Senior Director, Corporate Legal

This position can be 100% remote.

Dynavax is a commercial-stage biopharmaceutical company developing and commercializing novel vaccines to help protect the world against infectious diseases. We operate with the highest level of quality, integrity and safety for the betterment of public health. Our proprietary CpG 1018 adjuvant powers our diversified infectious vaccine portfolio, which includes HEPLISAV-B®, our commercial product approved in the U.S. and the European Union, for prevention of hepatitis B virus in adults. We also supply CpG 1018 to research collaborations and partnerships globally. Currently, CpG 1018 is being used in development of COVID-19, plague, shingles, and Tdap vaccines. 

At Dynavax, our vision and work ethic are guided by the collective ideals underpinning our core values, and these form the basis of our dynamic company culture. We strive to maintain a culture where each employee is valued by the organization and where our organization is valued by each employee. We offer a highly flexible work environment for our headquarter employees where individuals work remotely and gather for in-person meetings when necessary.  Dynavax is headquartered in the San Francisco Bay area, and our manufacturing facility is in Düsseldorf, Germany.  

The Senior Director, Corporate Legal will play a key role in enabling Dynavax’s securities compliance, corporate governance, sustainability and carbon efforts, and SEC reporting. The ideal candidate will be hands-on with critical processes, ensuring the company meets its regulatory and governance obligations effectively and efficiently. This role reports to and collaborates closely with the Associate General Counsel/VP of Corporate Legal. This position is part-time for 32-hours per week.

• Provide day-to-day legal services and strategic input to the company on a broad variety of issues, including, but not limited to:

• Primary legal contact to prepare, review, and file periodic and current reports, including Forms 10-Q, 10-K, and 8-K.
• Assist in drafting and filing annual proxy statements.
• Monitor and ensure compliance with securities laws and SEC regulations, including Regulation S-K, S-X, and Regulation FD.
• Stay updated on and advise on changes in securities regulations and corporate governance trends.

• Support the preparation and execution of the company’s Annual Meeting of Stockholders, including drafting and reviewing meeting materials.
• Assist with preparation of unanimous written consents.
• Review and evaluate supporting documentation associated with SEC filings. Work cross functionally with Finance, Infosec, and others to help ensure compliance with governance best practices.

• Assist with preparation of, and provide legal advice on general press releases, earnings releases, investor presentations, and other disclosures as needed.
• Partner with cross-functional teams to ensure timely and accurate public disclosures.
• Serve as a key resource to internal stakeholders on governance and SEC compliance matters. Coordinate matters as needed between internal stakeholders and outside counsel, balancing appropriate risk allocation with achieving desired business results.

• Support compliance function with corporate policies and procedures as they relate to securities laws or other policies within the organization.
• Monitor and mitigate risks related to corporate governance and public disclosures.

• Assist in corporate and securities-related aspects of M&A, financings, and other strategic transactions, if and when the need arises.
• Contribute to legal department initiatives, including process improvements and best practices, and knowledge transfer.
• Work with the Associate General Counsel to support the business in other substantive areas, as needed.
• Manage outside counsel in the U.S. and abroad as needed.
• Provide sound, practical legal support across the organization, including identifying practical solutions that balance the risk/benefit for the company with an eye toward achieving business goals.
• Support the organization in maintaining a work environment focused on quality and that fosters learning, respect, open communication, collaboration, integration, and teamwork.
• Other duties as assigned.

• JD from an accredited law school and active membership in at least one state bar.
• Minimum 10 years of relevant experience, including experience at a nationally recognized law firm including 5+ years’ experience as in-house counsel at a public company working on securities matters and corporate governance.
• Experience managing other legal professionals.
• Ability to work collaboratively across the company, successfully build relationships, and efficiently manage outside counsel.
• Ability to think creatively, evaluate and manage risk, devise business-focused solutions to challenging problems, and drive issues to closure to meet the company’s goals.
• Demonstrated success managing complex corporate transactions or processes and multiple competing priorities.
• Excellent interpersonal, decision-making and communications skills.
• A combination of both law firm and in-house public company experience is a plus.
• Experience in a vaccine company, or biotech adjacent, a plus.
• Ability to sit; stand; walk; reach with arms and hands; lift and move small objects; and use hands to keyboard and perform other office related tasks including repetitive movement of the wrists, hands and/or fingers.
• Occasional travel required, as needed.

#LI-REMOTE

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Dynavax is an equal opportunity employer & prohibits unlawful discrimination based on race, color, religion, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity/expression, national origin/ancestry, age, disability, marital & veteran status.