Job Description

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SOLE AND EXCLUSIVE AGENCY
Our client is the world's most watched football league. We are the sole and exclusive recruiter engaged to find an exceptional and experienced solicitor to join its in-house Enforcement team in London.
You will be part of a team that is charged with protecting and enforcing our client's global intellectual property rights, particularly the exclusive audio-visual rights licensed to broadcasters around the world. This includes pursuing civil and criminal litigation against those involved in infringing our client's intellectual property, policy initiatives to ensure that adequate legislation and tools are available to enable such litigation and educational campaigns to raise awareness of the risks and harms associated with intellectual property theft.
The Enforcement team also manages our client's trade mark portfolio and central anti-counterfeiting programme, as well as advising the business on various IP-related issues that arise from time to time.
In addition, the Enforcement team works to combat discriminatory and threatening online abuse aimed at the league's players, managers and others within the game. This includes legal actions against those identified as responsible for such abuse.
The role
You will work closely with the Director of Legal - Enforcement to protect and enforce our client's intellectual property rights across Europe, the Middle East and Africa, including:

• Managing and expanding our client's anti-piracy litigation strategy in multiple jurisdictions across the region, in close coordination with the wider Enforcement team.
• Working collaboratively with senior anti-piracy contacts at broadcast partners across the region on piracy-related issues and actions.
• Supporting and advising the our client's media department on IP-related matters in the region.
• Developing relations with relevant government and enforcement authorities at a national, regional and international level to support the league's anti-piracy actions.
• Working with the Policy and Communications Departments to support and drive IP-related policy and communications initiatives in the region.
• Line managing a senior lawyer and working closely with the broader Enforcement team in shaping and delivering strategic priorities across the team's wider objectives.

Candidate requirements

• Demonstrable experience of advising senior management on complex legal issues and managing matters autonomously.
• Relevant experience of engaging with external stakeholders at a senior level.
• Outstanding academic background and robust legal training from a reputable law firm or recognised in-house legal department.
• Solicitor with eight or more years' post qualification experience (candidates outside this range with the required skills will be considered).
• Extensive experience in litigation, preferably in intellectual property enforcement, and/or in shaping or contributing to policy initiatives
• Experience of line management.
• Strong commercial awareness with an ability to think strategically and laterally to develop innovative solutions to challenging problems.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills, ideally across multiple relevant languages, with the ability to communicate complex legal issues and solutions in an articulate, precise and clear manner.
• Familiarity with the issues and challenges facing sports leagues/rightsholders, particularly around piracy and the streaming of media across different delivery mechanisms.
• Experience of working as part of an in-house legal department.
• Experience working regionally ideally including across Europe and/or the Middle East.
• Additional EMEA language skills will be an advantage.

If you think you meet the above requirements and would like to apply please send: * your CV; and

• a cover letter

to jessica.deery@horizon-recruit.com for us to determine your suitability for this role.
If you'd like to arrange a confidential discussion prior to applying please call our London office on +44 20 3745 2513, Singapore office on +65 6808 6635 or Hong Kong office on +852 3978 1369.
Please share this opportunity with any colleagues that you think would be interested.
Singapore EA Licence No. 12S6213