At Schwab, you’re empowered to make an impact on your career. Here, innovative thought meets creative problem solving, helping us “challenge the status quo” and transform the finance industry together.
As Director, Legal Counsel – Trademarks, Copyrights and Brand Protection, you will be a key member of Schwab’s Technology, Intellectual Property, and Contracts legal team and will provide strategic, business-focused legal counsel on trademark, copyright, and brand protection issues and initiatives across traditional and digital channels. The successful candidate will have strong judgment, executive presence, and the ability to balance brand protection, business objectives, and legal risk in a fast-moving, highly regulated environment.
What you have
To ensure we fulfill our promise of “challenging the status quo,” this role has specific qualifications that successful candidates should have:
Required Qualifications
• Juris Doctor (JD), LLB, or equivalent from an accredited U.S. law school and active membership in good standing with at least one U.S. state bar.
• Eight or more years of experience advising on trademark, copyright, and brand protection matters in-house and/or at a law firm.
• Strong understanding of brand protection considerations in regulated industries or complex commercial environments.
• Entrepreneurial mindset with the ability to build and sustain trusted relationships across a large organization.
• Exceptional written and verbal communication skills, including the ability to explain complex legal issues to non-legal audiences.
• Executive presence and comfort advising senior leaders.
Preferred Qualifications
• Experience managing global trademark and copyright portfolios and enforcement programs.
• Experience leading large-scale brand enforcement or anti-counterfeiting programs, including digital and online brand protection.
• Experience with or strong interest in using AI tools to streamline workstreams and scale legal advice and counsel across a large enterprise.
• Strong negotiation skills and experience advising on licensing and brand-related commercial agreements.
• Strong judgment, emotional intelligence, and client relationship management skills.
• Ability to make sound decisions under pressure and operate effectively in fast-paced, highly regulated environments.
Your responsibilities will include:
• Trademark and Copyright Portfolio Strategy: Lead legal strategy for the development, registration, maintenance, and optimization of Schwab’s global trademark and copyright portfolio. Provide guidance on brand selection, clearance, use, and lifecycle management across products, services, subsidiaries, and jurisdictions.
• Brand Protection and Disputes: Oversee global trademark and copyright enforcement and dispute resolution, including cease-and-desist actions, takedowns, oppositions, cancellations, and domain name proceedings, and work with internal stakeholders and outside counsel to support related litigation and arbitration.
• Digital Brand Defense: Partner with cybersecurity, fraud, and other teams to address online brand threats, including phishing, social media impersonation, fraudulent websites, app misuse, and emerging digital brand risks.
• Commercial and Business Advisory: Advise business and marketing teams on trademark and copyright issues arising in advertising, promotions, sponsorships, content creation, and product launches. Draft and negotiate outbound trademark, copyright and brand license agreements in support of licensing programs and strategic partnerships.
• Governance and Risk Management: Advise senior leadership on brand-related legal risk, enforcement strategy, and emerging global trends affecting trademark and copyright protection. Support enterprise initiatives related to brand trust and reputational risk mitigation.
• Education and Enablement: Educate legal, marketing, product, and business stakeholders on trademark and copyright requirements, brand usage standards, and enforcement best practices in a practical, business-focused manner.