Associate Director, Global Investment Legal Services – Attorney

MIT Investment Management Company (“MITIMCo”) is the department within MIT which currently manages over $40 billion in assets for the Institute’s endowment, retirement plan and other pools of capital. Our mission is to deliver outstanding long-term investment returns for MIT, and our work directly furthers the transformative research and educational efforts of this world class institution.

We are seeking an Attorney to join our Global Investment Legal Services team (“GIS Legal”) as an Associate Director, with an emphasis on reviewing and negotiating investments in private funds, co-investment vehicles, operating companies and separately managed accounts.

This individual will work closely and collaboratively with GIS Legal and other teams including, but not limited to, the Global Investment Staff (“GIS”), Investment Accounting and Operations (“IAO”) and Financial Reporting and Operational Risk (“FROR”), and MIT’s Office of the General Counsel (“OGC”), to provide MITIMCo with first class legal support and advice.

Principal Duties & Responsibilities

• Work closely with the relevant GIS “champion” to lead the legal review of investments in private investment funds (e.g., venture capital, private equity, hedge and real estate funds), co-investments, primary investments (e.g., direct securities), and separately managed accounts.
• Advise on legal and market terms during the early negotiating term sheet stage, and review constitutive and offering materials, including limited partnership agreements and private placement memoranda.
• Work with the GIS “champion” to identify key business concerns, assess MITIMCo’s negotiating leverage, and efficiently triage each review—particularly on deals with compressed timelines and limited negotiating leverage—to identify, prioritize, and clearly flag the legal and business issues for the GIS “champion” and investment team.
• Prepare appropriately detailed comment memos with key business points and legal/due diligence inquiries, negotiate such points with managers’ counsel, and utilize AI-enabled review tools and outside counsel to accelerate the review process without sacrificing quality.
• Balance the dual goals of promoting the best interests of MIT while developing a collaborative, partnership dynamic with investment managers and, where applicable, their operations teams.
• Provide additional care, attention, support, and relationship building for MIT’s investments in emerging managers, including evaluating non-U.S. regulatory requirements and sourcing and maintaining relationships with MIT’s recommended third-party service providers.
• Evaluate the tax implications and structuring alternatives for new investments in coordination with the tax members of FROR, and when relevant, MIT’s outside advisors and tax counsel within OGC, to structure investments in a tax-efficient manner and to address MITIMCo’s evolving considerations as a tax-exempt institutional investor.
• Identify issues and consult with MIT’s external tax, ERISA, and compliance counsel as needed for various projects to resolve unique, complex, or critical legal matters.
• Research various legal and compliance issues, particularly related to U.S. securities filings and compliance requirements. Present relevant findings/practical impacts to GIS and Operations Teams and collaborate with such teams on the creation and implementation of any new structural solutions, necessary compliance enhancements or operational capabilities.
• Serve as a key contributing member of MITIMCo’s strategy committee and investment implementation committee. Regular contributing attendee at Investment Committee meetings and weekly GIS team meetings and investment pipeline meetings.
• Identify and implement process efficiencies, AI-enabled tools and training opportunities across the GIS Legal team to help drive speed and quality across the review process.
• Maintain & update key terms and other documentation templates, manage record-keeping and document databases for all contracts under the attorney’s purview and ensure relevant reports, policies and procedures are regularly reviewed and updated.
• Work with FROR to lead periodic legal review of critical vendor contracts.

Supervision Received

• Reporting to Director, Global Investment Legal Services.

Supervision Exercised

• No direct reports, but supervise and mentor Senior Legal Analyst, Legal Administrative Assistant and Legal Interns on various projects.

Qualifications & Skills

• 7 years of experience at a law firm and/or in-house with deep experience in reviewing and negotiating investments in private funds, co-investments and direct securities.
• Juris Doctorate degree with a demonstrated history of excellence.
• Admission to the Massachusetts Bar
• Experience at an asset management firm or investment office of a university, foundation or other nonprofit is highly desired. Experience with separately managed accounts is a plus.
• Familiarity with the tax considerations and structuring alternatives relevant to a tax-exempt institutional investor’s private fund, co-investment and direct investments.
• Demonstrated experience using AI-enabled tools to create efficiencies in legal workflows and to reshape how legal problems are approached and solved.
• Advanced problem-solving skills, with the ability to navigate ambiguous, complex, and multi-variable issues while working efficiently under compressed deal timelines.
• Ability to distill complex legal analysis into clear, prioritized guidance for investment professionals and other non-legal stakeholders.
• Excellent verbal and written communication skills.
• Strong interpersonal skills with a collaborative, team orientated approach.
• Ability to organize and manage multiple projects and prioritize competing needs of the office.
• Proficiency in Microsoft Office.
• Ability to work from our Cambridge, MA, offices at least two days per week and/or as required by company policy.