[Hiring] Head of Legal / Deputy General Counsel @OpenClaw Foundation

Role Description

The OpenClaw Foundation is seeking a Head of Legal / Deputy General Counsel to build and lead its legal function. This person will advise Foundation leadership and the board across:

• Intellectual property
• Open-source licensing
• Product security
• Commercial contracts
• Nonprofit governance
• International legal matters

This is a hands-on role for a pragmatic legal leader who understands the intersection of open-source software, AI, and nonprofit institutions. You'll establish the legal frameworks that protect the Foundation's mission, enable ecosystem participation, and support long-term sustainability.

A key focus will be navigating the evolving legal and regulatory landscape surrounding AI agents, particularly as agents gain access to sensitive data, interact with third-party systems, and take actions on behalf of users. You'll help the Foundation anticipate how requirements around data access, permissions, privacy, and agent autonomy will vary across end users, enterprise customers, industries, and jurisdictions — translating these complexities into practical product guidance and scalable legal frameworks.

The ideal candidate combines deep IP and technology legal expertise with strong judgment around emerging AI regulation, data governance, and product risk. You are comfortable operating autonomously, managing outside counsel, and balancing legal rigor with the pace of innovation.

Qualifications

• JD or equivalent qualifying legal degree and admission to practice in a relevant jurisdiction, preferably the US.
• Typically 7+ years of relevant legal experience in-house, at a law firm, or within a nonprofit or foundation.
• Strong expertise in IP, software licensing, trademarks, copyright, and technology transactions.
• Familiarity with open-source licensing, contributor frameworks, and software governance.
• Experience advising on AI regulation, product counsel, data governance, privacy, cybersecurity, or technology risk.
• Ability to navigate complex questions around data access, user permissions, agent autonomy, and responsibility across multi-party technology ecosystems.
• Experience with nonprofit law, foundation governance, or tax-exempt organizations.
• International legal experience, particularly cross-border contracts, privacy, or international IP protection, strongly preferred.
• Excellent business judgment and communication skills, with the ability to operate independently in a fast-moving environment.
• A builder mentality and willingness to create legal processes from the ground up.

Requirements

• Own IP strategy across the OpenClaw codebase, brand, and ecosystem, including copyright, licensing, trademark registration, usage policies, and enforcement.
• Develop contributor agreements, licensing frameworks, and guidelines for third-party integrations, derivative works, and commercial use.
• Establish IP governance principles that balance ecosystem openness with the Foundation's responsibility to protect the project's integrity.
• Advise on the evolving legal and regulatory landscape governing AI agents, particularly as agents access sensitive data, interact with third-party systems, and execute actions on behalf of users.
• Partner with product and engineering leadership to establish legal frameworks for agent permissions, identity, authorization, data access, and user consent across consumer, enterprise, and other deployment environments.
• Anticipate how security requirements, data access restrictions, and compliance obligations vary by customer, end user, industry, and jurisdiction, translating these differences into practical product guidance.
• Help define legal and policy frameworks for agent autonomy, delegated authority, data ownership, and accountability when agents access information or execute actions across interconnected systems.
• Monitor emerging requirements around AI governance, privacy, cybersecurity, and data sovereignty to help ensure OpenClaw's products, architecture, and ecosystem standards can adapt as regulatory expectations evolve.
• Advise on the allocation of legal responsibility among the Foundation, developers, deploying organizations, and end users as agents operate across different trust boundaries and regulatory environments.
• Draft, review, and negotiate strategic partnerships, sponsorships, grants, vendor agreements, software licenses, and other commercial contracts.
• Build scalable contract templates and processes while advising on data rights, liability, indemnification, licensing, and technology risks.
• Support partnerships with technology companies, AI labs, cloud providers, and international organizations while preserving the Foundation's neutrality.
• Advise leadership and the board on nonprofit governance, fiduciary duties, organizational structure, and regulatory compliance.
• Support board operations, governance policies, charitable donations, grantmaking, and tax-exempt organization requirements, as applicable.
• Help maintain appropriate separation between the Foundation, affiliated entities, commercial partners, and ecosystem stakeholders.
• Advise on cross-border agreements, international IP protection, and trademark strategy across key jurisdictions.
• Coordinate specialist counsel on privacy, data protection, AI regulation, data sovereignty, sanctions, export controls, and local compliance requirements.
• Develop a practical framework for managing legal and regulatory risks as the Foundation and its global ecosystem grow.
• Serve as a strategic advisor to the executive team and board, translating complex legal issues into actionable recommendations.
• Build the Foundation's legal infrastructure, including policies, compliance processes, contract management, and outside counsel relationships.
• Monitor emerging legal developments affecting open-source AI, agent identity, digital ownership, autonomous systems, and decentralized technology ecosystems.

Benefits