Lead Counsel, Corporate

Join the team redefining how the world experiences design.

Hello gday mabuhay kia ora 你好 hallo vítejte!

Thanks for stopping by. We know job hunting can be a little time consuming and youre probably keen to find out whats on offer so well get straight to the point.

Where and how you can work

Our flagship office is in Sydney Australia but weve made our way from down under to a hub in San Francisco which is now home to our US operations. We offer flexibility in how and where you work. We trust our Canvanauts to choose the balance that empowers them and their team to achieve their goals.

What youd be doing in this role

As Canva scales change continues to be part of our DNA. But we like to think thats all part of the fun. So this will give you the flavor of the type of things youll be working on when you start but this role will likely evolve.

As Managing Counsel Corporate you will be a seasoned trusted adviser and a leader within our Corporate Legal Team. Youll take end-to-end ownership of our most complex novel and high-stakes matters lead company-wide initiatives shape how the legal function operates and mentor and develop attorneys across the team including:

• Leading the most complex corporate securities matters including secondary sales and tender offers

• Owning and leading our most strategic mergers and acquisitions end-to-end

• Shaping and driving global expansion strategy partnering with our global entities team and local counsel to grow our business worldwide

• Advising the board and leadership on corporate governance matters including board and stockholder actions and communications

• Overseeing company capitalization matters including the execution of share transfers

• Leading employee equity and executive compensation programs working with our equity ops employment legal and total rewards teams 

• Advising on matters relating to the operation and governance of the Canva Foundation

• Designing and redefining the processes agreements frameworks and AI-enabled ways of working the broader team and business rely on for transactional and governance matters

• Overseeing the companys corporate insurance program

• Managing external counsel and mentoring and developing attorneys across the team

Youre probably a match if

• You have 8 years of corporate legal experience ideally trained at a law firm specializing in venture-backed or high-growth technology companies with deep in-house experience you know how to move fast handle complexity and keep up with demanding clients. You know what its like on both sides of the table.

• You have extensive experience leading corporate transactions including venture financings secondary transactions and acquisitions you understand cap table mechanics investor rights and how the pieces fit together; deep cross-border experience is a huge plus.

• You are fluent in equity and cap table management you may not be doing the day-to-day administration but you know the rules understand the mechanics and can spot an issue before it becomes one.

• You are sought out for your technical and regional expertise the person others turn to for the most complex novel or ambiguous matters and you guide colleagues (whether or not they report to you) on Canva context and market practice.

• You lead significant company-wide initiatives that redefine how we work anticipating future legal risks and opportunities and aligning legal strategy with Canvas long-term vision.

• Youre all in on AI you love finding new ways to save time and are always exploring how to leverage tools like Claude ChatGPT Glean and others to automate and streamline how work gets done and you champion adoption across the team.

• You can jump into the chaos clean things up add structure and run a tight ship working with the team to keep minute books and subsidiary records in great shape across multiple jurisdictions rallying your teammates to make sure everything stays that way.

• You have a Juris Doctor (JD) from an accredited law school and active membership in at least one U.S. state bar.

• You apply the law commercially and pragmatically give strategic advice that weighs the wider business impact and are risk aware not risk averse exercising sound independent judgement on risk appetite.

• You create a culture of mentoring and development across the legal team sharing knowledge and best practice modelling two-way feedback and helping others grow. 

• You are highly collaborative with a positive attitude humor humility and the desire to build lead and make an impact and youre recognised internally and often externally as a thought leader in your field.

• You are fearless love a new challenge and are not afraid to get your hands dirty - no task is too big or too small.

• You are resourceful and self-motivated and have exceptional time management and organizational skills.

• You are comfortable working at an international company with its headquarters in Sydney AU and shifting your calendar when necessary (not always) to ensure overlap with stakeholders which means you may need to attend some meetings later in the evenings and earlier in the mornings.

• You have exceptional written and verbal communication skills and influence confidently and autonomously at the most senior levels including founders the board and investors as a trusted adviser bringing people along using storytelling design and data.

• You are a self-starter and quick learner with the ability to operate independently and as part of a team in a fast-paced environment appropriately prioritizing and managing numerous projects simultaneously under deadline pressure with minimal guidance.

• You have excellent technology skills with proficiency in G Suite Slack Microsoft Word Excel; experience with board portals and subsidiary management databases is a plus.

About the team

With big goals come big ideas. And our Legal team is there every step of the way - ideating providing strategic legal advice and collaborating with Canvanauts across the globe to bring our ideas to life.

• The Corporate Legal Team specifically works closely with Canvas leadership Finance Tax People and Total Rewards teams (and many more!) across a broad range of projects helping to empower Canva to meet its crazy big goals. From supporting our financings acquisitions and global expansion to advising our board of directors and managing employee equity we strive to be collaborative creative and strategic partners for the business and its stakeholders.

Whats in it for you

Achieving our crazy big goals motivates us to work hard - and we do - but youll experience lots of moments of magic connectivity and fun woven throughout life at Canva too. We also offer a range of benefits to set you up for every success in and outside of work.

Heres a taste of whats on offer:

• Equity packages - we want our success to be yours too

• Health benefits plans to support you and your wellbeing

• 401(k) retirement plan with company contribution

• Inclusive parental leave policy that supports all parents & carers

• An annual Vibe & Thrive allowance to support your wellbeing social connection office setup & more

• Flexible leave options that empower you to be a force for good take time to recharge and supports you personally

Check out for more info.

At Canva we value fairness and we strive to provide competitive market-informed compensation whilst ensuring internal equity within the team in each region. We make hiring decisions based on your skills experience and our overall assessment of what we observed and learnt in the hiring process. The target salary range for this position is $228000 - $345000. When calculating offers we make salary decisions based on market data and candidates skills and experience.

Other stuff to know

We make hiring decisions based on your experience skills and passion as well as how you can enhance Canva and our culture. When you apply please tell us the pronouns you use and any reasonable adjustments you may need during the interview process.

We celebrate all types of skills and backgrounds at Canva so even if you dont feel like your skills quite match whats listed above - we still want to hear from you!

Please note that interviews are conducted virtually.

Remote Work :

No

Employment Type :

Full-time