General Counsel - ESPN

The Walt Disney Company; Bristol (CT); On-site; USD 475,000 - 600,000; Full time

Job summary

The Walt Disney Company seeks a General Counsel for ESPN with responsibility for legal matters across ESPN’s live sports, content distribution, and corporate governance. The role reports to the Chief Legal and Global Affairs Officer and sits on ESPN’s senior leadership team, guiding legal strategy for the sports content group with a One Disney mindset.

Based in Bristol, CT or New York, NY, with a four‑day in‑office expectation, this leader will mentor the ESPN legal team, oversee risk

Qualifications

• 15+ years of legal experience with global media/sports leadership.
• Strong business acumen and sound judgment to advise on risk.
• Experience leading a multidisciplinary legal team at scale.
• Experience negotiating complex sports or media rights.
• US law license; CT/NY admission possible.
• Understanding of sports, media, broadcast, and streaming industries.

Responsibilities

• Advise ESPN leadership with strategic legal guidance on risks.
• Lead rights negotiations and deal structuring for sports/media content.
• Oversee delivery of legal services with a One Disney mindset across ESPN and LGA.
• Mentor and develop ESPN legal team, maintaining integrity and collaboration.
• Collaborate with regulators, external counsel, and partners.
• Monitor legislative/regulatory changes affecting media, sports rights, and content distribution.

Skills

In‑house leadership

Legal risk assessment

Negotiation of sports rights

Cross‑functional collaboration

Regulatory/governance knowledge

Communication skills

Education

Juris Doctorate (J.D.) degree

Job description

Job Requirements

The General Counsel role has overall responsibility for legal matters affecting ESPN as part of The Walt Disney Company. Reporting to the Chief Legal and Global Affairs Officer of The Walt Disney Company, this position leads the legal support for the ESPN and Sports Content group, which acquires, produces, and distributes ESPN’s live sports programming, sports news, and original and non‑scripted sports content across The Walt Disney Company’s direct‑to‑consumer and linear channels, including Disney+, Hulu, ESPN’s streaming services, and ABC. This individual sits on the ESPN senior leadership team, providing advice directly to ESPN’s Chairman and other senior executives. The General Counsel supports ESPN’s sports rights negotiations and works closely with other parts of Legal & Global Affairs (LGA), orchestrating the delivery of legal services from across LGA with a One Disney mindset. This role is based in either Bristol, CT or New York, NY with a four‑day in‑office expectation.

Responsibilities

• Quickly and accurately identify and evaluate legal risks in a complex, fast‑moving media and sports business environment and provide expert and strategic legal advice to business unit leaders.
• Anticipate issues and proactively develop creative, business‑oriented and brand‑consistent solutions to mitigate legal risks across a wide range of practice areas, including intellectual property, rights acquisitions, multi‑platform content distribution, newsgathering, advertising and marketing, digital and social media, talent and labor matters, antitrust, sports betting and gaming, college sports and athlete name, image, and likeness matters, legal compliance, government relations, and corporate governance.
• Support ESPN’s sports rights negotiations, providing legal leadership on deal strategy, structure, risk allocation, and documentation.
• Orchestrate the delivery of legal services with a One Disney mindset, drawing on the ESPN legal team and shared services elsewhere in LGA to ensure responsiveness and efficiency while maintaining quality.
• Attract, develop, mentor, and motivate the ESPN legal team, upholding integrity, sound judgment, innovation and collaboration while investing in the training and support the team needs as its operating model evolves.
• Build trusted relationships with key stakeholders and the legal team, including senior executive business leaders, legal leaders, and external parties (e.g., regulators, rights holders, external counsel, partners).
• Keep abreast of relevant legislative and regulatory changes, including those affecting media, sports rights, and content distribution.

Basic Qualifications

• Minimum of 15 years of legal experience, including significant in‑house leadership experience in a global media, entertainment, or sports business, leading and overseeing business legal advisors in multiple disciplines.
• Exceptional business acumen and sound legal judgment, with the ability to evaluate and advise business units on risk and develop creative, business‑oriented solutions in a fast‑paced, consumer‑facing media environment.
• Broad experience across the practice areas described above, including intellectual property, rights acquisitions and licensing, content distribution, employment and labor, litigation, and legal compliance.
• Experience supporting or leading the negotiation of complex sports or media rights agreements.
• Proven leader of a multidisciplinary legal team at scale, with demonstrable expertise in organizational design and change management.
• Direct experience leading the evolution of a legal operating model — including deployment of legal technology tools, alternative legal service provider relationships, shared services models, and in‑sourcing/out‑sourcing decisions — to drive efficiency and fiscal accountability.
• Comfort making rigorous, data‑driven resource allocation decisions and communicating them with transparency and care.
• Excellent verbal and written communication skills and ability to collaborate across legal teams, shared services, and business units with an enterprise, One Disney mindset.
• Ability to operate independently, escalating to senior leadership as appropriate.
• Law firm and budget management experience, with creative approaches to outside counsel spend and legal technology.
• Active license in good standing to practice law in a US jurisdiction and capable of meeting admission requirements in CT and NY.
• Demonstrated understanding of the sports, media, broadcast, and/or streaming industries.

Required Education

• Juris Doctorate (J.D.) degree or equivalent international degree.

Disclaimer

PAY TRANSPARENCY

The hiring range for this position in Connecticut and New York is $475,000 to $600,000 per year. The base pay actually offered will take into account internal equity and also may vary depending on the candidate’s geographic region, job‑related knowledge, skills, and experience among other factors. A bonus and/or long‑term incentive units may be provided as part of the compensation package, in addition to the full range of medical, financial, and/or other benefits, dependent on the level and position offered.

This position is with ESPN, Inc, which is part of a business we call The Walt Disney Company (Corporate).

ESPN, Inc is an equal opportunity employer. Applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, national origin, sexual orientation, gender identity, disability or protected veteran status. Disney champions a business environment where ideas and decisions from all people help us grow, innovate, create the best stories and be relevant in a constantly evolving world.

DISABILITY ACCOMMODATION FOR EMPLOYMENT APPLICATIONS

The Walt Disney Company and its Affiliated Companies are Equal Employment Opportunity employers and welcome all job seekers including individuals with disabilities and veterans with disabilities. If you have a disability and believe you need a reasonable accommodation in order to search for a job opening or apply for a position, visit the Disney candidate disability accommodations FAQs (https://support.disneycareers.com/hc/en-us/sections/32131060143380-Candidate-Disability-Accommodations-FAQs). We will only respond to those requests that are related to the accessibility of the online application system due to a disability.

The Walt Disney Company and its Affiliated Companies are Equal Employment Opportunity employers and welcome all job seekers including individuals with disabilities and veterans with disabilities. If you have a disability and believe you need a reasonable accommodation in order to search for a job opening or apply for a position, email [e-mail] with your request. This email address is not for general employment inquiries or correspondence. We will only respond to those requests that are related to the accessibility of the online application system due to a disability.