Chief Legal Officer

Role Overview

• Strategic leadership and further development of the legal department
• Structuring, building, and strategically developing a growing legal team (law students, paralegals/refas, fully qualified attorneys) and managing the internal law office connection
• Establishing legally effective association structures and resolutions while excluding liability risks
• Internal legal counsel, compliance & governance
• Responsible handling of all internal legal matters including strategic assessment
• Supporting the executive board, department heads and working groups on matters of labor and contract law, association law and bylaws, compliance and governance, and data protection
• Operational legal management & process design
• Designing and implementing efficient processes for the structured handling of legal matters
• Professional handling and prioritization of consumer legal inquiries, including standardized legal classification and ensuring clear protection mechanisms (comprehensive coverage via directors & officers, liability, legal expenses and VSHP insurance is provided)
• Contract management & external legal enforcement
• Coordinating external operational implementation such as legal pursuit, enforcement and determination in consumer and corporate law matters
• Administration, review and legal assessment of contracts with external partners, service providers and funding institutions
• Drafting contracts for projects, cooperations and memberships
• Application under § 4d UKlaG and § 8 UWG to the lists of qualified institutions and building a partnership structure with attorneys and law firms for outsourcing litigation

Requirements

• Fully qualified lawyer with a completed Second State Examination (2. Staatsexamen) and a solid understanding of civil, consumer and corporate law issues
• Experience in leading, building, or strategically developing legal structures – ideally in a responsible role within a law firm, organization or legal department
• Strong strategic thinking and design skills to structure complex legal and organizational challenges and convert them into future-proof solutions
• Ability to present complex matters clearly, understandably and practically
• Sense of responsibility, leadership skills and a structured working style
• Ambition to rethink consumer protection in Germany and to advance sustainable, public-interest-oriented developments
• Willingness to volunteer in a remotely organized association

Benefits

• Visibility and credibility through work on behalf of a recognized consumer organization
• Flexible working hours, flexible time commitment and remote work
• Collaborative, equal-footed work with the executive management and all departments
• A visible role with impact – serving an idea that rethinks responsibility
• A qualified reference letter/ certificate of service detailing your tasks, responsibilities and achievements
• A volunteer position that not only opens professional opportunities but also grants responsibility and recognition within an association officially registered in the Bundestag lobby register – as part of a democratic organization
• Prospect of later permanent employment if suitable and needed, as positions in subordinate companies are primarily filled from committed volunteers
• Our motto: Together rather than against each other