SpotDraft

What does it really take to transition from law firm perfection to real-world business impact? In this episode, Rebekah Punak shares her journey from litigation to in-house roles at fast-growing companies like Instacart and Meta Platforms, and now leading legal at Faire. She unpacks how early exposure to startup environments reshaped her mindset—from aiming for perfect legal work to making fast, practical decisions that move the business forward. The conversation explores how to build legal functions from scratch, why investing in legal operations early creates long-term efficiency, and how lawyers can become true business partners. Rebekah also shares how AI is changing the way legal teams operate and why the real opportunity isn’t doing the same work faster, but doing entirely new things that weren’t possible before. Topics 00:00 Introduction 01:44 Early interest in law and breaking stereotypes about who can be a lawyer 03:55 Starting career in litigation and early expectations vs reality 08:10 Transition to in-house at Instacart and entering a startup environment 10:20 Transition to startup life: problem-solving without infrastructure 12:36 Why legal ops matters: efficiency, process, and team effectiveness 15:36 Transition to Meta: navigating scale and complexity 18:55 Becoming a trusted business partner and aligning with product teams 23:50 AI in legal: opportunities, use cases, and shifting mindset 35:02 Future of legal work, career advice, and leadership at scale Connect with us: Rebekah Punak - https://www.linkedin.com/in/rebekah-punak-4b965a6/ Akshay Verma - https://www.linkedin.com/in/akshay-verma-esq/ SpotDraft - https://www.linkedin.com/company/spotdraft SpotDraft is a leading contract lifecycle management platform that solves your end-to-end contract management issues. Visit https://www.spotdraft.com to learn more.

In this episode of Beacon Voices, Akshay Verma (COO at SpotDraft) sits down with Sumeet Chugani, Legal Director at SpaceXAI (ex-Cloaked) to discuss his journey from litigation and financial services to leading legal at a fast-growing startup. Sumeet shares why he left law firm life, what it takes to become a true business partner, and how his experience in banking, product counseling, and Coinbase shaped his approach to legal leadership. The conversation also explores how AI is changing legal work, why young lawyers still need strong fundamentals, and how startups can scale without losing speed. Whether you're an aspiring in-house lawyer, legal leader, or founder, this episode offers practical insights on navigating career transitions, embracing AI, and building legal teams that enable business growth. Topics Introduction: 00:00 Why Sumeet Chose Law School and His Early Career Aspirations: 01:25 Practicing Law During the Financial Crisis: 03:30 Why Legal Apprenticeship Still Matters: 10:36 Will AI Change How New Lawyers Learn Their Craft?: 14:40 Moving In-House: From Litigation to Business Strategy: 24:20 Building Consumer Banking Products and Becoming Product Counsel: 31:29 How Litigation Prepared Him for Product and Business Decisions: 38:19 Joining Coinbase and Building Products in Crypto: 40:24 Legal Operations, Process, and Scaling Without Slowing Down: 44:44 AI, Privacy, Security, and the Future of Legal Teams: 50:11 Advice for Young Lawyers and Taking Career Risks: 55:25 Connect with us: Sumeet Chugani - https://www.linkedin.com/in/sumeet-chugani/ Akshay Verma - https://www.linkedin.com/in/akshay-verma-esq/ SpotDraft - https://www.linkedin.com/company/spotdraft SpotDraft is a leading contract lifecycle management platform that solves your end-to-end contract management issues. Visit https://www.spotdraft.com to learn more.