Legal Engineering Lead
Company: Ares Operations
Location: New York City
Posted on: April 2, 2026
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Job Description:
Over the last 20 years, Ares’ success has been driven by our
people and our culture. Today, our team is guided by our core
values – Collaborative, Responsible, Entrepreneurial, Self-Aware,
Trustworthy – and our purpose to be a catalyst for shared
prosperity and a better future. Through our recruitment, career
development and employee-focused programming, we are committed to
fostering a welcoming and inclusive work environment where
high-performance talent of diverse backgrounds, experiences, and
perspectives can build careers within this exciting and growing
industry. Job Description Ares is seeking a Legal Engineering Lead
(Vice President) to join Corporate Technology, reporting to the
Head of Legal and Compliance Technology . This role will lead
engineering delivery, platform health, and ongoing evolution of
technology solutions supporting Ares’ Legal and related risk and
third-party governance workflows—driving scalable, secure, and
audit-ready capabilities that improve operational efficiency and
control effectiveness. The ideal candidate is a hands-on
engineering leader with deep familiarity across Legal/GC processes
and related risk workflows, ideally from a large alternative asset
manager or similarly complex regulated firm (large law firm
experience supporting sophisticated legal operations is also
valued). This leader will bring strong technical fundamentals
(e.g., SQL and at least one coding language), experience with
integrations and data platforms, and the ability to partner closely
with business stakeholders and vendors to deliver measurable
outcomes. This role requires experience implementing and operating
modern legal and risk platforms, including matter management and
e-billing (e.g., Simple Legal / Passport / Apperio or similar),
Legal Entity Management (e.g., GEMS), Contract Lifecycle Management
(CLM) solutions (e.g., Icertis, Ironclad), and third-party risk
management (TPRM) and intake tooling (e.g., Zip and comparable
platforms). RESPONSIBILITIES: • Lead engineering delivery and
operational ownership for the Legal and technology portfolio,
ensuring solutions are scalable, resilient, secure, and
audit-ready. • Serve as the technical lead for platform strategy,
implementation, and support across Legal systems, including matter
management/e-billing, legal entity management, CLM, and third-party
intake/TPRM tooling. • Partner with Legal, and key stakeholder
groups to translate business needs into clear technical
requirements, solution designs, delivery plans, and measurable
outcomes. • Own end-to-end delivery: discovery,
architecture/design, build/configuration, testing/UAT, release, and
production support—aligned with SDLC, change management, and
operational readiness. • Establish and maintain integration
patterns and data flows across core platforms (APIs, batch,
middleware), supporting reporting, auditability, and downstream
finance/procurement or records-management dependencies. • Drive
strong engineering discipline: configuration standards, code
quality, peer review, automated testing where applicable,
environment management, and release governance. • Ensure embedded
controls across workflows: approvals, access management,
segregation of duties, evidence capture, and traceability aligned
to audit and regulatory expectations. • Lead a small team of
technical resources, providing coaching, prioritization, and
delivery oversight; foster a culture of accountability and
continuous improvement. • Manage vendors/partners as needed:
solution selection support, implementation oversight, SLA/service
performance, roadmap alignment, and cost management. • Provide
transparent, executive-ready reporting on platform health, delivery
status, risks/issues, dependencies, and remediation plans
QUALIFICATIONS: 10 years of progressive technology experience,
including significant hands-on delivery experience supporting Legal
systems and governance platforms in a complex environment.
Experience in complex, regulated financial services; alternative
asset management experience strongly preferred. Bachelor’s degree
required; Computer Science/Engineering background preferred. Strong
written and verbal communication skills; proven ability to
influence and collaborate across senior business and technology
stakeholders. Demonstrated people leadership experience (direct
management and/or leading teams through delivery and operations).
Experience Required Strong engineering fundamentals and hands-on
delivery experience, including: SQL (required), data
analysis/troubleshooting, and comfort navigating complex process
and data flows Experience with at least one general-purpose
language (e.g., Python, Java, C#, JavaScript) and common
integration approaches (REST APIs, services, batch) Working
knowledge of SDLC, testing strategies, release/change management,
and production support Experience implementing and supporting Legal
and related risk platforms, including one or more of: Matter
management / e-billing ecosystems (e.g., SimpleLegal, Passport,
Apperio or similar) Legal Entity Management (e.g., GEMS or similar)
CLM platforms (e.g., Icertis, Ironclad or similar) Intake and/or
TPRM tooling (e.g., Zip and comparable tools) Experience with
integrations and data/reporting enablement, including monitoring,
data quality, and reconciliation practices. Demonstrated ability to
deliver secure, audit-ready solutions with robust traceability,
workflow transparency, and evidence retention. Proven ability to
lead small teams and deliver results through a mix of direct
technical contribution and team oversight. Vendor/SI management
experience is a plus. Preferred Qualifications Familiarity applying
automation and/or AI-enabled capabilities to legal operations
(e.g., document classification, summarization, clause extraction,
intake triage), with a strong governance and controls mindset.
Experience establishing platform standards and scalable operating
models (configuration governance, release discipline,
support/runbooks). Strong process mapping and documentation skills
(e.g., Lucidchart) to support requirements clarity and stakeholder
alignment. General Requirements Ability to thrive in a fast-paced
environment, manage competing priorities, and deliver high-quality
outcomes. Strong ownership mindset with disciplined execution and
attention to detail. Comfortable operating in ambiguity and
translating evolving business needs into durable technical
solutions. Collaborative, service-oriented approach; able to build
credibility with Legal stakeholders and partner effectively across
Corporate Technology. Willingness to flex hours as needed to
support global stakeholders and production needs. Reporting
Relationships Compensation The anticipated base salary range for
this position is listed below. Total compensation may also include
a discretionary performance-based bonus. Note, the range takes into
account a broad spectrum of qualifications, including, but not
limited to, years of relevant work experience, education, and other
relevant qualifications specific to the role. $225,000 - $250,000
The firm also offers robust Benefits offerings. Ares U.S. Core
Benefits include Comprehensive Medical/Rx, Dental and Vision plans;
401(k) program with company match; Flexible Savings Accounts (FSA);
Healthcare Savings Accounts (HSA) with company contribution; Basic
and Voluntary Life Insurance; Long-Term Disability (LTD) and
Short-Term Disability (STD) insurance; Employee Assistance Program
(EAP), and Commuter Benefits plan for parking and transit. Ares
offers a number of additional benefits including access to a
world-class medical advisory team, a mental health app that
includes coaching, therapy and psychiatry, a mindfulness and
wellbeing app, financial wellness benefit that includes access to a
financial advisor, new parent leave, reproductive and adoption
assistance, emergency backup care, matching gift program, education
sponsorship program, and much more. There is no set deadline to
apply for this job opportunity. Applications will be accepted on an
ongoing basis until the search is no longer active.
Keywords: Ares Operations, Yonkers , Legal Engineering Lead, IT / Software / Systems , New York City, New York
