Director, Legal Counsel

ABOUT xAI

xAI’s mission is to create AI systems that can accurately understand the universe and aid humanity in its pursuit of knowledge. Our team is small, highly motivated, and focused on engineering excellence. This organization is for individuals who appreciate challenging themselves and thrive on curiosity. We operate with a flat organizational structure. All employees are expected to be hands-on and to contribute directly to the company’s mission. Leadership is given to those who show initiative and consistently deliver excellence. Work ethic and strong prioritization skills are important. All employees are expected to have strong communication skills. They should be able to concisely and accurately share knowledge with their teammates.

ABOUT THE ROLE:

You are a dynamic lawyer who is comfortable working in a fast-paced international environment with broad responsibilities. You will work on complex litigation, regulatory, commercial and public policy related issues, helping to guide our businesses and business strategy across Japan and Korea. You must have the ability to operate independently and work proactively and collaboratively with various business and legal teams across the organization. Ideally, you have worked in-house in the technology, media, ad agency, or internet industries handling a broad range of legal matters. This role sits within the International Legal team and will report to the Legal Director for APAC.

RESPONSIBILITIES:

You'll be responsible for a wide range of litigation and other legal matters that arise in Japan and Korea. You’ll represent X on important matters involving its users, customers, advertisers, partners and suppliers. You will work closely with Legal team colleagues across the APAC region, the US and around the world, and advise on legal risks, business strategies and other issues related to X’s business in Japan and Korea. Specifically, you will be responsible for:

Managing X’s litigation portfolio in close collaboration with the Litigation team and outside counse

Drafting and negotiating sales, partner, supplier, and other commercial agreements for X entities

Supporting the Revenue Policy team, researching the laws relevant to their policies and providing advice

Partnering closely with and advising business and support functions (including Sales, Marketing, Content Partnerships, Business Development, Sourcing, Compliance, HR and Finance, among others) on a broad range of legal matters, including contract law,advertising laws and regulations, intellectual property, content regulation, and competition law, among others

Identifying issues and researching relevant laws as well as collaborating with internal subject-matter experts to work through the issues.

Building templates and playbooks for the commercial teams as well as providing training and improving processes.

Undertaking project work from time to time

BASIC QUALIFICATIONS:

At least 7 years of relevant post-qualification experience as an attorney-at-law or Advocate.

Demonstrate sound business and legal judgment.

Entrepreneurial mindset: flexible, self-starting and hard-working.

Relevant in-house or secondment experience with a digital media, advertising, or technology company is highly desirable.

Relevant experience in litigation in Japan.

Significant experience with digital advertising, contract law, and intellectual property.

Strong understanding of the legal issues around user-generated content and platforms.

Familiarity with these areas of law will be an advantage: advertising regulation, licensing, privacy, content regulation, consumer laws, copyright, and compliance.

Successful track record of working collaboratively with colleagues around the world.

Comfortable working in a company experiencing rapid growth, with excellent organizational skills and the ability to manage multiple projects simultaneously.

Strong written and oral communication skills; must be fluent in Japanese and English. Fluency in Korean/additional APAC language is highly desirable.

Recognized law degree with strong academic record and qualified to practice law in Japan or other Asia Pacific jurisdiction, the UK or the US