Senior Counsel
Bluesky.com
170k - 230k USD/year
Remote
Overlap with PST working hours
Full Time
About BlueskyBluesky's vision is to make social more like the web itself. We're building a social media app, but beyond that, we've created a protocol that supports a broad ecosystem of applications and clients. Imagine a network of applications — from microblogging to photos to video to long-form writing — all interconnected and accessible with a shared identity.
As a Public Benefit Company, we serve the public good while building sustainable technology that empowers users and promotes healthy public conversation. Our legal team supports this mission by providing practical, business-minded advice that aligns with our values, mitigates risk, and enables innovation and growth. Our legal team gives advice about how best to solve problems in the midst of risk, not how to avoid risk altogether.
Position OverviewBluesky is seeking an experienced, mission-driven Senior Counsel to support us as we develop technologies for open and decentralized public conversation. The Senior Counsel will report to our Head of Legal and will help us scale our legal operations, provide strategic legal guidance, and create the legal infrastructure necessary for our growing platform while upholding our core values of collaboration, speed, transparency, and respect for users.
This is a challenging opportunity at a challenging time. We are a fast-growing, global company in a moment when laws regulating online safety, speech, and privacy shift daily. We need a strong teammate who wants to move fast, get results, and who sees obstacles as opportunities to innovate and improve. We are not just building a social media app, we are reshaping the future of social media by building a more democratic internet ecosystem. This is a chance to help us do that the right way.
Key Responsibilities
Qualifications
Working at Bluesky
Culture & Values We are a mission-driven team committed to building technology that serves the public good. Our culture values:
Work Environment This is a full-time position that can be performed remotely or in a hybrid arrangement. We value work-life balance and provide flexibility to accommodate different working styles and life circumstances while ensuring effective collaboration and communication across our distributed team. This position requires periodic travel for industry conferences, policy discussions, stakeholder meetings, and business development activities. Travel is typically domestic and occurs 2-3 times per quarter with trips ranging from 2-5 days per trip. International travel may occasionally be required. Advance notice of at least two weeks is typically provided for planned travel.
Growth & DevelopmentThe Senior Counsel role offers significant opportunities for professional growth and leadership development. This position is designed for someone who wants to take on increasing responsibility and contribute to building the legal function at an innovative technology company focused on public benefit.
Compensation & BenefitsBluesky offers competitive compensation commensurate with experience, including:
As a Public Benefit Company, we serve the public good while building sustainable technology that empowers users and promotes healthy public conversation. Our legal team supports this mission by providing practical, business-minded advice that aligns with our values, mitigates risk, and enables innovation and growth. Our legal team gives advice about how best to solve problems in the midst of risk, not how to avoid risk altogether.
Position OverviewBluesky is seeking an experienced, mission-driven Senior Counsel to support us as we develop technologies for open and decentralized public conversation. The Senior Counsel will report to our Head of Legal and will help us scale our legal operations, provide strategic legal guidance, and create the legal infrastructure necessary for our growing platform while upholding our core values of collaboration, speed, transparency, and respect for users.
This is a challenging opportunity at a challenging time. We are a fast-growing, global company in a moment when laws regulating online safety, speech, and privacy shift daily. We need a strong teammate who wants to move fast, get results, and who sees obstacles as opportunities to innovate and improve. We are not just building a social media app, we are reshaping the future of social media by building a more democratic internet ecosystem. This is a chance to help us do that the right way.
Key Responsibilities
- Strategic Legal Support & Risk Management
- Develop and implement legal strategies that advance Bluesky's mission and manage legal, regulatory, and reputational risks
- Provide practical, values-based legal counsel that balances legal requirements with business objectives and company values
- Develop and refine legal policies, procedures, and guidelines
- Manage and coordinate with outside counsel
- Serve as a leader within the legal function and by model company values across the organization
- Commercial Contracts & Transactional Leadership
- Lead contract review, drafting, and negotiation across business functions
- Manage the company's commercial contracting processes and ensure alignment with Bluesky's systematic approach to contractual risk management
- Develop and maintain contract templates and playbooks
- Platform Governance & Regulatory Compliance
- Support compliance with social media and tech platform regulations across jurisdictions
- Engage with regulators and respond to regulatory inquiries and requests
- Provide advice on platform governance, content moderation, user-facing terms and rules
- Support privacy law compliance, including GDPR, CCPA/CPRA, and others
- Assist with data disclosure compliance including responses to law enforcement requests, civil service of process, and regulation-related requests
- Intellectual Property & Platform Protection
- Support intellectual property strategy and portfolio management
- Assist with DMCA compliance and copyright enforcement decisions
- Support open source licensing strategy and compliance initiatives
- External Relations & Thought Leadership
- Represent Bluesky at industry events, policy discussions, and stakeholder meetings
- Contribute to public policy discussions related to social media regulation, decentralized technologies, and internet governance
- Support relationship building with key external stakeholders, including policy makers, civil society organizations, and industry partners
- Assist with legal and regulatory crisis management and external communications
- Develop and implement legal strategies that advance Bluesky's mission and manage legal, regulatory, and reputational risks
- Provide practical, values-based legal counsel that balances legal requirements with business objectives and company values
- Develop and refine legal policies, procedures, and guidelines
- Manage and coordinate with outside counsel
- Serve as a leader within the legal function and by model company values across the organization
- Lead contract review, drafting, and negotiation across business functions
- Manage the company's commercial contracting processes and ensure alignment with Bluesky's systematic approach to contractual risk management
- Develop and maintain contract templates and playbooks
- Support compliance with social media and tech platform regulations across jurisdictions
- Engage with regulators and respond to regulatory inquiries and requests
- Provide advice on platform governance, content moderation, user-facing terms and rules
- Support privacy law compliance, including GDPR, CCPA/CPRA, and others
- Assist with data disclosure compliance including responses to law enforcement requests, civil service of process, and regulation-related requests
- Support intellectual property strategy and portfolio management
- Assist with DMCA compliance and copyright enforcement decisions
- Support open source licensing strategy and compliance initiatives
- Represent Bluesky at industry events, policy discussions, and stakeholder meetings
- Contribute to public policy discussions related to social media regulation, decentralized technologies, and internet governance
- Support relationship building with key external stakeholders, including policy makers, civil society organizations, and industry partners
- Assist with legal and regulatory crisis management and external communications
Qualifications
- Required Qualifications
- Certification: Licensed attorney in good standing in the United States or United Kingdom
- Experience: 8 years of legal experience, with significant experience in technology, internet, or social media platform legal matters
- Commercial Contracts Expertise: Extensive experience drafting, reviewing, and negotiating complex commercial agreements, including technology partnerships, vendor contracts, licensing deals, and service agreements
- In-House Experience: 5 years of in-house legal experience, preferably at tech companies
- Regulatory Expertise: Strong knowledge of privacy laws, content moderation regulations, and technology platform compliance requirements
- International Experience: Experience with international privacy and data protection laws, particularly EU GDPR and similar frameworks
- Preferred Qualifications
- Labor & Employment Expertise: Experience advising on employment law matters including workplace policies, employee hiring and terminations, and compliance with federal, state, and international employment laws
- Startup Experience: Experience at high-growth technology companies or startups
- AI and Legal Technology Fluency: Experience leveraging AI tools to improve legal team efficiency and productivity while understanding and implementing necessary information governance, data privacy, and risk mitigation measures for AI adoption in legal practice
- Core Competencies
- Strategic Thinking: Ability to provide legal guidance that advances business objectives while maintaining legal compliance and ethical standards
- Commercial Acumen: Strong business judgment and experience structuring commercial relationships that balance legal risk with business opportunity
- Communication: Outstanding written and verbal communication skills, with the ability to explain complex legal concepts to non-legal stakeholders
- Collaboration: Proven ability to work effectively across teams and functions in a collaborative, mission-driven environment
- Adaptability: Comfort working in a rapidly evolving regulatory and technology landscape
- Cultural Fit: Alignment with Bluesky's values of collaboration, speed, transparency, respect for users, and commitment to the public good
- Certification: Licensed attorney in good standing in the United States or United Kingdom
- Experience: 8 years of legal experience, with significant experience in technology, internet, or social media platform legal matters
- Commercial Contracts Expertise: Extensive experience drafting, reviewing, and negotiating complex commercial agreements, including technology partnerships, vendor contracts, licensing deals, and service agreements
- In-House Experience: 5 years of in-house legal experience, preferably at tech companies
- Regulatory Expertise: Strong knowledge of privacy laws, content moderation regulations, and technology platform compliance requirements
- International Experience: Experience with international privacy and data protection laws, particularly EU GDPR and similar frameworks
- Labor & Employment Expertise: Experience advising on employment law matters including workplace policies, employee hiring and terminations, and compliance with federal, state, and international employment laws
- Startup Experience: Experience at high-growth technology companies or startups
- AI and Legal Technology Fluency: Experience leveraging AI tools to improve legal team efficiency and productivity while understanding and implementing necessary information governance, data privacy, and risk mitigation measures for AI adoption in legal practice
- Strategic Thinking: Ability to provide legal guidance that advances business objectives while maintaining legal compliance and ethical standards
- Commercial Acumen: Strong business judgment and experience structuring commercial relationships that balance legal risk with business opportunity
- Communication: Outstanding written and verbal communication skills, with the ability to explain complex legal concepts to non-legal stakeholders
- Collaboration: Proven ability to work effectively across teams and functions in a collaborative, mission-driven environment
- Adaptability: Comfort working in a rapidly evolving regulatory and technology landscape
- Cultural Fit: Alignment with Bluesky's values of collaboration, speed, transparency, respect for users, and commitment to the public good
Working at Bluesky
Culture & Values We are a mission-driven team committed to building technology that serves the public good. Our culture values:
- Collaboration: Working together and supporting each other's success
- Speed: Moving quickly to execute on our vision while maintaining quality
- Transparency: Operating with openness and honesty
- User Respect: Prioritizing the rights, privacy, and autonomy of those who use our platform
- Innovation: Embracing new ideas and approaches to solve complex challenges
Work Environment This is a full-time position that can be performed remotely or in a hybrid arrangement. We value work-life balance and provide flexibility to accommodate different working styles and life circumstances while ensuring effective collaboration and communication across our distributed team. This position requires periodic travel for industry conferences, policy discussions, stakeholder meetings, and business development activities. Travel is typically domestic and occurs 2-3 times per quarter with trips ranging from 2-5 days per trip. International travel may occasionally be required. Advance notice of at least two weeks is typically provided for planned travel.
Growth & DevelopmentThe Senior Counsel role offers significant opportunities for professional growth and leadership development. This position is designed for someone who wants to take on increasing responsibility and contribute to building the legal function at an innovative technology company focused on public benefit.
Compensation & BenefitsBluesky offers competitive compensation commensurate with experience, including:
- The anticipated base salary range for this position is $170,000 - $230,000, excluding equity. Equity will be considered in the total compensation package. Final base salary for this role will be based on the individual’s experience level, skill set, training, licenses and certifications.
- Cost sharing for health, dental, and vision insurance
- Flexible paid time off and parental leave
Senior Counsel
Remote
Overlap with PST working hours
Full Time
170k - 230k USD/year
October 7, 2025