Senior Legal Counsel - 12 month contract at Sonder

Corporate, Sydney sydney legal contract
Description
Posted 22 hours ago

At Sonder, we believe that every person deserves to feel safe, supported, and empowered to be at their best - wherever they are. That’s why we’re redefining workplace health, safety, and wellbeing through a seamless blend of technology and human expertise. Sonder’s mobile platform provides 24/7, real-time support from a dedicated team of safety, medical, and mental health professionals - ensuring that our members receive immediate care when they need it most. In critical situations, we go beyond digital support, offering on-the-ground assistance to manage time-sensitive incidents.

By harnessing real-time insights, we enable organisations to take proactive steps toward a healthier, safer future, which leads directly to tangible bottom-line business outcomes.

An Exciting Time to Join Sonder!

Since our founding in 2017, Sonder has experienced rapid growth, expanding operations across Australia, New Zealand, and the UK. Backed by Australia’s leading venture capital firms, Seek and Blackbird, we are well-capitalised and on a mission to scale globally, partnering with corporations, educational institutions, and government agencies to transform workplace wellbeing at scale.

Our impact and scale:

  • 1,000,000+ members across multiple countries
  • 200+ team members, plus an extensive network of on-the-ground responders

If you’re passionate about using technology and human expertise to drive meaningful change, join us in shaping the future of workplace wellbeing!

About the role

We’re looking for a commercially minded Senior Legal Counsel to join our Legal team and play a key role in supporting Sonder’s growth. Reporting directly to the VP Legal, you’ll act as a cross-functional advisor, collaborating closely with teams across sales, marketing, product, engineering, finance, and people & culture to ensure Sonder scales responsibly and strategically.

As a trusted advisor, you will provide guidance on a wide range of legal and strategic matters, helping Sonder grow efficiently while maintaining compliance and effectively managing risk.

What you’ll be doing

You will be a cross-functional legal advisor, helping Sonder balance legal risk with strategic objectives while enabling rapid, sustainable growth.

  • Draft, negotiate, and manage a wide range of commercial and technology agreements.
  • Support revenue-generating activities across global markets, including the UK.
  • Advise on corporate governance, privacy, employment, IP, real property, dispute resolution and AI-related matters.
  • Partner with Product & Technology teams to ensure compliant data governance practices.
  • Work closely with senior leadership and the Board on strategic initiatives.
  • Support capital raising, M&A and other high-impact corporate projects.
  • Build and optimise scalable legal processes, templates, policies and workflows.
  • Use technology (including AI) to automate repeatable legal tasks and improve efficiency.

Who are we looking for?

You’re an adaptable, collaborative and data-driven lawyer who thrives in fast-moving environments. You combine sharp legal insight with strong commercial judgment, and you’re comfortable working autonomously while building strong partnerships across the business. You enjoy solving complex problems, bringing clarity to ambiguity, and helping a purpose-driven organisation scale.

What you bring to the team:

  • 4–8 years PQE with top-tier private practice experience and prior in-house exposure.
  • Strong background in technology law and extensive SaaS contracting experience.
  • In-depth understanding of Australian and European privacy laws, including the Privacy Act and GDPR.
  • Experience working in a startup or scale-up environment (highly desirable).
  • Commercial and pragmatic approach to problem-solving.
  • Excellent stakeholder management, communication and negotiation skills.
  • Comfort working across legal, operational and commercial domains.
  • A proactive, flexible and hands-on mindset, with the confidence to work independently within a small legal team.

Why join Sonder?

At Sonder, we thrive in a fast-paced, high-performance environment with a strong commitment to our people. Our team is a collaborative, vibrant group of passionate professionals, dedicated to making a real impact on people’s lives every day.

  • Hybrid and flexible working environment. Enjoy the perfect balance of in-office collaboration and work from home flexibility, empowering you to optimise your productivity and work-life balance.
  • Our employees and their families get free access to the Sonder app with 24/7 support.
  • Paid parental leave with an attractive return to work policy, 12 weeks for Primary Carers and 4 weeks for Secondary Carers, plus our Primary Carers return to work at 80% for the first 3 months at full pay.
  • $1000 annual contribution as part of your development plan + 2 days of study leave
  • Employee Share Option Plan (ESOP) – share in Sonder’s success.
  • Salary Packaging and novated leasing .
  • ​​Access $250 annually to fund to invest in your wellbeing, empowering you to choose the support that best fits your needs.
  • Dog-friendly office in our Sydney HQ
  • Volunteer leave. 2 days per year to participate in meaningful causes and contribute back to the community.

Sonder is for Everyone

At Sonder, we are committed to fostering a workplace that reflects the rich diversity of the communities we serve. Our members come from all backgrounds, and we know that a diverse team helps us better understand and support their needs. We encourage applications from people of all ages, abilities, cultural backgrounds, gender identities, sexual orientations, and religious beliefs. We are proud to be an inclusive employer and strongly encourage Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples to apply. We are an equal opportunity employer and all hiring decisions are based on merit, capability, and alignment with the role.

Due to the nature of our industry, all Sonder employees are required to complete a National Police Check and Working With Children Check.

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