Managing Counsel, Employment, Disputes, & Litigation

Overview

This role is responsible for leading the organization’s global disputes and litigation function within the Governance, Risk, Compliance & Disputes (GRCD) team. The position carries enterprise-wide responsibility for managing disputes and litigation matters, including commercial, IP, contract, vendor, regulatory, employment, and other disputes across a global footprint spanning 40+ countries.

While the mandate is broad across dispute types, the ideal candidate is an employment lawyer by trade and will serve as the principal resource for employment-related disputes and litigation in close partnership with Human Resources.

Responsibilities

Disputes & Litigation Management

• Own and manage the company’s global disputes and litigation docket, including commercial, contract, vendor, IP, regulatory, and employment-related matters.
• Serve as the primary point of contact for incoming claims, demand letters, administrative charges, and civil litigation; triage matters and determine case strategy.
• Engage and oversee outside counsel across dispute types and jurisdictions, including managing litigation budgets, billing guidelines, and outside counsel performance.
• Evaluate and recommend settlement strategies in collaboration with senior leadership, business stakeholders, and GRCD teammates.
• Manage employment-related disputes and litigation, including administrative charges (EEOC, state agencies, and international equivalents), demand letters, and civil litigation.
• Maintain the enterprise disputes and litigation docket and provide regular status reporting to senior leaders and stakeholders as needed.
• Oversee matter intake, legal hold administration, document collection, and discovery processes across active matters.
• Draft and negotiate settlement, separation, and other resolution agreements across matter types.

Risk Management

• Build, manage, and oversee scalable processes, playbooks, and reporting tools for disputes intake, escalation, and matter management as the docket grows.
• Identify and assess legal and litigation risk across the business and work cross-functionally to develop mitigation strategies.
• Support proactive compliance initiatives, including policy audits and training relevant to disputes and employment matters.

Employment Counseling & Advisory

• Act as the principal employment law advisor to Human Resources and business leaders across the organization’s international footprint (including the UK, EU member states, Canada, Australia, and other active jurisdictions), coordinating with regional and outside counsel as needed.
• Advise on employee relations issues, including performance management, disciplinary actions, separations, and reductions in force.
• Provide guidance on wage and hour compliance, leave management, accommodation requests, worker classification, and pay equity.
• Review and advise on employment-related policies, handbooks, offer letters, employment agreements, and restrictive covenant agreements.
• Partner with GRCD teammates and other stakeholders on governance and compliance matters intersecting with employment, including workplace investigations and ethics matters.
• Monitor legislative and regulatory developments affecting litigation risk and the global workforce; proactively update internal stakeholders on changes with business impact.

Team Leadership & People Management

• Directly manage and develop a team by setting priorities, providing coaching, and supporting professional growth.
• Build team capacity and processes to support a growing and increasingly complex disputes caseload.
• Foster a collaborative, high-accountability team culture.

Qualifications

Required

• J.D. from an accredited law school; active bar membership in at least one U.S. state.
• 7+ years of legal experience in employment law, including both law firm and in-house experience (law firm experience at an Am Law 100 firm is strongly preferred).
• Demonstrated experience managing disputes and litigation, including administrative proceedings and civil litigation; flexibility and demonstrated ability to manage disputes beyond employment law (e.g., commercial, contract, IP, or vendor matters) are required.
• In-house experience managing disputes or litigation docket, including outside counsel selection, budget oversight, and matter reporting to senior stakeholders.
• Proven people-management experience, including direct management of a team of at least three people (hiring, coaching, and performance management).
• Significant knowledge of employment law frameworks in at least one non-U.S. jurisdiction (UK, EU, Canada, or Australia), with the ability to engage substantively on cross-border matters and work effectively with local counsel.
• Strong business judgment and ability to provide clear, practical legal advice in a fast-paced environment.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills, including comfort presenting to senior leadership and the General Counsel.
• Demonstrated flexibility and adaptability to manage a broad and evolving portfolio of dispute types across a global organization.
• Experience managing commercial or IP litigation in addition to employment disputes.

Preferred

• Experience in a global software company or technology-driven enterprise.
• Experience supporting Human Resources through M&A integration and workforce restructurings.
• Exposure to data privacy considerations in the employment and litigation context (GDPR, CCPA, and analogous frameworks).

Compensation & Benefits

• Salary range (United States of America): 160,000.00 to 201,000.00 USD Annual
• For sales roles, this range includes the commission target. For non-sales roles, this is a base salary only range; additional bonus eligibility may apply.
• The specific offer will be determined by skills, experience, and qualifications.

Location

United States of America