VP, Business & Legal Affairs

Lionsgate Canada has an immediate opening for a Vice President, Business & Legal Affairs in the Business and Legal Affairs department. This position will be responsible for supporting the Worldwide Digital and Television Licensing department with particular emphasis on domestic licensing and sales agreements. The role will require the ability to work independently while coordinating with the larger global team and will include negotiating, drafting and commenting on transactional, television, digital and licensing agreements, as well as liaising with other Lionsgate Canada business groups (including sales, rights management, tax, finance, technical operations and servicing) where required. The position will support rights transactions across Canada, the United States and Latin America and will regularly provide legal and strategic advice on rights exploitation, distribution and sales initiatives to support the company's business objectives.

Specific Responsibilities Include:

• Support licensing and distribution transactions across Canada, the United States and Latin America.
• Negotiate and draft content licensing agreements with major broadcasters, digital platforms and strategic partners, including linear, SVOD, AVOD, FAST, and transactional licensing arrangements.
• Draft and negotiate other legal agreements as required (including NDAs, Settlement and Release agreements, etc.).
• Manage and provide guidance to one direct report supporting the position.
• Support various legal projects including reviewing chain-of-title, key art and marketing restrictions.
• Assist the department in maintaining and updating sales, licensing and distribution templates.
• Assist with and drafting/negotiating, as appropriate, acquisition, banking, financing and related agreements.
• Assist in identifying and implementing process improvements to enhance operational efficiency and consistency across the licensing business.
• Participate in regular business, sales, pipeline and status meetings and provide legal guidance on deal strategy, rights issues and transaction execution.
• Liaise with domestic and global sales teams in respect of deal tracking and related tasks to advise on and track the progress of sales agreements.
• Liaise with clients regarding commercial deal points on contracts.
• Liaise with the contract administration team in respect of contract management and related tasks (including maintaining and updating records of key contractual, non-legal information and rights management information).
• Collaborate with Sales, Rights Management, Tax, Finance, Technical Operations and other internal stakeholders to facilitate deal execution, payment structuring, rights management and compliance requirements.

Qualifications and Skills

• Qualified lawyer with 5-8 years post-call experience with professional legal training
• BS/BA, LLB or JD from an accredited institution, and licensed in good standing to practice law in Canada
• Substantial experience in the field of intellectual property law, licensing and distribution (drafting and negotiation) and excellent legal skills;
• Familiarity with a variety of commercial media agreements (copyright licenses, rights assignments, music publishing agreements, sales agency agreements, etc.)
• Excellent drafting and communication skills (including non-legal departments);
• Good negotiation techniques with a commercial, problem solving and collaborative approach;
• Familiarity with television, digital, SVOD, AVOD, FAST, TVOD and transactional content distribution models is an asset.
• Ability to deal with high volume of work across many projects and time zones and ability to multi-task
• Basic understanding of the Canadian media ecosystem, including CanCon certification, and CRTC regulations
• Ability to work in both English and French is considered an asset
• Taking care: competitive health and dental coverage plus dedicated Health Spending Account
• Investment in your future : Group RRSP with employer match
• Be inspired: regular film screenings and opportunity to get involved in industry events

About Lionsgate Canada

Lionsgate Canada is a talent-driven leader in entertainment production and distribution, serving Canadian and global audiences with award-winning content and a massive film and television library. The studio has a rich legacy of producing high-quality Canadian content for the domestic market and audiences around the world. From global blockbusters to hidden gems, Lionsgate Canada also distributes fan-favorite television and series content across a vast catalogue.

We are an equal opportunity employer that is committed to supporting diversity and inclusion within our work environment. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, colour, religion, gender, gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, national origin, genetics, disability, age, or veteran status. We will ensure that individuals with disabilities are provided reasonable accommodation to participate in the job application or interview process, to perform essential job functions, and to receive other benefits and privileges of employment. Please contact us to request accommodation.

Please be aware that Lionsgate Canada utilizes AI during our background check processes.