WHO YOU’LL WORK WITH
The Senior Legal Director reports to the VP, APLA Counsel (based in Beaverton, Oregon) and leads the Korea legal function. You will be a member of the Korea Leadership Team (KLT) and partner closely with teammates in the Office of the General Counsel (OGC) in Korea, as well as cross functional and global legal teams across Nike. The role requires strong collaboration across business leaders, functions, and regions in a fast paced, high performance environment.
WHO WE ARE LOOKING FOR
We are looking for a Senior Legal Director who is a high judgment, business focused leader capable of independently managing complex legal and organizational challenges with clarity and accountability. You bring a strong foundation in ethics and compliance, consistently demonstrating integrity, transparency, and sound decision making in high impact situations.
You have a deep understanding of Korea’s legal and regulatory environment and translate that expertise into clear, practical, and business ready guidance. You take ownership of both legal outcomes and team performance, proactively identifying risks, validating assumptions, and delivering thoughtful, well reasoned solutions within your remit.
You are confident engaging senior leaders, bringing a clear point of view and communicating with precision, clarity, and impact. You operate effectively across geo and global teams, navigating complexity while maintaining alignment and accountability, and delivering concise, actionable guidance across a broad range of legal, regulatory, and business issues.
You are an effective people leader who builds trust, develops capability, and drives accountability. You foster a collaborative, solutions oriented environment and enable the team to balance legal risk with business priorities while operating effectively within resource constraints.
You are also curious and enterprise minded, with a strong interest in understanding how legal teams operate across APLA—particularly within Asia Pacific territories. You actively learn from cross market practices and apply those insights to build more consistent, efficient, and scalable legal support models across the region.
Required Qualifications:
- Juris Doctor (JD), Master of Laws (LL.M.), or international equivalent; licensed to practice law in the Republic of Korea and/or another jurisdiction
- Minimum 15+ years of legal experience, including substantial experience in a leading law firm and/or in house legal department; experience in a multinational environment strongly preferred
- Demonstrated expertise engaging with the Korea National Assembly, regulatory authorities, and government bodies, including leading high stakes investigations, audits, and disputes
- Deep knowledge of Korea’s legal and regulatory framework, with a strong grounding in ethics and compliance principles and the ability to apply them in complex, real world business situations
- Proven experience advising on commercial, digital/consumer, advertising, and competition law matters, particularly in the context of retail, sales, distribution, and marketing of consumer goods in Korea
- Established track record of leading and developing high performing teams, including setting clear expectations, driving accountability, and building capability
- Excellent communication skills in Korean and English (written and verbal), with the ability to deliver clear, concise, and business focused advice to stakeholders at all levels
- Fluency in financial and commercial acumen, understanding key business drivers, revenue models, and margin implications is a plus
WHAT YOU’LL WORK ON
As the Senior Legal Director for Korea, you will lead the Korea legal function, set legal strategy, and deliver high quality, business aligned legal support.
You will:
- Lead and execute legal strategy in Korea, ensuring alignment with business priorities while maintaining strong ethics, compliance, and regulatory discipline
- Serve as a trusted advisor to the Korea Leadership Team, providing clear, practical, and actionable guidance on complex matters
- Proactively identify and manage legal and regulatory risks, including investigations, audits, disputes, and government engagement
- Drive business ready legal support across commercial transactions, digital commerce, marketing, and partnerships, balancing risk with business objectives
- Establish and continuously improve the legal operating model, leveraging AI tools, internal resources, secondees, and external counsel effectively
- Lead, develop, and coach the Korea legal team, ensuring strong collaboration and accountability
- Provide support and guidance to the broader OGC team in Korea as needed
- Strengthen cross functional alignment, partnering closely with business, finance, HR, and global OGC teams
- Communicate complex issues with clarity and discipline, with a clear point of view and actionable recommendations
- Collaborate with other country and territory Legal Directors across APLA to drive alignment, consistency, and sharing of best practices
- Work in close partnership with the VP, APLA Counsel to actively improve collaboration, consistency, and effectiveness of legal support across APLA, particularly by strengthening alignment and ways of working across Asia Pacific territory legal teams
Skills Required
- Juris Doctor (JD), Master of Laws (LL.M.), or international equivalent; licensed to practice law in the Republic of Korea and/or another jurisdiction
- Minimum 15+ years of legal experience, including substantial experience in a leading law firm and/or in-house legal department
- Experience in a multinational environment
- Demonstrated expertise engaging with the Korea National Assembly, regulatory authorities, and government bodies, including leading high stakes investigations, audits, and disputes
- Deep knowledge of Korea's legal and regulatory framework and strong grounding in ethics and compliance
- Proven experience advising on commercial, digital/consumer, advertising, and competition law matters related to retail, sales, distribution, and marketing of consumer goods in Korea
- Established track record of leading and developing high performing teams, setting expectations, and driving accountability
- Excellent communication skills in Korean and English (written and verbal)
- Fluency in financial and commercial acumen (understanding business drivers, revenue models, margin implications)
Nike Compensation & Benefits Highlights
The following summarizes recurring compensation and benefits themes identified from responses generated by popular LLMs to common candidate questions about Nike and has not been reviewed or approved by Nike.
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Retirement Support — A 401(k) with a company match is complemented by options such as a Mega Backdoor Roth and deferred compensation for eligible earners. Financial coaching and structured savings programs support long-term financial security.
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Equity Value & Accessibility — An Employee Stock Purchase Plan with a stock discount sits alongside broad-based equity vehicles like RSUs and non-qualified stock options. These avenues expand wealth-building opportunities beyond base pay.
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Parental & Family Support — Paid parental leave includes maternity and paternity time, recently expanded in the U.S. to 16 weeks and extended to part-time retail teammates. Additional supports include childcare assistance at select locations and family-building benefits such as fertility, surrogacy, and adoption.
Nike Insights
What We Do
At NIKE, Inc., we innovate to serve athletes*. Every teammate - from coder to creator - plays a role in making these athletes’ dreams real. Our tech, data, and digital teams push limits every day, building the future of sport and the tools that drive it. Here, curiosity is fuel. Innovation is the game plan. Different perspectives keep us on the offense. You’ll solve challenges worth tackling, grow fast and belong to a team that backs you to do the right thing. Bring your drive. Bring your bold. Let’s move the world, together. Take your first step at nike.com/careers * If you have a body, you’re an athlete.
Why Work With Us
At NIKE, Inc., your dedication fuels the future of sport. There is a sense of pride that comes from representing an iconic brand and shaping its future. Here, we treat every day as a new opportunity to push boundaries, ask tough questions and share whole-hearted convictions. We are a team – united by the belief that anything is possible.
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