Federal government contracts experience.
• Prior experience in the federal government, a national lab, or the aerospace industry.
• Prior work experience in higher education or research institutions and with federal research grants, cooperative grants, and other awards or contracts.
• Experience advocating before the Court of Federal Claims, Board of Contract Appeals, and other administrative tribunals and federal agencies.