Note: The job is a remote job and is open to candidates in USA. Wikimedia Foundation is a nonprofit organization that operates Wikipedia and other free knowledge projects, aiming to make human knowledge accessible to everyone. The Senior Legal Counsel will provide in-house legal guidance to the Fundraising, Product, and Engineering teams, focusing on ensuring innovation while protecting user privacy and navigating evolving regulations.
Responsibilities
- Analyzing current and forthcoming regulations related to marketing, customization, and other fundraising initiatives to support Advancement, Product and Technology teams on marketing and mobile app development
- Collaborating with the Foundation's lawyers and public policy professionals to address the impact of Generative AI and create a global legal ecosystem in which free knowledge can thrive with minimal disintermediation
- Identifying and executing opportunities to advance the Wikimedia mission within a complex, shifting technological and legal landscape
- Supporting the Product and Engineering teams in developing a data governance model that allows for novel features while maintaining high privacy standards, for example in the space of reader engagement
Skills
- J.D. from accredited U.S. law school or equivalent foreign degree preferably paired with significant U.S. legal experience
- Experience with product, privacy, marketing and other internet law issues, advising a user-facing digital technology or internet company (e.g., as in-house counsel), preferably with global reach
- 5-7 years experience with legal review of go-to-market, fundraising, technical products or online services
- Significant experience working with engineering colleagues as a counselor and advisor to achieve organizational goals
- Excellent written and verbal communication skills and attention to detail, full fluency in written and spoken English
- A deep commitment to a free and open internet, open-source movement, and the Wikimedia mission
- Comfortable working in a highly transparent, multicultural, and collaborative environment
- A fast learner with the sound judgment needed to handle complex projects independently in a fast-paced setting
- High personal integrity with a strong public service orientation
- Experience with marketing, fundraising and campaign customization, and online communities
- A degree or work experience in marketing, campaign management, computer science, engineering, or related experience, and have a good understanding of fundraising, marketing and software engineering processes and issues
- Ability to speak other languages, experience living or working outside the United States, or past work on international legal issues
Benefits
- The Wikimedia Foundation is a remote-first organization with staff members including contractors based 40+ countries
- Salaries at the Wikimedia Foundation are set in a way that is competitive, equitable, and consistent with our values and culture.
- For applicants located outside of the US, the pay range will be adjusted to the country of hire.
- Our non-US employees are hired through a local third party Employer of Record (EOR) and must have current work authorization in their location.
- All applicants can reach out to their recruiter to understand more about the specific pay range for their location during the interview process.
- If you are a qualified applicant requiring assistance or an accommodation to complete any step of the application process due to a disability, you may contact us at [email protected] or +1 (415) 839-6885.
- U.S. Benefits & Perks
Company Overview
Wikimedia Foundation encourages the development and distribution of free educational content with projects such as Wikipedia. It was founded in 2003, and is headquartered in San Francisco, California, USA, with a workforce of 501-1000 employees. Its website is http://wikimediafoundation.org.Company H1B Sponsorship
Wikimedia Foundation has a track record of offering H1B sponsorships, with 1 in 2025, 4 in 2024, 5 in 2023, 3 in 2022, 1 in 2021, 5 in 2020. Please note that this does not guarantee sponsorship for this specific role.