About the Obama Foundation

At the Obama Foundation, we are guided by a core belief: that ordinary people working together can change history. Our mission is to inspire those people to take action, empower them to change their world for the better, and connect them so they can achieve more together than they can alone.

We were founded by community organizers, so when we seek change, we do it by bringing people together.

That approach begins at home, on the South Side of Chicago, where we are building the Obama Presidential Center. The Center represents a historic opportunity for Chicago: a chance to build a world-class museum and public gathering space that celebrates our nation's first African American President and First Lady, steps away from where he began his career, where she was raised, and where—together—they made their home.

But that approach extends to all our work, whether it's holding leadership training sessions in communities throughout the U.S., bringing local leaders together in countries around the world, working to support the global education of girls, or ensuring young men of color have pathways to opportunity.

As President Obama has said, "we cannot solve the challenges of our time unless we solve them together." So join us.

For more information, please visit www.obama.org.

Purpose of the Role

As a member of the Legal Team, the Paralegal will support fast-paced, mission-focused work related to legal research, legal document review, compliance and operational support on a wide range of issues. The Paralegal will assist with the drafting and editing of legal documents, special projects, and will help triage legal inquiries and contract requests. Reporting directly to the Legal Operations Counsel, the Paralegal will also assist in the organizational management of legal documents, ensuring that the team has an effective system for storing and sourcing important information, and will be responsible for the management of the department's contract management system.

Core Job Responsibilities

• Draft and/or edit legal documents as directed by manager for department as needed
• Assist attorneys in finalizing Foundation agreements by coordinating with the reviewing attorney, business team partners, and third-parties
• Review, analyze, and organize complex factual material and other substantive legal documents
• Perform legal research as directed by manager for department as needed
• Monitor system for legal inquiries, responding to business team partners (reviewing materials, etc.) or escalating to Legal team members in a timely fashion. Manage contract management system with an eye towards improving the system with input from business users and other stakeholders at the Foundation
• Work closely with Legal Operations Counsel on regulatory reporting obligations, implementation of compliance training materials, and legal systems optimization
• Preparing materials for trainings and internal presentations
• Perform other duties as assigned

Key Deliverables / Outcomes

• Concise explanations of legal research findings.
• Organized Legal Team file system containing the Foundation's contracts.
• Legal inquiries from Foundation partners are triaged, and all inquiries are responded to or sent to the appropriate attorney within 24-48 hours.
• Curate and maintain a well-managed contracting system that implements feedback from Foundation partners, and is responsive to the needs of the Legal Team.

Required Qualifications

• Excellent writing ability, research skills, and analytical thinking, with confidence to apply research results to fact patterns to propose conclusions or prescriptions
• Highly organized, with a track record of meeting short- and long-term responsibilities in a fast-paced, deadline-driven, high volume organization
• Ability to work independently and as part of a team
• Previous paralegal or other legal experience a plus but not required
• Prior experience with Google Suite, Freshservice and Ironclad a plus but not required
• Committed to our mission of inspiring, empowering, and connecting people to change their world

In the interest of employee health and safety during the pendency of the COVID-19 global pandemic, the Obama Foundation is requiring that all prospective employees present proof that they are fully-vaccinated against COVID-19, or seek a reasonable accommodation for religious or medical reasons, prior to their first day of employment.

Equal Opportunity Employer

The Foundation is committed to creating a diverse work environment and is proud to be an equal opportunity employer. The Foundation does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, national origin, sex, gender identity, religion, sexual orientation, age, disability, parental status, veteran status, or any other protected status under applicable laws. We encourage individuals of all backgrounds to apply. If you are a qualified candidate with a disability, please e-mail us at careers@obama.org if you require a reasonable accommodation to complete this application.