Senior Legal Counsel

The Drugs for Neglected Diseases _initiative_ (DND_i_) is an international, not-for-profit research and development (R&D) organization that develops and delivers new treatments for neglected diseases affecting millions of the world’s poorest people.

Together with more than 200 public research and industry allies worldwide, we use the power of partnership, innovation, open science, and advocacy to find solutions to a great injustice: the lack of medicines for life-threatening diseases that disproportionately impact poor and marginalized people. Driven by collaboration, not competition, and by patients’ needs, not profits, we promote equitable access, foster inclusive and sustainable solutions, and advocate for a more effective global biomedical R&D system that meets the needs of neglected patients.

Since our inception, DND_i_ has delivered 12 new treatments for people with sleeping sickness, visceral leishmaniasis, Chagas disease, HIV, hepatitis C, and malaria that have saved millions of lives. We now aim to deliver an additional 11-14 new treatments by 2028 - addressing R&D gaps for neglected tropical diseases and viral infections, including new pandemic-prone diseases (such as Covid-19) and climate-sensitive diseases (such as dengue) with a focus on the needs of patients in low
- and middle-income countries.

The DND_i_ Strategy and Operations Department manages the DND_i_ corporate infrastructure globally (Finance; Human Resources; Information Systems and Technology; Legal Affairs; Alliance Management, Business Development, Procurement, Monitoring and Evaluation, and Facilities)) across its 8 locations. The Department plays a central role in DNDi’s compliance and performance and is the custodian of its Strategic Plan, its IST strategy, People Strategy, Diversity Equity and inclusion Strategy, and Code of Conduct.

Counting Brazil’s Fiocruz as a founding member and numerous collaborations with science and access leaders in Latin American region, DND_i_ established itself in Rio de Janeiro in 2004. An integral part of DND_i_’s global network, DND_i_ Latin America nurtures R&D and access partnerships in the broad region eco-systems, including for Chagas disease, leishmaniasis, hepatitis C, and dengue, while contributing to DND_i_'s global strategy. It also undertakes advocacy in support of neglected patients and leads capacity-building projects through multi-country clinical research and drug discovery platforms, including the Chagas Clinical Research Platform and RedeLEISH and the Lead Optimization Latin America (LOLA).

**Purpose of the position**:
DND_i_ manages numerous contracts with a variety of partners around the world, ranging from academia, research institutes, local government departments, pharmaceutical and biotech companies, CROs, consultants or donors. The drafting, finalization and management of these contracts require a dedicated professional with the appropriate legal qualifications necessary to design appropriate agreements encompassing the various activities of the organization (R&D in life sciences, fundraising, communication, IST, procurement, HR, administration and finance).

DND_i_ also requires specialist services to operational line or project team, working within tried and tested policy, process, or practice, as well as solving non-routine problems on a case by case/project basis, reflecting complete understanding of the projects, programmes, and DND_i_ environment

The Senior Legal Counsel will work closely with Project Managers and other internal stakeholders, as well as external legal advisors (if and when required).

**Specific job responsibilities**:

- Draft, review and negotiate all international (**worldwide**) and local contracts for the specific disease, products or departments (including CDAs, MTAs, various kinds of technical, preclinical and clinical Service Agreements, Clinical Trial agreements, MOU, collaboration agreements, IP licensing agreements, etc.) in close collaboration with internal and external stakeholders.
- Deal with complex matters involving multiple stakeholders.
- Conduct legal due diligence:

- Identify and assess, with relevant internal stakeholders, contractual and legal risks
- Ensure consistency between interconnected contracts (e.g. confidentiality, intellectual property and licensing issues)
- Ensure conformity with DND_i_’s statutory and legal requirements, objectives, donors’ and partners’ requirements as well as with internal policies, processes.
- Manage decision processes by providing timely and practically sensible advice on appropriate courses of action
- Provide legal support and advice on corporate governance matters in several jurisdictions
- Conduct legal research when needed or requested and prepare relevant high-quality documentation for relevant leadership teams.
- Be the focal legal person for specific departments, disease programmes or offices, for local and global worldwide requests.
- Liaise with external lawye