Legal Counsel, Entertainment Production

Location:

Reporting to the Vice President of Global Business Affairs and operating as an integral member of Condé Nast’s Business and Legal Affairs organization led by the General Counsel, the Counsel, Entertainment Production Legal will be a key contributor to the broader Business and Legal Affairs team. The role provides day-to-day legal support for editorial and commercial entertainment content across Condé Nast brands, with a primary focus on short-form, live-streamed, social-first, and event-related content distributed across owned and operated platforms and third-party platforms.

This position sits within Condé Nast’s Business and Legal Affairs function and works in close partnership with colleagues across legal, business affairs, revenue legal, and other corporate legal teams. The Counsel is responsible for ensuring that all rights, responsibilities, and deliverables are identified and addressed throughout the production process in alignment with company-wide legal standards, risk tolerance, and business objectives.  

The Counsel works closely with creative, production, sales, finance, and procurement teams across all phases of digital video, live stream, social, event, and related content, supporting production legal needs in accordance with established brand standards and legal guidelines while ensuring business and risk requirements are met efficiently and collaboratively. The role includes drafting and negotiating agreements consistent with approved templates, standards, and approval frameworks to enable timely production, payment, and delivery.

In addition, the Counsel will have the opportunity to support broader business and legal affairs matters related to film and television, including development, production, and distribution deals, while maintaining a core focus on digital video and event-related production.

This position offers the opportunity to join a fast-paced, entrepreneurial, and highly collaborative Business and Legal Affairs team supporting some of the most iconic media brands in the world, while contributing to the continued evolution of a modern global production legal function and serving as a trusted, business-oriented advisor on complex and time-sensitive production matters.

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  Serve as production counsel for digital video content, responsible for the day to day drafting, review, and negotiation of production related agreements, including PSAs, appearance agreements, location agreements, materials releases, and production related NDAs, and for providing production legal support throughout the production lifecycle in accordance with established Business and Legal Affairs standards, including rights clearance, intellectual property review, risk assessment, regulatory compliance, and appropriate issue escalation.

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  Work with local counsel and senior Business and Legal Affairs team members to support the resolution of negotiation issues across global markets related to digital video agreements, helping to maintain consistent legal and business standards.

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  Draft and negotiate content production agreements for live events, including agreements with production companies, directors, producers, music supervisors, hosts, on-camera talent, and musical performers, and serve as principal production legal counsel for live event-related video content and supplemental programming.

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  Handle dealmaking for social-only editorial video content, primarily involving recurring, series-based, or short-run talent relationships with social media personalities and influencers.

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  Draft and negotiate celebrity and influencer releases and recurring talent agreements, managing agency and counsel relationships while balancing negotiation strategy, precedent, and internal alignment.

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  Support third-party licensing and internal syndication requests for Condé Nast video content, including negotiation of access fee agreements for third parties seeking to capture content on Condé Nast video sets.

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  Provide production legal support for advertiser-funded content, white-label productions, and client integrations, collaborating with in-house revenue legal teams and other internal Business and Legal Affairs stakeholders to ensure alignment with Condé Nast business principles and partner requirements.

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  Collaborate closely with brand editors, sales, procurement, finance, and production teams to align legal execution with creative and commercial objectives, and partner with international teams to align production practices, deal terms, and workflows across regions.

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  Negotiate agreements in support of hybrid video and photo shoots, as needed.

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  Support the refresh and maintenance of global digital video playbooks, templates, and training materials, and provide training and guidance to production teams on legal issues and best practices in coordination with Business and Legal Affairs leadership.

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  Communicate effectively with executives, producers, internal teams, and external partners, maintaining discretion and professionalism in handling sensitive matters.

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  Carry out all responsibilities in accordance with Condé Nast’s Code of Conduct, Business Principles, and ethical standards, modeling professionalism, integrity, and sound judgment in all interactions.

Desired Skills and Qualifications

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  J.D. from an accredited law school and admission to the bar in at least one US jurisdiction, in good standing.

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  Four or more years of relevant entertainment legal experience, including production legal experience at a law firm, studio, network, digital media company, or similar organization.

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  Demonstrated experience supporting digital video and new media productions, including editorial and branded content.

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  Live event production legal experience preferred.

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  Film and television, music, and labor and guild experience is a plus.

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  Strong drafting and negotiation skills with the ability to manage a high volume of matters in a fast- paced environment.

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  High level of professionalism and executive presence, with the ability to interact effectively with senior Business and Legal Affairs leadership and senior executives across the company.

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  Excellent judgment and a practical, business- oriented approach to legal problem solving.

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  Ability to collaborate effectively across departments and communicate clearly with creative, production, and commercial partners.

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  Highly organized, detail- oriented, and proactive, with the ability to anticipate issues and propose solutions.

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  Strong written and verbal communication skills.

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  Experience navigating matrixed organizations and working with multiple stakeholders.

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  Familiarity with Condé Nast brands, digital platforms, and content strategies a plus.

The expected base salary range for this position is from $140,000-160,000. Salary offers are based on a wide range of factors, including but not limited to relevant skills, training, experience, and education.

If you are interested in this opportunity, please apply below, and we will review your application as soon as possible. You can update your resume or upload a cover letter at any time by accessing your candidate profile.

Condé Nast is an equal opportunity employer. We evaluate qualified applicants without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability, veteran status, age, familial status and other legally protected characteristics.