General Counsel in Los Angeles, CA

General Counsel Job Description

The general counsel serves as the primary legal advisor to the organization, focusing on managing legal risks, ensuring compliance, and providing day-to-day legal guidance across various business units. This role requires a deep understanding of the company’s operations and industry-specific regulations. The general counsel typically reports to the chief legal officer (in larger organizations) or directly to the CEO and is responsible for overseeing the internal legal team or managing relationships with external counsel. They play a crucial role in interpreting laws and regulations, advising on contractual matters, and implementing legal policies and procedures throughout the organization.

The general counsel must possess excellent management, teamwork, delegation, and problem-solving skills. A Juris Doctor (J.D.) degree from an accredited law school and active state bar license is required. The amount of experience required for the position may vary depending on company size. For example, large companies (more than $250 million in revenue) may prefer candidates with 15 to 20 years of experience, while small companies (up to $25 million in revenue) may seek five or more years of relevant experience. Companies seek candidates who also possess experience in a corporate legal department or major law firm where they held positions of increasing responsibility, such as associate general counsel or partner.

Typical general counsel duties:

Providing legal advice and support to various departments and business units

Managing and mitigating legal risks associated with company operations

Overseeing contract drafting, negotiation, and management processes

Ensuring compliance with applicable laws, regulations, and internal policies

Managing litigation and dispute resolution processes

Conducting legal research and providing opinions on complex legal issues

Collaborating with HR on employment law matters and workplace policies

Advising on intellectual property protection and management

Coordinating with external counsel on specialized legal matters when necessary

Developing and implementing legal training programs for employees

Overseeing the company’s intellectual property

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Salary for General Counsel in Los Angeles, CA

291803 - 354355

Low

291803

The candidate is new to the role or has limited experience and is building necessary skills.

Mid

316365

The candidate has moderate experience in the role, meets most requirements or has equivalent transferable skills, and may also have relevant certifications.

High

354355

The candidate has extensive experience and advanced skills for the role, and may also have specialized certifications.

Projected salaries for related positions

Job title

Low

Mid

High

Chief Legal Officer

310470

336343

374660

In-House Counsel/Associate General Counsel, 10+ Years' Experience

205998

243988

287873

In-House Counsel, 4-9 Years' Experience

140170

194863

234163

In-House Counsel, 0-3 Years' Experience

126088

150323

176523

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Our starting salary projections come from a rigorous, multistep process so that our numbers accurately reflect the marketplace. They are based on actual compensation for professionals Robert Half has matched with employers across the country and third-party job posting data from Textkernel that we use to independently validate the salary levels.

Starting compensation—pay for someone new to a role—can vary significantly based on a candidate’s skills, experience and certifications, as well as other factors including industry, company size and revenue, and demand for the role. To reflect this variability, we report our salary data in three levels: low, mid and high.