An exciting opportunity has arisen for a qualified Junior Lawyer with a solid knowledge of the music business landscape to join our Business Affairs department (Neighbouring Rights division) based in London.
This legal role will report to the Senior Director of Business Affairs, Neighbouring Rights and will involve hands-on negotiating and drafting of our agreements with external lawyers as well as providing focussed and general support to the wider internal A&R, client and operational teams.
It will also provide an excellent opportunity for you to develop both professionally and personally in a highly progressive and newly-integrated part of the business, with Neighbouring Rights being a rapidly growing and competitive area in the industry, increasingly becoming an important source of iancome for performers and labels.
What you’ll do:
- Supporting the Senior Director of Business Affairs, Neighbouring Rights by drafting, negotiating and handling the signature and the implementation (along with internal teams) of:
- various global short form and long form client agreements and a range of side letters such as extensions, amendments, variations and novations;
- a spectrum of other agreements relating to neighbouring rights both internally and externally such as agreements with group companies, agents, societies and consultants;
- Working closely with the Senior Director of Business Affairs, Neighbouring Rights in advising and additively supporting our internal teams (including Executives, finance, creative, society and client relations teams) on various legal and organisational matters including without limitation IP matters, GDPR/data use-related matters, dispute resolution, deal-flow processes, best legal and business practice guidance and handling general legal and business affairs queries;
- Building and maintaining good relationships with contemporary external lawyers – as well as societies and client teams; and
- Helping with Business Affairs administrative tasks and working on efficiency drives where appropriate with the Senior Director of Business Affairs, Neighbouring Rights as well as the wider Neighbouring Rights team and The Orchard, AWAL and other Sony labels.
Who you are:
- NQ to 3 year PQE with relevant experience from a top music/entertainment private practice law firm and/or in-house role within a neighbouring rights, publishing and/or record company or organisation (candidates without neighbouring rights experience are welcome to apply, but active neighbouring rights experience will be a plus)
- Strong and developed negotiation and drafting experience
- Excellent communication skills (both verbal and written) and the ability to disseminate complicated legal and contractual principles to non-Business Affairs staff in a coherent and precise manner
- Exceptional organisational skills and ability to prioritize workload in a role that can be pressurized
- Confidence and drive will be important traits but applicants must have a team-player and collaborative mindset
- Attention to detail and an analytical and proactive/efficiency-driven thought-process
- A genuine desire to learn and immersively build up knowledge about the intricacies of the neighbouring rights sector of the music industry and how it interacts with other more traditionally established areas of the business
Equal Opportunities
As an active part of a culturally and socially diverse society, Sony Music’s aim is that our workforce is diverse and inclusive. Sony Music is an equal opportunity employer and supports workforce diversity.
We employ, retain, promote and otherwise treat all employees and job applicants according to their merit, qualifications, competence and talent. We apply this policy without regard to any individual’s sex, race, religion, origin, age, sexual orientation, marital status, medical condition or disability.