Paralegal II Contracts

Academy Sports + Outdoors - Katy, TX

Full-time - Mid Level

Katy, TX

10,001+ employees

Sporting Goods, Hobby, Musical Instrument, Book, and Miscellaneous Retailers

About the position

The position involves supporting the legal department by managing commercial contracting processes, conducting legal research, and ensuring compliance with legal standards. The role requires a strong understanding of commercial contracting principles and the ability to work independently while collaborating with various stakeholders. The ideal candidate will be detail-oriented, organized, and capable of managing multiple tasks effectively in a fast-paced environment.

Responsibilities

• Document collection, preparation, processing
• Matter in-take
• Matter workflow/negotiation, and management with some attorney oversight
• Independently draft select documents from key terms
• Finalize documents, and collect signatures, including using e-signature platforms
• Assist in planning, developing, and leading inter-departmental meetings and training
• Manage business partner relationships
• Conduct thorough legal research of intermediate legal issues and effectively present legal analysis
• Collect, organize, and maintain legal documents in a confidential and secure manner
• Assist in drafting, reviewing, and negotiating a wide range of documents, including master agreements, and statements of work for various services and goods
• Collaborate with stakeholders to identify and mitigate potential risks in contracts and transaction
• Prepare contract summaries and risk assessments
• Evaluate current workflows and processes, including contract lifecycle management, and identify opportunities for process improvements and develop solutions to streamline process, and operationalize efficiencies
• Support change management initiatives
• Create and maintain standardized templates, checklists, guidelines, best practices and workflows to support contract negotiation workflows
• Ensure all legal documents and knowledge resources are organized and accessible for reference by the legal team
• Assist in evaluating legal technology tools to support process and workflow improvements
• Review, analyze, negotiate and process invoices and check requests to ensure timely payment in accordance with legal department guidelines
• Metrics tracking and reporting
• Document processes and proactively propose improvements
• Train new hires in the Legal Department on internal processes and procedures
• Manage outside counsel to drive resolution of legal issues
• May be required to perform other duties as assigned

Requirements

• High School diploma or equivalent required
• Bachelor's degree or paralegal certificate preferred
• At least 5 years of relevant experience
• Experience with commercial contracting, legal operations, or a combination thereof
• Strong understanding of commercial contracting principles
• Strong technical aptitude with case management systems (Legal Tracker, Exterro, Navex) and document management software (Conga, iManage)
• Proficient use of Microsoft Office programs, including Word, Excel, and PowerPoint
• Ability to remain organized, pay strict attention to detail, and meet critical deadlines
• Excellent time management skills, ability to support multiple legal professionals, and effectively manage a large volume of work
• Ability to operate professionally, effectively, and ethically as an individual contributor and member of a team
• Ability to identify key legal issues and develop proposed solutions; Using judgment and discretion in identifying issues for escalation
• Consistently operate with the highest level of discernment and confidentiality
• Ability to anticipate deadlines and next steps, and act on them proactively
• Self-motivated, with the ability to meet and exceed position requirements under minimal direction and supervision
• Analytical, with strong problem-solving abilities and creative resolution skills
• Strong interpersonal, written, and verbal communication skills, with the ability to deliver messages both persuasively and concisely

Nice-to-haves

• Experience with data privacy and/or intellectual property

Benefits

• Equal Employment Opportunity
• Diversity and Inclusion initiatives