IP LAWYER (EMEA) 5-10 YEARS' PQE

IP LAWYER (EMEA)

5-10+ YEARS' PQE

ENTERTAINMENT BUSINESS

LONDON

Our client is a global, award winning content business paving the way in next generation entertainment. As it continues to invest in original content, its EMEA IP team requires an IP lawyer to join the business.

You will be involved in advising on all IP matters pertaining to content creation projects from inception to delivery. This will include chain of title research, title clearance, production clearance, claim defence (prelitigation), and advising on ad hoc questions throughout the production process relating to IP and/or defamation and privacy issues.

You will be able to evaluate and assess risk at all stages of the content production cycle and will work closely with the creative, business and legal teams that create our client's innovative content. As such, ability to collaborate and work cross-functionally will be important, as will a practical and business-oriented approach.

The successful candidate will relish working in an environment where the ability to influence and be heard are core values to the business, and should be comfortable thinking outside the box and handling situations where there are no guidelines or precedents.

Reporting to the Director & Senior Counsel, Content and Brand IP based in London, you will be an IP lawyer with between 5-10+ years' PQE.

Experience in most of or all of the following areas will be required:

• Production clearance experience in film and/or television, including managing production personnel, script researchers and outside vendors, and negotiating and drafting license agreements for a wide variety of production materials
• Good knowledge of filmed entertainment and the production process
• Deep understanding of UK IP law, including copyright, moral rights, trade marks, fair dealing, rights of publicity/privacy, and freedom of speech
• Experience with complex copyright transactions
• Some experience with chain of title review and analysis of related risk
• Experience managing heavy workflow independently
• Outstanding communication skills and a bias toward creative thinking
• Ability to work proactively, independently and reliably on multiple projects under tight timeframes in a fast-paced environment interacting with productions, cross-functional departments, and vendors
• Ability to identify IP-related risks in our client's content and communicates them to the necessary stakeholders

You will:

• Be confident in collaborating with business and legal affairs teams to acquire and develop IP, then guide it through production and distribution
• Conduct and analyse trademark clearances, including multi-jurisdiction searches
• Manage intellectual property claims in a pre-litigation context
• Implement production clearance strategies for UK content
• Conduct chain of title review and provide concise and pragmatic analysis
• Conduct due diligence on complex rights acquisitions
• Negotiate and draft license agreements for a wide variety of production materials

You will be curious, independently minded and passionate about the creative industry. You must be able to advise in a challenging and sometimes unpredictable environment where change might be made to a project at the last minute. As such, you might need to give off the cuff, instinctive advice, which requires real confidence in your ability to think on your feet. Fluency in a European language would be welcome but is not required. You will be expected to travel throughout Europe when required, as well as travel occasionally to the US.

This is a real opportunity for an intellectually curious lawyer with a passion for film, TV or good quality entertainment to help shape the future of next generation content.