Associate Director, Business & Legal Affairs

Reposted Yesterday
Be an Early Applicant
Santa Fe Springs, CA, USA
In-Office
110K-130K Annually
Mid level
Music • News + Entertainment
The Role
The role involves negotiating and drafting contracts, advising on legal issues across departments, and handling disputes related to artists. Requires a J.D. and 3-5 years of legal experience in the music industry or related fields.
Summary Generated by Built In

At Warner Music Group, we’re a global collective of music makers and music lovers, tech innovators and inspired entrepreneurs, game-changing creatives and passionate team members. Here, we turn dreams into stardom and audiences into fans. We are guided by three core values that underpin everything we do across all our diverse businesses: 

  • Curiosity: We do our best work when we’re immersing ourselves in culture and breaking through barriers. Curiosity is the driving force behind creativity and ingenuity. It fuels innovation, and innovation is the key to our future. 

  • Collaboration: Making music and bringing it to the world is all about the power of originality amplified by teamwork. A great idea, like a great song, travels globally. We ignite passions and build connections across our diverse community of artists, songwriters, partners, and fans.

  • Commitment: We pursue excellence for our team and our talent. Everything in music starts with a leap into the unknown, and we’re committed to keeping the faith, acting with integrity, and delivering on our promises.

WMG is home to a wide range of artists, musicians, and songwriters that fuel our success. That is why we are committed to creating a work environment that actively values, appreciates, and respects everyone.  We encourage applications from people with a wide variety of backgrounds and experiences.

Consider a career at WMG and get the best of both worlds – an innovative global music company that retains the creative spirit of a nimble independent.
 

Job Title: Associate Director, Business & Legal Affairs

A little bit about our team:

We are a dynamic, diverse, and dedicated group of professionals with a passion for music who provide general counseling to Warner Records across a wide range of business and legal issues. We value hard work, finely-tuned listening, and a forward-thinking mindset. We work closely with every department at the label, and we focus on structuring the label’s business and legal relationship with each of our artists.   

Your role:

You will have the opportunity to learn the ins and outs of a record company – and the recorded music business more generally – while making a meaningful and tangible contribution to the creation and release of our artists’ music. You will be directly involved in all business and legal aspects of the process from recording to marketing to other activities surrounding artist projects. In a rapidly and ever-changing industry, you will be challenged to make the most of your existing skills while learning new ones. The Warner Records culture will challenge you to make the most of your skills while providing you ample opportunity to grow as an attorney and as an executive. 

Here you’ll get to:

  • You will negotiate and draft a variety of music and entertainment-related agreements, including recording, label, license, producer, mixer, soundtrack, termination/release, and merchandise, along with related memos and summaries. 

  • You will research, advise and support A&R, marketing, video, commerce, promotion, royalties, international and other departments regarding contractual and legal obligations. 

  • You will work closely with A&R administration regarding clearances, budgets, approvals, and general counseling. 

  • You will review and vet artist-related assets and materials. 

  • You will investigate, analyze and respond to claims and disputes, including copyright, audit, breach of contract, publicity and trademark, and coordinate with the corporate legal department regarding dispute resolution strategies. 

About you:

  • You are extremely passionate and knowledgeable about music. 

  • You have a J.D. from top law school plus membership in good standing in one state bar (preferably New York, California or Georgia). 

  • You have at least 3-5 years of post-bar experience in a major record label business and legal affairs department or in the corporate, M&A, intellectual property and/or litigation departments of a multinational law firm. We will also consider experience in an in-house legal department or similar experience.

  • You have superior negotiating, drafting, organizational, and oral and written communication skills.  

  • You have a demonstrated ability to work independently, within a team-oriented environment. 

  • You must be able to meet deadlines consistently and effectively while working under pressure; candidate must be able to manage multiple assignments at any given time and prioritize them effectively and appropriately. 

We’d love it if you also had:

  • In-depth understanding of the areas of the law applicable to the music business, including copyright, trademark, contract, rights of publicity, etc. 

  • Strong business and financial knowledge. 

As the home to 10K Projects, Asylum, Atlantic Music Group, East West, FFRR, Fueled by Ramen, Nonesuch, Parlophone, Rhino, Roadrunner, Sire, Warner Records, Warner Classics, and several other of the world’s premier recording labels, Warner Music Group champions emerging artists and global superstars alike. And our renowned publishing company, Warner Chappell Music, represents genre-spanning songwriters and producers through a catalog of more than one million copyrights worldwide. Warner Music Group is also home to ADA, which supports the independent community, as well as artist services division WMX. In addition, WMG counts film and television storytelling powerhouse Warner Music Entertainment among its many brands.

Together, we are Warner Music Group: Independent Minds. Major Sound.

Love this job and want to apply?

Click the “Apply” link at the top of the page, or apply directly with your LinkedIn. Applying with LinkedIn will import all of the information you put in your profile, but will still allow you to upload a resume and cover letter.


Don’t be discouraged if you don’t hear from us right away. We’re taking our time to review all resumes, and to find the best people for WMG.


Thanks for your interest in working for WMG. We love it here, and think you will, too.
 

This position requires a minimum of 4 days per week in the office. We value in-office collaboration, which is essential for talent development and strong working relationships. #LI-Onsite Annual Rate: $110,000 to $130,000 Annually

Warner Music Group is an Equal Opportunity Employer.

Links to relevant documents:

2026 Benefits At A Glance final.pdf

EVerify Participation Poster.pdf

Right To Work .pdf

Skills Required

  • J.D. from a top law school
  • Membership in good standing in one state bar
  • 3-5 years of post-bar experience in a major record label or law firm
  • Superior negotiating and drafting skills
  • Ability to work independently in a team-oriented environment

Warner Music Group Compensation & Benefits Highlights

The following summarizes recurring compensation and benefits themes identified from responses generated by popular LLMs to common candidate questions about Warner Music Group and has not been reviewed or approved by Warner Music Group.

  • Leave & Time Off Breadth Policies introduce flexible time off, expanded bereavement, paid holidays and sick leave, and remote-work allowances such as the option to work from anywhere for part of the year. Some divisions also observe seasonal early closures and office shutdowns around year-end.
  • Parental & Family Support Offerings include enhanced parental leave for non-primary caregivers and a dedicated family caregiver leave with full pay. Region-specific additions such as babysitting support and extended parental leave further broaden coverage.
  • Healthcare Strength Coverage spans medical, dental, vision, life, and disability insurance, with added mental health and fertility support in certain locations. Wellness programs and primary-care partnerships are available in select markets.

Warner Music Group Insights

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The Company
HQ: New York, New York
5,762 Employees

What We Do

With a legacy extending back over 200 years, Warner Music Group (WMG) today brings together artists, songwriters, and entrepreneurs that are moving entertainment culture across the globe. Operating in more than 70 countries through a network of affiliates and licensees, WMG's Recorded Music division includes renowned labels such as 300 Entertainment, Asylum, Atlantic, Big Beat, Canvasback, Elektra, Erato, First Night, Fueled by Ramen, Nonesuch, Parlophone, Reprise, Rhino, Roadrunner, Sire, Spinnin', Warner Records, Warner Classics, and Warner Music Nashville. WMG's music publishing arm, Warner Chappell Music, has a catalog of over one million copyrights spanning every musical genre, from the standards of the Great American Songbook to the biggest hits of the 21st century. Warner Music Group is also home to ADA, the independent artist and label services company – as well as next gen artist services division WMX, which includes consumer brands such as Songkick, the live music app; EMP, the merchandise e-tailer; UPROXX, the youth culture destination; and HipHopDX, the hip-hop music news site. In addition, WMG counts storytelling powerhouse Warner Music Entertainment and social media content creator IMGN among its many brands.

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