The New Yale Law School Entrepreneurial Law Clinic Needs a Director . . . .

Yale Law School invites applications for an inaugural, full time faculty director for its new Entrepreneurship Clinic. The position, which will be at the rank of Clinical Associate Professor or Clinical Professor of Law, will begin on July 1, 2018.

A key ambition of Yale University is “to provide an unsurpassed campus learning environment that cultivates innovators, leaders, pioneers, creators, and entrepreneurs in all fields and for all sectors of society.” Yale Law School is contributing to that goal by forming a new Entrepreneurship Clinic, which will provide transactional services and related legal advice to individuals or entities seeking to start or expand their own ventures. The Entrepreneurship Clinic is expected to become a central component of the Yale University student innovation ecosystem, which encompasses both curricular programs (such as the Yale School of Management Programs on Entrepreneurship and Social Enterprise), as well as independent, cross disciplinary centers (such as the Tsai Center for Innovative Thinking at Yale). Although it is envisioned that clients for the Entrepreneurship Clinic will come primarily from these programs, there may be opportunities for creating partnerships with the Office of Cooperative Research (which focuses on faculty ventures) and with the greater New Haven entrepreneurial community.

In addition to being a central component of the Yale University student innovation ecosystem, the Entrepreneurship Clinic will become an integral part of the business law programs at Yale Law School. Yale Law School has a rich tradition in corporate law (http://ccl.yale.edu/history-business-law-yale) and has two Centers devoted to corporate and commercial law, the Center for the Study of Corporate Law (http://ccl.yale.edu/) and the Center for Private Law (https://law.yale.edu/centers-workshops/yale-law-school-center-private-law). The Centers sponsor lectures, panels, and symposia, which bring together academics, policymakers, and members of the bar and business communities. There is also a large and vibrant student group, the Yale Law & Business Society. In addition, Yale Law School has a strong partnership with the Yale School of Management, as evinced by the joint J.D./M.B.A. program, which students can complete on an accelerated track in three years, as well as in the more conventional four years.

As the inaugural director and a member of the full time law faculty, the director will shape the future of the Entrepreneurship Clinic. The responsibilities of the position include:

• designing the curriculum for the seminar component of the Clinic, which may cover, among other things: pre venture counseling; entity selection and tax planning; entity formation or entry into joint ventures or strategic alliances; intellectual property; licensing and regulatory compliance; employee management; non-profit ventures; and start-up financing, and teaching the seminar;
• arranging the fieldwork component of the Clinic and supervising law student representation of clients, including transactional drafting, review, or negotiation, as appropriate, of organizational documents, founder 2 agreements, non- disclosure agreements, employment agreements and accompanying equity compensation agreements, independent contractor agreements, supplier or other vendor agreements, debt documents, and venture investment term sheets;
• building and maintaining relationships between the Clinic and the Yale student innovation programs; and
• participating in the intellectual life of Yale Law School, including interaction with academic and clinical faculty and Centers or Workshops that may touch upon substantive aspects of entrepreneurship.

Yale Law School is open to director candidates at varying stages of their career. If not currently a member, admission to the State Bar of Connecticut will be required before the end of the first year of full time appointment. Salary is commensurate with experience.

Applicants should have a J.D. degree and a minimum of three plus years of relevant transactional experience, concentrating on startups or venture capital, or transactional experience in related areas, such as mergers and acquisitions, private equity, capital markets (especially initial public offerings), or intellectual property. A strong candidate will have excellent supervisory and communication skills, the ability to work effectively with students and clients, and an interest in developing clinical experiences for students within a community that supports interdisciplinary collaboration and innovative, passionate teaching.

To apply, please submit a letter of interest, resume, and list of three references to Professor Roberta Romano, Chair, Entrepreneurship Clinic Appointments Committee, at [email protected]. Please write “Entrepreneurship Clinic Application” in the subject line of the email. Review of applications will begin on October 15, 2017 and will continue until the position is filled.

Information about clinical and experiential legal education at Yale Law School can be found at: https://law.yale.edu/studying-law-yale/clinical-and-experiential-learning; additional information about corporate and commercial Law at Yale Law School can be found at: https://law.yale.edu/studying-law-yale/areas-interest/corporate-commercial-law.

Yale University considers applicants for employment without regard to, and does not discriminate on the basis of, an individual's sex, race, color, religion, age, disability, status as a veteran, or national or ethnic origin; nor does Yale discriminate on the basis of sexual orientation or gender identity or expression.