People Legal Counsel

About the role

Anthropic is seeking an exceptional senior People Legal Counsel who will closely partner with our People team, business and technical stakeholders to build and manage employment programs that enable high performers to achieve their best work. This role will take team-level ownership beyond individual projects, efficiently solving complex legal problems with strategic direction from leadership, and will amplify others' impact through collaboration and mentorship. The ideal candidate pairs deep law firm and in-house experience at an international company, with the ability to develop scalable frameworks and processes, and collaborate effectively across technical and business teams in a fast-paced and fun environment. 

Key responsibilities

• Partner with Legal, People, and Finance teams on global M&A deals 
• Advise the People team and managers on a wide range of legal matters including compensation, benefits, performance management, leaves of absence, and co-employment issues
• Implement and manage compliant employment programs to create a culture of high performance, and alignment to Anthropic's culture, values, and People philosophy
• Craft clear and comprehensive written guidance, policies, playbooks, and communications that effectively translate complex international employment law concepts into actionable frameworks for technical and business stakeholders
• Proactively identify and mitigate employment legal risks
• Amplify the team: coach and mentor key partners, managers, and cross-functional stakeholders, building employment law fluency across the organization
• Support on demands, charges, and litigation; liaise and manage relationships with outside counsel
• Stay current on relevant employment laws, regulations, and industry trends, and proactively disseminate implications to key stakeholders

Minimum qualifications

• Have a JD from an accredited law school and active membership in at least one U.S. state bar (California, New York, or Washington preferred)
• Have demonstrated team-level ownership — you've independently owned a practice area or major workstream and built systems and frameworks others rely on
• Are humble, thoughtful, exercise sound judgment, and operate at the highest level of integrity
• Are strategic, flexible, resourceful, and solution-oriented — you anticipate problems and build for scale
• Have strong organizational and project management skills, and can drive complex multi-stakeholder workstreams with minimal oversight
• Have exceptional analytical, writing, and communication skills — you define strategy and translate complex legal issues into actionable guidance for non-lawyers and executives alike
• Are a generous collaborator who amplifies others' effectiveness
• Are curious, open, and willing to change your mind
• Are comfortable in a fast-paced, high-volume, ambiguous environment

Preferred qualifications

• Have at least 10 years of practicing employment law, with a combination of experience at a global-focused law firm and in-house
• Experience advising on employment legal matters across multiple jurisdictions
• Experience in a high-growth tech company or similarly fast-paced in-house environment
• A track record of building employment legal programs or playbooks that scaled with company growth

Role-specific policy: For this role, we expect all staff to be able to work from our San Francisco office at least 3 days a week, though we encourage you to apply even if you might need some flexibility for an interim period of time.