Senior Trade Mark Counsel, Oral Health

Job Overview

Senior Trademark Counsel is a global role within the Oral Health Legal team, reporting to the Legal Head of Category.

The position serves as a trusted business partner to the Category and cross functional stakeholders, providing pragmatic, strategic legal counsel and intellectual property guidance across trademarks, copyright, domain names, and related rights for Haleon's Oral Health Category.

It is responsible for shaping and executing the global trademark strategy for Oral Health across the full brand lifecycle from clearance and protection to enforcement, transactions, and litigation.

Key Responsibilities

• Serve as a trusted business partner by embedding with cross functional teams to provide pragmatic, strategic legal counsel that anticipates risk, accelerates decision making, and enables the company's long term commercial objectives.
• Advise, counsel, and guide global teams and regional Operating Units on trademark issues for the Oral Health Category.
• Implement trademark strategies with all relevant stakeholders.
• Direct the entire lifecycle of brand portfolio globally: clearance, protection, prosecution, enforcement, and transactions.
• Advise Category on risks that new launches infringe 3rd party rights via clearance.
• Set strategy for protecting key launches.
• Advise on and protect other IP rights such as copyright, domains, and designs.
• Set strategic direction on all trademark enforcement and litigation matters.
• Advise Category and local markets on trademark issues and risks affecting their brands/products.
• Instruct external counsel on key actions and direct paralegals.
• Assist Category Legal team in improving and simplifying processes, ways of working, and trademark systems.
• Keep up with relevant legal, regulatory, or policy developments that may impact the Company's brands and intellectual property rights.
• Manage the negotiation and drafting of significant trademarks agreements; provide IP support in relation to M&A activities, divestments, licensing, joint ventures, and corporate restructuring.
• Manage spend and forecasting for the portfolio of brands and cases.
• Deliver enterprise wide intellectual property training tailored to Category needs.
• Prepare and update resources to facilitate enterprise wide empowerment and accountability of stakeholders.
• Interact with all types of Haleon stakeholders in matters related to global and enterprise wide legal matters.

Qualifications and Skills

• UK qualified solicitor or other European or US jurisdiction, or equivalent degree from an accredited law school with bar qualification.
• Demonstrated experience practicing intellectual property law; law firm experience highly desirable.
• Deep knowledge of trademark and copyright law.
• Experience in design, domain name, digital, contract, licensing, right of publicity, and privacy law is a plus.
• Collaborative and team oriented mindset promoting innovation and motivation throughout the team.
• Excellent written, oral, listening, and organisational skills with proven ability to interact effectively with varied audiences.
• Ability to work under pressure, prioritise and manage workload, manage simultaneous tasks, and meet deadlines in a changing, fast paced environment.
• Strong interpersonal skills, intercultural competence, and emotional intelligence.
• Based at London Bankside with occasional travel to the Weybridge site.