Senior Counsel, Litigation (Safety)

OpenAI, Inc.; United States; Hybrid; USD 180,000 - 260,000; Full time

Job summary

OpenAI, Inc. is seeking an experienced counsel to join our Litigation and Regulatory team to address AI-related litigation matters, including products liability and mass torts. The role collaborates across Legal, Communications, Global Affairs, and Executive teams in a cross-functional environment.

Based in San Francisco with a hybrid schedule (3 days in office) and relocation assistance, you will guide strategy, manage outside counsel, and stay ahead of evolving laws affecting AI technologies.

Qualifications

• Ten+ years of combined litigation experience, including inhouse at software/online tech companies.
• Experience with MDLs/JCCPs and other large litigations.
• JD and license to practice in CA.

Responsibilities

• Provide legal counsel on global litigation matters including products liability, mass torts, model output liability, and commercial disputes.
• Manage and oversee outside counsel across discovery, motions, trial prep, and settlements.
• Collaborate with cross‑functional teams to gather information, assess risk, and develop litigation strategies.
• Stay current on laws, regulations, and industry trends and provide updates to leadership.

Skills

In-house litigation

Tech industry experience

MDLs/JCCPs experience

Judgment under ambiguity

CA bar license

Education

Juris Doctor (JD)

CA bar admission

Job description

About the Team

the company's Legal team plays a crucial role in furthering the company's mission by tackling innovative, fundamental legal issues in AI. If you're passionate about doing significant and unique work as a technology lawyer, this team is for you. The team comprises legal professionals from diverse fields, including technology, privacy, IP, corporate, cybersecurity, employment, tax, regulatory, and litigation.

About the Role

We’re growing our world‑class Litigation and Regulatory team and seek an experienced counsel to support litigation matters related to AI model outputs, such as products liability and mass torts. This role is highly cross‑functional across the company, including work across our Legal, Communications, Global Affairs, and Executive teams. This role reports to our Deputy General Counsel.

This role is based in San Francisco, CA. We use a hybrid work model of 3 days in the office per week and offer relocation assistance to new employees.

In this role, you will:

• Provide legal advice and counsel on a wide range of global litigation matters, including first‑of‑kind products liability, mass torts, model output liability, and commercial disputes.

• Manage and oversee outside counsel in all aspects of litigation matters, including discovery, motion practice, trial preparation, and settlement negotiations.

• Collaborate with cross‑functional teams to gather relevant information, assess risk, and develop legal strategies to resolve disputes.

• Stay current on relevant laws, regulations, and industry trends, and provide updates and legal guidance to company leadership and stakeholders.

You might thrive in this role if you:

• Have at least 10+ years of combined litigation experience, including several inhouse at software/online technology companies. This will not be your first inhouse role.

• Have prior experience working on MDLs/JCCPs and other large litigations.

• Have a strong sense of ownership, are inquisitive and enthusiastic about AI technology/online platforms, enjoy being continually challenged, and can demonstrate sound judgment in ambiguous/unstructured/dynamic situations.

• Have a JD and license or qualification to practice in CA

About the company

the company is an AI research and deployment company dedicated to ensuring that general‑purpose artificial intelligence benefits all of humanity. We push the boundaries of the capabilities of AI systems and seek to safely deploy them to the world through our products. AI is an extremely powerful tool that must be created with safety and human needs at its core, and to achieve our mission, we must encompass and value the many different perspectives, voices, and experiences that form the full spectrum of humanity.

We are an equal opportunity employer, and we do not discriminate on the basis of race, religion, color, national origin, sex, sexual orientation, age, veteran status, disability, genetic information, or other applicable legally protected characteristic.

For additional information, please see the company’s Affirmitive Action and Equal Employment Opportunity Policy Statement.

Background checks for applicants will be administered in accordance with applicable law, and qualified applicants with arrest or conviction records will be considered for employment consistent with those laws, including the San Francisco Fair Chance Ordinance, the Los Angeles County Fair Chance Ordinance for Employers, and the California Fair Chance Act, for US‑based candidates. For unincorporated Los Angeles County workers: we reasonably believe that criminal history may have a direct, adverse and negative relationship with the following job duties, potentially resulting in the withdrawal of a conditional offer of employment: protect computer hardware entrusted to you from theft, loss or damage; return all computer hardware in your possession (including the data contained therein) upon termination of employment or end of assignment; and maintain the confidentiality of proprietary, confidential, and non‑public information. In addition, job duties require access to secure and protected information technology systems and related data security obligations.

To notify the company that you believe this job posting is non‑compliant, please submit a report through this form. No response will be provided to inquiries unrelated to job posting compliance.

We are committed to providing reasonable accommodations to applicants with disabilities, and requests can be made via this link.

the company Global Applicant Privacy Policy

At the company, we believe artificial intelligence has the potential to help people solve immense global challenges, and we want the upside of AI to be widely shared. Join us in shaping the future of technology.