Director, IP & Product Patent Strategy

DICK'S Sporting Goods, Inc.; United States; On-site; USD 220,000 - 360,000; Full time

Job summary

DICK'S Sporting Goods, Inc. is seeking a Director, Corporate Counsel – Product & Patents to lead patent and IP clearance across product development. The role conducts freedom-to-operate and landscape analyses, drafts clearance opinions, manages the patent portfolio, and coordinates with product, design, engineering, technology, and business teams.

The ideal candidate has a JD, U.S. bar admission, 3–5 years of IP experience, and can translate complex patent issues into business guidance within a

Qualifications

• Juris Doctor degree from an accredited law school.
• Admission in good standing to at least one U.S. state bar and eligibility for in-house counsel registration in Pennsylvania.
• Three to five years of relevant patent and intellectual property experience in a law firm, corporate legal department, or combination of both.
• Hands-on experience conducting patent searches, freedom-to-operate analyses, and patentability assessments.
• Experience analyzing patent claims, drafting clearance opinions, and translating technical findings into practical business guidance.
• Experience drafting design or utility patent applications and managing outside patent prosecution counsel.
• Technical fluency sufficient to understand patents, product specifications, and engineering materials.
• Strong written and verbal communication, organization, collaboration, and project-management skills.
• Ability to independently manage multiple priorities in a fast-paced environment.

Responsibilities

• Conduct prior-art, freedom-to-operate, patentability, and landscape searches for new and developing products.
• Analyze third-party patents, assess infringement risks, identify design-around options, and provide clear go or no-go recommendations.
• Draft design and utility patent applications and help identify protectable product features.
• Manage the company’s patent portfolio, prosecution strategy, deadlines, records, and outside patent counsel.
• Support patent disputes, demand letters, litigation holds, early case assessments, and non-practicing entity matters.
• Advise product, engineering, technology, and business teams on product development, launch, and lifecycle matters.
• Provide guidance on intellectual property, AI and machine learning, data governance, privacy, software, and emerging technology issues.
• Develop practical frameworks, launch checklists, and scalable legal guidance for product and technology teams.
• Partner with Legal subject-matter experts to provide aligned advice on IP, Privacy, Commercial, Brand, and Regulatory matters.
• Provide patent landscape and competitive intelligence analysis to inform product development and IP strategy.

Skills

Patent analysis

Freedom-to-operate

IP strategy

Clearance opinions

Portfolio management

External counsel management

Technical fluency

Cross-functional collaboration

Education

Juris Doctor

Bar admission

In-house eligibility (PA)

Tools

PatSnap

Derwent

Job description

DICK'S Sporting Goods, Inc. is seeking a Director, Corporate Counsel – Product & Patents to lead patent and IP clearance across product development. The role conducts freedom-to-operate and landscape analyses, drafts clearance opinions, manages the patent portfolio, and coordinates with product, design, engineering, technology, and business teams.

The ideal candidate has a JD, U.S. bar admission, 3–5 years of IP experience, and can translate complex patent issues into business guidance within a