Senior Litigation Counsel Jobs in California
Senior Litigation Counsel jobs in California represent one of the most active markets in the country, concentrated in technology, entertainment, financial services, and healthcare, with openings at every level from newly minted litigation attorneys to senior trial counsel managing complex portfolios. The heaviest hiring is in Los Angeles, San Francisco, and San Diego, where employers such as Apple, Wells Fargo, and Kaiser Permanente maintain substantial in-house legal teams. The most sought-after specializations include commercial litigation, employment defense, and class action defense. Find a role that fits below and apply directly.
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Showing 4 of 28+ Senior Litigation Counsel jobs
The opportunity
In this role, you will lead Unity’s IP and Litigation function by partnering closely with Unity’s Chief Legal Officer and the internal IP team, developing and driving the legal strategy for Unity’s IP portfolio and serving as the company’s senior legal leader for all non-employment litigation and disputes. Your IP remit includes patents, trademarks, trade secrets and copyrights, as well as IP enforcement and defense, open source, IP issues in M&A, and more. You will also lead the company’s litigation and dispute resolution across IP, commercial, securities, privacy, and regulatory matters, working with the legal department’s subject-matter specialists.
What you’ll be doing
IP strategy, enforcement, and defense
- Develop and execute enforcement and defense strategies across patents, trademarks, trade secret and copyrights, including demand letters, cease-and-desist actions, takedowns, and responses to infringement claims
- Partner with a team of IP professionals and outside counsel to build and implement Unity’s global IP strategy, including developing and growing its patent, trademark, trade secrets and copyright portfolios
- Engage in invention harvesting and patent prosecution, ensuring the portfolio is strategically aligned and defensible
- Develop our trade secret strategy, including training on identification and protection of trade secrets
- Align our global trademark portfolio with business needs, including enforcement as needed
- Guide our organization around copyright issues, including risk assessment and dispute avoidance
- Partner with the legal department’s product attorneys on open source compliance and licensing processes, including addressing license violations and compliance claims
- Support IP due diligence for M&A and IP-related agreements, including settlement and license agreements arising from disputes, as needed
No-Employment Litigation and disputes (company-wide)
- Strategically lead IP disputes and litigation, from pre-suit assessment through resolution, including managing outside counsel, case strategy, discovery, and settlement
- Lead and set strategy for all of Unity’s litigation, arbitration, and disputes worldwide, including commercial and contract, securities and shareholder, consumer and privacy, and regulatory matters
- Manage the litigation docket and outside counsel, including budgets, staffing, motion practice, trial and appellate exposure, and settlement
- Oversee company-wide non-employment litigation management practices, including litigation holds, e-discovery and preservation, privilege protocols, case reporting, and early case assessment and reserve input to Finance and Legal leadership
- Coordinate with the CLO, Finance, and other legal team leads on disclosure considerations, insurance and D&O coverage, and communications with the Board and executive team on material matters
- Partner with the business and with legal’s commercial, privacy, and regulatory counsel to identify dispute risks early, avoid disputes, and resolve them practically
- Respond to and manage government inquiries, subpoenas, and investigations in coordination with the appropriate legal and compliance stakeholders
Leadership and operations
- Prepare and deliver training on IP, litigation readiness, document retention, and dispute avoidance
- Manage a budget, including total litigation spend, outside counsel, and settlements, with forecasting and regular reporting to the CLO
- Lead, and develop a team of legal professionals (adjust to match the actual org plan)
What we’re looking for
- 10+ years of experience, including leading IP strategy (patent, trademark, and/or copyright) and complex litigation in a global organization or law firm, and creatively and practically partnering with the business
- JD from an accredited law school, with admission to at least one state bar; admission to practice before the USPTO is preferred
- Demonstrated experience managing complex IP and commercial disputes through all stages, including trial or appellate exposure, and directing outside counsel
- Experience managing a broad litigation docket across multiple practice areas (e.g., commercial, securities, privacy/consumer, regulatory) is strongly preferred
- Experience with IP enforcement, defense, litigation management, and risk mitigation in a an advertising technology or software environment, as well as experience with IP strategies and issues relating to generative artificial intelligence
- Experience with a public company, including securities litigation and related disclosure and insurance considerations, is a plus
Additional information
- Reports to: SVP, Chief Legal Officer
- Location: San Francisco or New York, in office 3 days per week strongly preferred. Periodic travel to key hubs and events
- Travel: Up to ~15%
- Relocation support is not available for this position
- Work visa/immigration sponsorship is not available for this position
Note: Certain locations require a good faith disclosure of the base salary range for the role. The actual salary for the successful candidate may differ based on location, experience, and other job-related factors.
Base Salary Range: We determine the base salary range for this role based on your primary work location:
Zone A: $233,600 - $350,400 USD gross
Zone B: $264,000 - $396,000 USD gross
Zone C: $311,400 - $467,200 USD gross
This range reflects the anticipated base salary for this position. Beyond base salary, this role may be eligible for equity awards and participation in our company incentive plans (such as annual discretionary bonuses or sales commissions). The final offer amount will depend on several factors, including geographic location and the candidate’s relevant experience, professional background, and skill set.
Benefits
At Unity, we want our team members to thrive. We offer a wide range of benefits designed to support well-being and work-life balance.
Please note: Benefits eligibility, specific offerings, and coverage vary based on the country and employment status.
While specific benefits vary, here are some of the ways we strive to take care of our eligible team members globally: Comprehensive health, life, and disability insurance | Commute subsidy | Employee stock ownership | Competitive retirement/pension plans | Generous vacation and personal days | Support for new parents through leave and family-care programs | Office food snacks | Mental Health and Wellbeing programs and support | Employee Resource Groups | Global Employee Assistance Program | Training and development programs | Volunteering and donation matching program
Life at Unity
Unity [NYSE: U] is the world’s leading game engine, powering play for more than 3 billion consumers each month. The top mobile games in the world, the most played PC indie titles, the most innovative console games, and virtually all of the top XR and Web Games are developed, deployed, and grown in Unity. Unity also enables teams across industries like automotive, manufacturing, and healthcare to design, simulate, and collaborate in 3D — closing the gap between ideas and reality. For more information, please visit www.unity.com.
Unity is a proud equal opportunity employer. We are committed to fostering an inclusive, innovative environment and celebrate our employees across age, race, color, ancestry, national origin, religion, disability, sex, gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, or any other protected status in accordance with applicable law. Our differences are strengths that enable us to support the growing and evolving needs of our customers, partners, and collaborators. If you have a disability that means there are preparations or accommodations we can make to help ensure you have a comfortable and positive interview experience, please fill out this form to let us know.
Pursuant to the San Francisco Fair Chance Ordinance, we will consider for employment qualified applicants with arrest and conviction records.
This position requires the incumbent to have a sufficient knowledge of English to have professional verbal and written exchanges in this language since the performance of the duties related to this position requires frequent and regular communication with colleagues and partners located worldwide and whose common language is English.
Headhunters and recruitment agencies may not submit resumes/CVs through this Web site or directly to managers. Unity does not accept unsolicited headhunter and agency resumes. Unity will not pay fees to any third-party agency or company that does not have a signed agreement with Unity.
Your privacy is important to us. Please take a moment to review our Prospect and Applicant Privacy Policies. Should you have any concerns about your privacy, please contact us at DPO@unity.com.
The opportunity
In this role, you will lead Unity’s IP and Litigation function by partnering closely with Unity’s Chief Legal Officer and the internal IP team, developing and driving the legal strategy for Unity’s IP portfolio and serving as the company’s senior legal leader for all non-employment litigation and disputes. Your IP remit includes patents, trademarks, trade secrets and copyrights, as well as IP enforcement and defense, open source, IP issues in M&A, and more. You will also lead the company’s litigation and dispute resolution across IP, commercial, securities, privacy, and regulatory matters, working with the legal department’s subject-matter specialists.
What you’ll be doing
IP strategy, enforcement, and defense
- Develop and execute enforcement and defense strategies across patents, trademarks, trade secret and copyrights, including demand letters, cease-and-desist actions, takedowns, and responses to infringement claims
- Partner with a team of IP professionals and outside counsel to build and implement Unity’s global IP strategy, including developing and growing its patent, trademark, trade secrets and copyright portfolios
- Engage in invention harvesting and patent prosecution, ensuring the portfolio is strategically aligned and defensible
- Develop our trade secret strategy, including training on identification and protection of trade secrets
- Align our global trademark portfolio with business needs, including enforcement as needed
- Guide our organization around copyright issues, including risk assessment and dispute avoidance
- Partner with the legal department’s product attorneys on open source compliance and licensing processes, including addressing license violations and compliance claims
- Support IP due diligence for M&A and IP-related agreements, including settlement and license agreements arising from disputes, as needed
No-Employment Litigation and disputes (company-wide)
- Strategically lead IP disputes and litigation, from pre-suit assessment through resolution, including managing outside counsel, case strategy, discovery, and settlement
- Lead and set strategy for all of Unity’s litigation, arbitration, and disputes worldwide, including commercial and contract, securities and shareholder, consumer and privacy, and regulatory matters
- Manage the litigation docket and outside counsel, including budgets, staffing, motion practice, trial and appellate exposure, and settlement
- Oversee company-wide non-employment litigation management practices, including litigation holds, e-discovery and preservation, privilege protocols, case reporting, and early case assessment and reserve input to Finance and Legal leadership
- Coordinate with the CLO, Finance, and other legal team leads on disclosure considerations, insurance and D&O coverage, and communications with the Board and executive team on material matters
- Partner with the business and with legal’s commercial, privacy, and regulatory counsel to identify dispute risks early, avoid disputes, and resolve them practically
- Respond to and manage government inquiries, subpoenas, and investigations in coordination with the appropriate legal and compliance stakeholders
Leadership and operations
- Prepare and deliver training on IP, litigation readiness, document retention, and dispute avoidance
- Manage a budget, including total litigation spend, outside counsel, and settlements, with forecasting and regular reporting to the CLO
- Lead, and develop a team of legal professionals (adjust to match the actual org plan)
What we’re looking for
- 10+ years of experience, including leading IP strategy (patent, trademark, and/or copyright) and complex litigation in a global organization or law firm, and creatively and practically partnering with the business
- JD from an accredited law school, with admission to at least one state bar; admission to practice before the USPTO is preferred
- Demonstrated experience managing complex IP and commercial disputes through all stages, including trial or appellate exposure, and directing outside counsel
- Experience managing a broad litigation docket across multiple practice areas (e.g., commercial, securities, privacy/consumer, regulatory) is strongly preferred
- Experience with IP enforcement, defense, litigation management, and risk mitigation in a an advertising technology or software environment, as well as experience with IP strategies and issues relating to generative artificial intelligence
- Experience with a public company, including securities litigation and related disclosure and insurance considerations, is a plus
Additional information
- Reports to: SVP, Chief Legal Officer
- Location: San Francisco or New York, in office 3 days per week strongly preferred. Periodic travel to key hubs and events
- Travel: Up to ~15%
- Relocation support is not available for this position
- Work visa/immigration sponsorship is not available for this position
Note: Certain locations require a good faith disclosure of the base salary range for the role. The actual salary for the successful candidate may differ based on location, experience, and other job-related factors.
Base Salary Range: We determine the base salary range for this role based on your primary work location:
Zone A: $233,600 - $350,400 USD gross
Zone B: $264,000 - $396,000 USD gross
Zone C: $311,400 - $467,200 USD gross
This range reflects the anticipated base salary for this position. Beyond base salary, this role may be eligible for equity awards and participation in our company incentive plans (such as annual discretionary bonuses or sales commissions). The final offer amount will depend on several factors, including geographic location and the candidate’s relevant experience, professional background, and skill set.
Benefits
At Unity, we want our team members to thrive. We offer a wide range of benefits designed to support well-being and work-life balance.
Please note: Benefits eligibility, specific offerings, and coverage vary based on the country and employment status.
While specific benefits vary, here are some of the ways we strive to take care of our eligible team members globally: Comprehensive health, life, and disability insurance | Commute subsidy | Employee stock ownership | Competitive retirement/pension plans | Generous vacation and personal days | Support for new parents through leave and family-care programs | Office food snacks | Mental Health and Wellbeing programs and support | Employee Resource Groups | Global Employee Assistance Program | Training and development programs | Volunteering and donation matching program
Life at Unity
Unity [NYSE: U] is the world’s leading game engine, powering play for more than 3 billion consumers each month. The top mobile games in the world, the most played PC indie titles, the most innovative console games, and virtually all of the top XR and Web Games are developed, deployed, and grown in Unity. Unity also enables teams across industries like automotive, manufacturing, and healthcare to design, simulate, and collaborate in 3D — closing the gap between ideas and reality. For more information, please visit www.unity.com.
Unity is a proud equal opportunity employer. We are committed to fostering an inclusive, innovative environment and celebrate our employees across age, race, color, ancestry, national origin, religion, disability, sex, gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, or any other protected status in accordance with applicable law. Our differences are strengths that enable us to support the growing and evolving needs of our customers, partners, and collaborators. If you have a disability that means there are preparations or accommodations we can make to help ensure you have a comfortable and positive interview experience, please fill out this form to let us know.
Pursuant to the San Francisco Fair Chance Ordinance, we will consider for employment qualified applicants with arrest and conviction records.
This position requires the incumbent to have a sufficient knowledge of English to have professional verbal and written exchanges in this language since the performance of the duties related to this position requires frequent and regular communication with colleagues and partners located worldwide and whose common language is English.
Headhunters and recruitment agencies may not submit resumes/CVs through this Web site or directly to managers. Unity does not accept unsolicited headhunter and agency resumes. Unity will not pay fees to any third-party agency or company that does not have a signed agreement with Unity.
Your privacy is important to us. Please take a moment to review our Prospect and Applicant Privacy Policies. Should you have any concerns about your privacy, please contact us at DPO@unity.com.
See All 28 Senior Litigation Counsel Jobs in California
Find roles in California that match your experience and apply in just a few clicks.
Find JobsSenior Litigation Counsel Jobs by City in California
Where California roles are concentrated, by current openings.
Senior Litigation Counsel Job Market in California
A snapshot from current California openings, updated as new roles post.
Who's Hiring
Top Industries Hiring
- Technology & Software
What California Employers Look For
The qualifications that appear most often in senior litigation counsel jobs across California.
- Active membership in the State Bar of California in good standing
- Juris Doctor degree from an accredited law school
- Substantial first-chair trial or arbitration experience in California courts
- Deep knowledge of California Civil Procedure and evidence rules
- Experience managing outside counsel relationships and litigation budgets
- Strong written advocacy skills demonstrated through briefs and motion practice
Senior Litigation Counsel Jobs in California: Frequently Asked Questions
How do you become a senior litigation counsel in California?
You must be admitted to the State Bar of California, which requires passing the California Bar Examination administered by the Committee of Bar Examiners and completing the Multistate Professional Responsibility Examination. The path typically begins with a Juris Doctor from an accredited law school, followed by associate-level litigation work building trial and motion experience. Most California in-house teams promote to senior litigation counsel after consistent first-chair experience and demonstrated ability to manage complex matters independently.
How much do senior litigation counsels make in California?
Senior litigation counsels in California earn a median of about $195,080 a year, based on May 2025 Bureau of Labor Statistics wage data, ranging from around $97,950 for the lowest 10% to over $369,180 for the top 10%. Pay rises with experience, specialty, and employer.
Which companies hire senior litigation counsels in California?
Employers hiring senior litigation counsels in California right now include TikTok USDS Joint Venture, Sony Interactive Entertainment, and Tesla, based on current listings on Migrate Mate as of November 2026. California's concentration of technology headquarters, entertainment studios, and major financial institutions means in-house litigation teams here are larger and more specialized than in most other states.
Which California cities have the most senior litigation counsel jobs?
Los Angeles, San Francisco, and California lead California for senior litigation counsel openings. Los Angeles dominates because of its density of entertainment conglomerates, real estate firms, and financial institutions with large in-house teams, while San Francisco and Silicon Valley draw heavily from the technology sector, and San Diego's concentration of biotech and defense contractors sustains consistent litigation hiring there.
Are there remote senior litigation counsel jobs in California?
Yes, but they're less common than in purely advisory legal roles, since litigation counsel work often requires court appearances and in-person depositions in California venues. About 67% of senior litigation counsel openings tied to California are remote or hybrid as of November 2026, reflecting a partial flexibility trend among in-house teams. Pre-trial work such as legal research, brief writing, and settlement negotiations is the portion of the role most frequently performed remotely.
How can I get hired as a senior litigation counsel in California with little or no experience?
The most realistic entry path is a litigation associate role at a California-based law firm or in-house team, where you build trial and motion experience before moving to a senior counsel title. Large California employers such as technology companies and healthcare systems frequently hire new attorneys through structured associate programs that feed into their in-house pipeline. Lateral moves from adjacent roles such as judicial law clerk, public defender, or deputy district attorney in a California county are highly regarded because they demonstrate actual courtroom experience that in-house hiring managers value.
Where can I find and apply to senior litigation counsel jobs in California?
You can find and apply to senior litigation counsel jobs in California on Migrate Mate, which lists current California openings updated regularly. Search the available roles, find the ones that match your background and preferred location, and apply directly to each employer through the listing.
See All 28 Senior Litigation Counsel Jobs in California
Find roles in California that match your experience and apply in just a few clicks.
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