Counsel III; Sr. Principal

Job Purpose

The Counsel III; Sr. Principal provides strategic intellectual property counsel supporting Honda's advanced technologies, including software, artificial intelligence, electrification, and other emerging technologies. The role leads complex patent clearance, patent landscape, patentability, drafting, prosecution, and portfolio strategy activities while partnering with leadership to manage intellectual property risk, identify strategic technology opportunities, and enable innovation. This role drives continuous improvement of IP processes and contributes to Honda’s long-term IP and technology strategies to produce business process transformation and operational excellence. This role also helps Honda by searching for and identifying technology open spaces and supports strategic decision-making related to research, development, investment, and collaboration opportunities.

Key Accountabilities

• Manage and provide patent legal support for several Honda business areas requiring ability to handle complex, high-risk projects, including those involving new fields of technology, including software, electrification and Artificial Intelligence at HDMA, AHM and HRI
• Project and people management: Supervise small teams of legal professionals.  Provide support, coaching, and guidance to assist associates with growth and development
• Draft, prepare and prosecute patent applications in-house

Qualifications, Experience, and Skills

• Juris doctorate degree from an accredited law school
• Admittance to applicable state bar where practicing
• Minimum 15 years of legal experience as an attorney in a law firm, in-house legal department, or comparable legal environment, with a significant amount of time dedicated to patent clearance, patentability, patent prosecution, and patent landscape activities. 
• Ability to create new processes and procedures for new development flows or other aspects of the patent workflow.
• Strong knowledge of software and electrical technologies and ability to learn new technologies related to new business areas.
• Experience leading legal support for large and complex patent clearance projects with minimal or no supervision and successfully collaborating with other attorneys and legal professionals to assist completing such projects