Senior Process Associate Jobs in Carlsbad, CA (NOW HIRING)

Senior Legal Process Engineer Cooley is seeking a Senior Legal Process Engineer to join the Practice Engineering team. As the leading technology law firm, Cooley is determined to become a leader in the digital practice of law. Cooley Innovation embraces a culture of customer service excellence and all members of the department are expected to advance this agenda.

Under the direction of the Associate Director, Legal Practice Engineering, the Legal Process Engineer will play a critical role at the intersection of legal domain expertise, process engineering, and digital product development. The engineer will work directly with the firm’s practitioners across offices and practice areas to uncover, analyze, and re‑design legal workflows, ensuring that solutions—from document drafting tools to analytics platforms—effectively leverage document automation, AI, and data integrations.

• Lead workflow discovery efforts in partnership with practice groups and Knowledge Management attorneys, capturing end-to-end legal workstreams across corporate, regulatory, and transactional domains, including stakeholders such as clients, directors, officers, and investors.
• Identify and map the flow of data through documents and organizations, investigating the roles of different personas as authors and consumers; trace how information moves through each step, clarify document ownership, and visually represent legal process logic for internal and client-facing solutions.
• Analyze and reimagine legal workflows to identify opportunities for digitization, automation, AI integration, and alignment with Cooley’s emerging product platforms.
• Translate legal process insights into early-stage solution concepts, informing roadmap planning, prototype development, and MVP scoping.
• Create workflow diagrams, process maps, journey maps, and wireframes to visually communicate how legal work is done and where digital transformation adds value, using tools such as Miro, Lucidchart, and Figma.
• Support AI and automation incubation projects by documenting requirements, mapping logic, and facilitating handoff to product development and software engineering teams for production readiness.
• Provide legal domain expertise across the full product lifecycle in collaboration with UX designers, engineers, and business analysts.
• Partner with product managers during planning, feature definition, and prioritization—ensuring legal nuance and workflow complexity are well represented and strategically considered.
• Contribute domain-specific context and nuances to user stories, acceptance criteria, and iterative refinement within Agile/Lean frameworks.
• Contribute to user testing, solution validation, and stakeholder feedback loops to ensure solutions remain grounded in legal practice and user needs.
• Maintain a working knowledge of Cooley’s digital platform portfolio to identify integration points and avoid redundant tool development.
• Stay current on legal tech trends, process innovation methods, AI/ML applications in law, and practice-specific technologies.
• Present complex workflows and product concepts through visual storytelling and design thinking approaches to legal and technical audiences.
• Ensure alignment with departmental standards, best practices, and governance in the development, delivery, and support of legal technology and product solutions.
• Perform any other duties as assigned or required.

• 5+ years of experience in legal process design, practice innovation, legal tech, or legal process engineering roles.
• Deep understanding of legal practice workflows and professional experience working directly with legal practitioners (attorneys, paralegals, Knowledge Management).
• Proficiency in Microsoft Office, iManage, and other firm applications.
• Willingness to work extended and/or weekend hours as needed.
• Proven ability to lead discovery sessions, map and re-engineer legal processes, and design actionable solution paths.
• Familiarity with product development methodologies (Agile, Lean, etc.) and experience working alongside product managers, UX designers, and software engineers.
• High proficiency in workflow visualization and storytelling tools (e.g., Miro, Figma, Lucidchart).
• Strong storytelling and presentation skills, with the ability to communicate complex legal and technical concepts to diverse audiences.
• Experience supporting AI, automation, or digital tool initiatives within legal or professional services environments.

• Bachelor’s degree; Juris Doctorate (or equivalent) degree.
• Experience as a product manager or in cross‑functional product teams.
• Certifications in Product Management, Business Analysis, or Design Thinking.
• Awareness of data strategy concepts and legal AI concepts.
• Experience working in a legal services environment, preferably an AMLAW 200 law firm or in‑house legal department with greater than 50 attorneys.

• Ability to take initiative, synthesize complexity, and work independently with cross‑functional stakeholders.
• Demonstrates initiative and ownership in managing responsibilities, priorities, and deliverables while proactively aligning work with Practice Engineering’s strategic objectives and standards.
• Ability to connect legal process insight with long‑term business and technology goals; thinks proactively across the full product lifecycle.
• Applies empathy and design thinking to problem‑solving, discovery, and solution design—ensuring attorney, client, and internal stakeholder needs are represented throughout the process.
• Demonstrates sharp analytical skills and meticulous attention to detail to accurately interpret complex legal workflows and product requirements.
• Approaches every interaction with professionalism, responsiveness, and a strong customer‑service mindset, committed to excellence in delivery.
• Communicates clearly, visually, and verbally with audiences at all levels.
• Balances attention to detail with strategic clarity.
• Builds strong, respectful working relationships across disciplines.
• Acts as a connector between legal and technical teams, fostering trust through collaboration, clarity, and follow‑through.
• Thrives in a fast‑paced, evolving environment.
• Navigates ambiguity and shifting priorities with resilience and embraces feedback for continuous improvement.

• Competitive compensation with a full‑time annual pay range of $120,000 – $175,000 (dependent on geographic location, experience, and skillset).
• Health, dental, vision plans, Health Savings Account (HSA), and flexible spending accounts.
• Life insurance, AD&D, long‑term care coverage, and firm‑paid short‑term medical benefits.
• 21 days of Paid Time Off (PTO) and 10 paid holidays each year.
• Generous parental leave and fertility benefits.
• Benefit orientation for new employees to learn about offerings and resources.
• Commitment to fair and equitable employment practices. EOE.