Accord and Shield Legal, PLLC is seeking a detail-oriented, proactive Law Clerk to support its business-law and outside-general-counsel practice across California, Arizona, and Texas. The firm partners with founders and growing businesses from entity formation through operational growth and exit, with substantial work involving commercial agreements, corporate maintenance, mergers and acquisitions, employment and labor-law advisement, product and service arrangements, and practical legal support as clients' businesses evolve. This role is well suited to a law student who is interested in transactional business law and comfortable working carefully, independently, and with close attorney supervision. The Law Clerk will assist with legal research, contract drafting and review, client and matter organization, and preparation of business-law documents. Core Responsibilities Assist attorneys with drafting, revising, and formatting commercial contracts and other business-law documents. Prepare first drafts and revisions of agreements, including service agreements, SaaS and subscription terms, vendor and customer agreements, NDAs, consulting agreements, contractor agreements, corporate consents, and other transactional documents, as assigned. Review contracts and related documents for defined terms, internal consistency, missing provisions, dates, signature requirements, notice information, business terms, and conformity with attorney instructions. Compare drafts, organize redline comments, and prepare clean and comparison versions for attorney review. Conduct legal and factual research on federal and state business-law issues, commercial contracting, entity governance, privacy and website terms, and other assigned matters. Prepare concise research summaries, issue lists, contract summaries, checklists, and internal memoranda for attorney review. Support entity-formation, corporate-maintenance, mergers-and-acquisitions, and employment and labor-law advisory matters by preparing organizational documents, transaction materials, research, filing materials, and governance records under attorney direction. Maintain organized, accurate matter files and ensure documents are stored in the firm's designated secure systems. Assist with client-facing materials and administrative follow-up as assigned, while maintaining appropriate confidentiality and attorney-supervision protocols. Required Qualifications Current enrollment in an accredited J.D. program, recent J.D. graduate, or comparable legal-training background, subject to applicable law and firm requirements. Demonstrated contract-drafting experience is required. Candidates should have drafted, revised, or substantively assisted with commercial agreements through a law-firm, in-house, clinic, internship, or comparable professional setting. Applicants without prior employment-based experience are encouraged to apply if they gained meaningful, supervised transactional or contract-drafting experience through a small-business clinic, including Arizona State University's Small Business Clinic, or a comparable law-school clinic. Strong understanding of contract structure and drafting fundamentals, including defined terms, operative provisions, exhibits, signature blocks, and amendment and version-control practices. Excellent legal research, writing, proofreading, and analytical skills. Exceptional attention to detail, including the ability to identify inconsistencies in business terms, dates, party names, cross-references, and defined terms. Ability to follow attorney instructions precisely, manage multiple assignments, and meet deadlines. High degree of professionalism, discretion, responsiveness, and respect for confidential client information. Proficiency with Microsoft Word and document-comparison tools; comfort learning practice-management and secure document-management systems. Preferred Qualifications Experience with business, corporate, startup, technology, SaaS, or commercial-contract matters. Experience supporting outside general counsel or serving businesses on recurring legal needs. Familiarity with entity documents and general corporate-governance concepts. Experience reviewing website terms, privacy policies, or consumer-facing business documents under attorney supervision. Experience working with founders, small businesses, or subscription-based technology businesses. Experience with mergers and acquisitions or employment and labor-law advisement is welcome but not required. Skills and Working Style The successful candidate will be organized, commercially minded, and able to translate attorney direction into clear, accurate work product. They will be comfortable asking focused questions when instructions or source documents are incomplete, flagging issues rather than assuming an answer, and receiving detailed feedback on drafts. The candidate must be able to balance speed with precision and understand that contracts and other client documents must be tailored to the client's actual business operations rather than treated as one-size-fits-all forms. Supervision and Scope The Law Clerk will work under the direction and supervision of a licensed attorney. Work product, legal research, contract drafts, and client communications are subject to attorney review and approval before use or transmission. The Law Clerk may not provide legal advice, negotiate on behalf of the firm or a client unless specifically authorized and appropriately supervised, or represent that they are an attorney.

Application Materials Applicants should submit:

A résumé; A cover letter explaining your particular experience and how it applies to this position, as well as your career goals; Your transcript (unofficial version is fine); A contract-drafting sample that demonstrates the applicant's prior experience drafting or revising a commercial agreement. Any sample must be appropriately redacted to protect confidential information. In their application, candidates should briefly identify the types of contracts they have drafted or revised and describe their role in preparing those documents. Equal Opportunity Accord and Shield Legal, PLLC is an equal-opportunity employer and considers qualified applicants without regard to any status protected by applicable law.

Pay:

$25.00 per hour Expected hours: 10.0 - 20.0 per week

Work Location:

In person