Senior Legal Counsel – Contracts Center of Excellence

About the role

As a Senior Legal Counsel in the Contracts Center of Excellence, you will partner with innovative teams worldwide to shape and protect 3M’s intellectual property and commercial agreements. You will provide strategic legal guidance across a broad spectrum of transactional matters, ensuring risk‑aware decisions that support the company’s growth.

Key responsibilities

• Draft, review, and negotiate complex intellectual property agreements, including technology development, licensing, confidentiality, joint development, data, software, and other innovation‑related contracts.
• Provide legal support for IT, procurement, supply chain, services, outsourcing, and other commercial agreements.
• Advise business units on IP ownership, licensing, confidentiality, data rights, technology transfer, software, cybersecurity, and related contracting risks.
• Develop practical, business‑oriented contracting strategies and risk‑mitigation approaches for high‑complexity, strategic transactions.
• Conduct legal and factual research, analyzing contract terms, legal requirements, market practices, and internal standards.
• Work independently on matters of significant complexity, exercising sound judgment and escalating issues when appropriate.
• Collaborate with Legal Affairs, IP, sourcing, IT, privacy, compliance, finance, and business teams to deliver comprehensive legal services.
• Lead transactional processes for high‑impact matters, coordinating cross‑functional reviews, resolving negotiation issues, and ensuring timely execution.
• Serve as a subject‑matter expert in IP contracting and licensing, supporting continuous improvement of templates, playbooks, clause libraries, and negotiation guidance.

Required profile

• Bachelor’s degree or higher, completed and verified prior to start.
• Minimum seven (7) years of law‑firm and/or in‑house intellectual property experience in private, public, government, or military settings.

Required skills