Constellation Brands

Job Description

Position Summary:

Reporting directly to the Vice President, Deputy General Counsel, the Sr. Manager, IP, is responsible for supporting the management of the Company's intellectual property (IP) portfolio, including trademarks, copyrights, patents, and trade secrets, both domestically and internationally. The position requires liaising with outside trademark counsel and implementing strategies to mitigate IP risks. Key responsibilities include drafting and reviewing IP agreements, managing a team of IP professionals, and ensuring compliance with applicable laws and regulations. The idea candidate will have 8-10 years’ experience as an IP Director or IP Manager for a CPG company or as a Senior Trademark Paralegal at a law firm. The individual in this role must be able to build and maintain trusted relationships with internal and external stakeholders, while monitoring IP rights, conducting research on IP-related issues, and providing support in IP-related disputes.

Responsibilities:

• Liaise with outside trademark counsel and oversee IP prosecution and portfolio management for both domestic and foreign trademarks, copyright and patent applications, registration and maintenance filings.
• Implement strategies outlined by VP, Deputy General Counsel to mitigate and manage intellectual property risk and protect the Company's intellectual property (“IP”) assets, with a primary focus on trademarks and copyrights, as well as patents and trade secrets as required.
• Draft and review a variety of cease & desist letters and IP agreements, including but not limited to, work made for hire agreements, trademark licensing agreements, settlement agreements and co-existence agreements, with supervision from the VP, Deputy General Counsel
• Build and maintain relationships with internal stakeholders, external partners, and outside legal counsel, to enable the provision of efficient, productive and business-forward legal support and guidance on the trademark and copyright portfolio.
• Review product labels, packaging, advertising and promotional materials for proper use of company’s trademarks and copyrights and confirm implementation of efforts.
• Manage team of IP professionals, currently consisting of two direct reports: IP Coordinator and IP Specialist. Support the development of individual team members, prioritization of workload and monitor performance.
• Supervise direct reports in their efforts to monitor and maintain the Company’s IP rights, including identifying and addressing potential infringements, and maintenance and management of legal IP databases and filing systems.
• Implement processes and procedures to ensure compliance with applicable laws and regulations and governing agreements as directed by VP, Deputy General Counsel.
• Monitor relationships with licensors and licensees to ensure quality control of licensed IP and compliance with contractual obligations.
• Review monthly KPI's for IP filings, renewals, assignments and spend management and communicate necessary metrics to internal stakeholders.
• Conduct research and analysis on various IP-related issues, changes in IP laws, and industry trends, and provide relevant guidance and recommendations to internal stakeholders.
• Provide support to VP, Deputy General Counsel and outside trademark legal counsel in connection with IP-related disputes, including management of oppositions, cancellations and federal court actions.
• Under the supervision of the VP, Deputy General Counsel, conduct IP due diligence in mergers, acquisitions, and other business transactions to assess risks and opportunities related to IP assets
• Prepare and deliver training and ongoing education to employees, and monthly / quarterly reports for board entities, on IP rights, policies, relevant licensing agreements and best practices.
• Review comprehensive trademark clearance search results regarding availability and registrability of proposed trademarks. Prepare recommendations and guidance on potential conflicts under the supervision of outside trademark counsel and VP, Deputy General Counsel.

Qualifications:

• 12-15 years’ experience as an IP Director or IP Manager for a CPG company or Senior Trademark Paralegal at a law firm
• General familiarity and understanding of patent laws
• Strong written, analytical, verbal, and presentation skills
• Demonstrated ability to achieve results
• Ability to multi-task in a fast-paced environment
• Skilled in handling tight deadlines, changing priorities and multiple simultaneous issues of immediate concern, and willingness to work hard
• Superior interpersonal, organizational and communication skills; sincere appreciation for working as part of a commercial team with wide variety of levels, roles and personalities in in-house environment; excellent professional judgment; confidence to act and provide legal advice independently; personal humility
• High proficiency with Microsoft Word, Excel, PowerPoint also required
• Experience with IP management software and legal spend management preferred/a plus.

Location

Rochester, New York

Additional Locations

Buffalo, New York, Syracuse, New York

Job Type

Full time

Job Area

Legal & Public Affairs

The salary range for this role is:

$121,600.00 - $194,200.00

This is the lowest to highest salary we in good faith believe we would pay for this role at the time of this posting. Our compensation is based on cost of labor. For remote locations or positions open to multiple locations, the pay range may reflect several US geographic markets, including the lowest geographic market minimum to the highest geographic market maximum. We may ultimately pay more or less than the posted range, and the range may be modified in the future. An employee’s pay position within the salary range will be based on several factors including, but not limited to, the prevailing minimum wage for the location, relevant education, qualifications, certifications, experience, skills, seniority, geographic location, performance, shift, travel requirements, sales or revenue-based metrics, any collective bargaining agreements, and business or organizational needs. At Constellation Brands, it is not typical for an individual to be hired at the high end of the range for their role, and compensation decisions are dependent upon the facts and circumstances of each position and candidate. We offer comprehensive package of benefits including paid time off, medical/dental/vision insurance, 401(k), and any other benefits to eligible employees.

Note: No amount of pay is considered to be wages or compensation until such amount is earned, vested, and determinable. The amount and availability of any bonus, commission, or any other form of compensation that are allocable to a particular employee remains in the Company's sole discretion unless and until paid and may be modified at the Company’s sole discretion, consistent with the law.

Equal Opportunity

Constellation Brands is committed to a continuing program of equal employment opportunity. All persons have equal employment opportunities with Constellation Brands, regardless of their sex, race, color, age, religion, creed, sexual orientation, national origin or citizenship, ancestry, physical or mental disability, medical condition (cancer or genetic characteristics), marital status, gender (including gender identity or gender expression), familial status, military or veteran status, genetic information, pregnancy, childbirth, breastfeeding, or related conditions (or any other group or category within the framework of the applicable discrimination laws and regulations).