EP 31: Coupa CLO Julia Taylor: From BigLaw to Eventbrite's $1.8B IPO

Julia Taylor is the Chief Legal Officer at Coupa and a Berkeley Law alum. We unpacked her path from Big Law to becoming the first lawyer at Eventbrite, where she spent nearly twelve years and helped guide the company through its $1.8B IPO. Julia reflects on her early influences, including her time working on Capitol Hill for Senator Dianne Feinstein and Jerry Brown, and how those experiences shaped her pragmatic, solutions-oriented approach to leadership. We also talked about what it actually means to succeed in-house. Julia explains why deeply understanding the business, building trust across teams, and staying calm under pressure are the traits that matter most, especially during high-stakes moments. The conversation also covers some of the most challenging moments of Julia’s career, including leading through COVID-era layoffs, navigating risk when Eventbrite unexpectedly became a platform for vaccine registration, and knowing when it was time to step aside to let the next generation of leaders rise. Julia offers candid advice for law students, associates, and in-house lawyers on career strategy, risk tolerance, and why being “ruthlessly practical” is often the key to long-term success.#LawSchool #LegalLeadership #LegalTech #Coupa #Eventbrite #IPO #BigLaw