Description:

Position Purpose:
Stoke is seeking an enthusiastic and highly motivated Corporate Counsel to join the Legal team. As Corporate Counsel, you will serve as a highly visible legal partner across the organization, supporting critical business initiatives spanning clinical development, research, manufacturing, commercial, medical affairs, vendor partnerships, and corporate operations. The ideal candidate brings strong pharmaceutical or biotechnology legal experience, particularly in R&D contracting, and enjoys collaborating with smart, mission-oriented teams tackling meaningful scientific challenges. The person in this role will need to be able to manage multiple competing priorities and work collaboratively in an environment with multiple stakeholders.

Key Responsibilities:

Lead the drafting, review, negotiation and finalization of a broad range of agreements including confidential disclosure, clinical trial, supply, quality, consulting, scientific advisor and master services agreements, while ensuring compliance, alignment with business needs, and operational excellence.
Work with key internal stakeholders, outside vendors, and outside legal counsel to ensure corporate agreements meet relevant timelines and business requirements.
Advise internal stakeholders on contractual rights and obligations, as needed.
Utilize contract management system to track key contract information and generate reports as necessary.
Maintain and update company agreement templates as needed.
Provide training and guidance to employees regarding the internal contracting process, contracts management system and related best practices.
Support broader legal department initiatives, special projects, and evolving business needs in a dynamic growth environment.
Help build scalable legal processes that support innovation while protecting the organization.

Required Skills & Experience:

JD from an accredited law school and membership in good standing with the bar of at least one state in the US.
Minimum of 8 years of post-graduate legal experience, including both law firm experience representing biotech/pharma clients and in-house experience at a biotech/pharma company.
Significant experience drafting and negotiating contracts typical in the biopharma industry.
Proven track record of effectively partnering with business teams throughout the contracting process and providing timely, pragmatic, and solution-oriented advice to bring contracts to completion.
Ability to analyze complex contracts and legal documents and provide concise, actionable feedback.
Ability to manage multiple competing priorities and set clear expectations with internal and external clients.
Outstanding attention to detail and project management skills, with the ability to drive initiatives forward to successful completion.
Sense of ownership and the ability to operate effectively in a lean, high-performing environment
Proficiency in biopharma research and development matters and familiarity with relevant laws and regulations and intellectual property (IP) matters that arise in the biopharma industry.
Proficiency utilizing a contract management system.
Strong written and verbal communication skills.

Location(s):
Stoke is located in Bedford, MA, and will be moving to a new location in Waltham, MA by the end of 2026. This position requires 3 days onsite and is currently based in Bedford and will later be based in Waltham.

Travel:
This position will require minimal travel.