Head of Legal

Head of Legal, Lotus Neuro

Company Overview

Lotus Neuro is a clinical-stage therapeutics development company working on the most intractable diseases of the brain. The company uses a proprietary low-frequency focused ultrasound technology to open the blood-brain barrier non-invasively and transiently, so that therapeutics can reach brain tissue they otherwise cannot. To date, the platform has been used in nearly 600 therapeutic cycles across indications including brain tumors, Alzheimer's, Parkinson's, and ALS.

Lotus Neuro was launched in December 2025 as a spinout of Insightec, a global medical technology company focused on the therapeutic use of acoustic energy. The company is well capitalized and is partnering with biotechnology and pharmaceutical companies to build a pipeline of clinical-stage programs, starting in neuro-oncology and expanding into neurodegenerative diseases.

Technology and Approach

Lotus Neuro's low-frequency focused ultrasound (LOFUS) technology opens the blood-brain barrier at a targeted location, transiently and repeatably, and can be tailored to a patient's disease, anatomy, and therapeutic regimen. Beyond access, LOFUS can contribute to a drug's effect: actuating its mechanism of action, increasing expression of a therapy, or priming the local immune environment. The company pairs the platform with partner and in-licensed therapeutics across modalities, including AAV, siRNAs, ASOs, biologics, enzymes, cell therapies, and radiopharmaceuticals, without requiring reformulation or added protein or linker modifications.

The platform builds on Insightec's MRI-guided focused ultrasound systems, which have treated more than 25,000 patients for movement disorders such as essential tremor and Parkinson's disease and are installed at over 250 centers worldwide.

The Opportunity

Lotus Neuro is hiring a Head of Legal to be the company's first in-house lawyer. The company is in active discussions with biopharma partners to in-license, acquire, or co-develop therapies for use with LOFUS, and it runs clinical work with academic centers and investigators.

The Head of Legal will own the company's contracts, lead the legal side of pharma, biotech, and academic partnerships, manage outside counsel, and advise the CEO on legal risk. This person will set up the legal function: contract processes, templates, approval rules, and the split between in-house and outside work.

The Position

Lotus Neuro is led by Arjun ("JJ") Desai, M.D., Chief Executive Officer. JJ most recently served as Chief Strategic Innovation Officer at Insightec, where over seven years he built and led global market access, reimbursement, medical affairs, strategic partnerships, and a global research program in therapeutic delivery with focused ultrasound across multiple neurologic indications. Before Insightec, JJ was Vice President and Chief Operating Officer at Johnson & Johnson Innovation. A physician by background, he trained at Stanford University, where he served as clinical and Biodesign faculty.

The Head of Legal will report directly to JJ and work closely with company leadership. The role is virtual, with the Bay Area, Boston, or Miami preferred, and requires roughly 10–20% travel for partner negotiations, Board meetings, and site visits.

Responsibilities include managing the legal processes for:

• Partnership transactions
• Licensing and intellectual property
• Clinical and operational agreements
• Regulatory, compliance, and data privacy
• Corporate, financing, and governance
• Employment, insurance, and disputes
• Outside counsel and legal operations

Individual

From an educational perspective, we require a J.D. and active membership in good standing of at least one US state bar. A scientific undergraduate or advanced degree is helpful for reading the technical side of partner deals but is not required.

At a professional level, we are seeking a lawyer with 8–15 years of practice: law firm training in life sciences transactions, followed by at least three years in-house at a biotech or pharma company with business development and licensing responsibility. Candidates should have personally negotiated collaboration, option, or license agreements with large pharma, and should know clinical trial agreements and academic site contracting. Experience advising executives and boards, and working with business development, R&D, clinical, regulatory, and finance, is expected.

The following will be viewed favorably:

• Drug/device combination product experience, including IP ownership and licensing between drug and device parties;
• Managing in-licensed technology alongside out-licensing to partners; Cross-border transactions with international partners or investors, including Israel; Venture financings and investor diligence at a private company; Building contract processes or a legal function at an early-stage company.

At a personal level, the Head of Legal must be comfortable as the only lawyer in the building: setting priorities, making calls, and knowing when to bring in outside counsel. We are looking for commercial judgment, meaning a clear sense of which terms matter for value and which can be conceded, and the drafting and negotiating skill to hold that position on complex, multi-party agreements. The role requires running several live deals at once with many stakeholders, credibility with partners' legal teams and outside counsel, and willingness to do hands-on work in a lean company.

Core Values

It is critical that the Head of Legal embrace and espouse Lotus Neuro's core values:

• Lead with Love – lead with humility, integrity of intent, and a commitment to elevate others.
• Own the Challenge – take responsibility, pursue excellence, and solve problems proactively.
• Thrive through Failure – learn fast, speak openly, and move forward stronger through adversity.

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