A Brief Overview of Spotify’s Legal Team
Spotify’s legal team plays a critical role in the company’s operations by providing legal guidance and support to ensure that the company’s business activities comply with all applicable laws, rules, and regulations. The legal team works to ensure that Spotify’s contracts, licensing agreements, and user agreements conform with industry standards and legal requirements. They also help to secure trademarks and defend against any pertinent litigation that may arise.
In addition to its regulatory duties, Spotify’s legal team is responsible for championing privacy best practices throughout the organization . Making sure that its internal policies and processes ensure the protection of user data and privacy rights is an essential task of the company’s legal department.
Some areas of specialization within the legal team include, but are not limited to: labor and employment, intellectual property, contracts and agreements, compliance, dispute resolution, and intellectual property management. Together, the legal team works to advance Spotify’s overall mission of delivering the best and most engaging music streaming experience possible.
Categories of Legal Roles within Spotify
Spotify has several legal departments, such as corporate and M&A, litigation, intellectual property, and privacy, and government affairs. We have learned that the breakdown of the legal jobs at Spotify is as follows: 8 proprietary lawyers, 7 corporate counsel, 1 senior legal counsel, 4 IP lawyers on the music rights team, 5 corporate lawyers on IP team, 2 lawyers in litigation, 2 contract specialists on the litigation team, 1 on-site paralegal, and 4 in-house paralegal support. The first department listed above is the corporate and M&A Department which is responsible for growth through acquisitions, joint ventures, development and execution of global licensing terms, distribution and marketing agreements. Some of the qualifications required include: a Juris Doctor from an accredited school, admission to and in good standing of the California Bar, at least three years of experience in the specific area of law, significant experience with new technologies (including IP law or other industry relevant experience) to advise on licensing and distribution matters, and experience with the STM and advertising businesses. The second department is the litigation team. The litigation team is responsible for employment law advice, litigation management, dispute resolution, policy management, and compliance in Europe, the United States, and the rest of the world. Those utilized include paralegals and other staff in administration. Some of the qualifications include: a Juris Doctor from an accredited school, admission to and in good standing of the California Bar, meaningful knowledge of the field of technology privacy and security law, a computer or advanced degree in law, engineering, computer science, or business and administrative experience in the area of experience that will be the focus of this position as specified in job postings. This area has paralegals and administrative staff. The third department is the intellectual property department. The people in the department are responsible for strategy, licensing, litigating, and advising on intellectual property matters which include copyrights, trademarks, patents, rights, related to content, brands, technology, and other categories as well as rollout and management of regulatory issues related to advertising products such as disclosure compliance, consumer protection, marketing laws, sweepstakes, contests and data privacy. Many of the positions also work with outside counsel in their field of expertise. The qualifications include: a Juris Doctor from an accredited law school, admission to and in good standing of the California Bar, a minimum of 6.5 years experience in the area of expertise including colleges, digital commerce, interactive media, and search engine industries. The fourth and final department is the privacy, security and advertising department. The people who work in the privacy department are responsible for privacy legal counsel, compliance and policy guidance for privacy and security matters globally including regulation compliance including GDPR, privacy engineering support, security compliance, data governance, risk assessment, security product policies, consumer protection and advertising laws. Some of the qualifications listed included: a Juris Doctor from an accredited law school, admission to and in good standing of the California Bar, expert knowledge of US and EU privacy law and regulatory requirements including GDPR, deep understanding of US and EU privacy laws.
Primary Requirements and Capabilities
Spotify seeks outstanding and curious legal professionals who embody a unique mix of skill, specialization, and personality. The requirement for a university degree is a given for all positions. Beyond that, candidates are sought who have strong academic credentials, significant experience and expertise in one or more areas of law relevant to producing and distributing content on the internet, including privacy, intellectual property, antitrust and data security. Specific certifications or licenses are required depending on the position, but most positions do not call for any kind of legal certification; this is especially true for business and commercial positions. By comparison, any kind of supervisory role will require both extensive experience and the ability to manage relationships with a wide variety of internal and external stakeholders. Legal professionals with specializations can expect to find positions in a wide variety of relevant practice areas, such as copyright, digital rights management, publishing and transactional intellectual property. Technical skills are a plus for many positions, especially in corporate and compliance divisions. Although Spotify uses some degree of direct HR recruiting, it also encourages traditional headhunting, particularly among those with an interest in the music industry, understanding of website data management and analysis, or technical aptitude.
Procedure for Securing a Position
The recruitment process for legal jobs at Spotify generally follows the standard procedures of many modern corporate employers. The process usually begins with submitting an online application through the company’s careers portal, which details both the thematic focus of the legal team and the specific requirements for each role.
Spotty Human Resources then reviews applications and identifies potential candidates for interviews. A standard interview process typically includes a phone screening, followed by one or more rounds of in-person interviews with various members of the legal team and/or senior management. Some positions may also require written tests or practical exercises to evaluate legal skills, such as contract negotiation or drafting, as relevant to the position.
Spotify emphasizes a recruitment process that reflects its culture, including criteria for cultural "fit" and prior experience within the technology sector. Identifying candidates with experience for the corresponding role may depend on prior work within the tech industry generally, and not just in the music sector or in the entertainment industry. Experience in the technology industry is preferred.
Spotify’s hiring managers generally prefer that applicants have an excellent command of English, although knowledge of Scandinavian languages can also be important for certain positions. Critical thinking and problem-solving skills are also highly valuable.
Advancement within Spotify’s Legal Division
Career growth and development are key focuses at Spotify, particularly within our legal team. Working with talented individuals, challenging clients and a high-profile reputation, you would be hard-pressed to find an environment that facilitates your professional development better than the Spotify legal department. Promotion paths are clearly defined and achievement in this area is celebrated. With twelve promotions across Europe and the US in 2019 alone, we have an unrivalled track record for internal growth. As our product continues to grow globally, our need for excellent counsel does too, and we believe in promoting people internally when they are ready to make the next leap in their careers . The opportunities for professional development don’t stop at promotions though. Each year, we run a Global Learning Week, consisting of a company-wide global learning event where we invest in our employees. On top of our robust and ongoing internal learning programs, we offer peer-to-peer coaching and knowledge sharing sessions, participation in company-wide data days and hackathons, and a number of employee-initiated learning initiatives. Take your career to the next level and work alongside our talented in-house attorneys in one of the largest music companies in the world.
Culture and Compensation
Spotify places a strong emphasis on personal and professional development, reflective of their value for diversity and inclusion. Flexibility has been introduced across the board to encourage better work-life balance and to demonstrate the trust the company has in its employees.
The flexible approach towards working is reflected in the way Spotify prefers individual employees to take their own time off as and when required as opposed to having a set holiday policy for everyone to follow.
In addition to the standard social security system, Spotify provides wellness benefits so that employees can focus on their own objectives and interests outside of work. The legal team is also covered by a similar benefit in the form of a health benefit scheme which includes gym membership with a local fitness studio.
Ensuring Awareness of Opportunities
As with most large organizations, job openings at Spotify arise continuously. For up-to-date news about new and upcoming business and legal positions at Spotify, as well as a deeper dive into the company’s culture, it is worth following a few key resources. Besides checking our own firm website for updates, check the Spotify careers page, Spotify’s Press Room, and the Spotify legal page. These are updated frequently with information on job openings and the invitation for interested candidates to apply.
Also consider networking with current Spotify employees in the legal department. Conversations with these employees will provide insight into the department , the company, and the skill sets needed and desired. Personally reach out to employees via LinkedIn. Consider sharing a few things about yourself, including a link to your LinkedIn page that includes your resume, and express your interest in opportunities within Spotify.
Keep in mind that jobs in this field are competitive, especially for roles with a tech company. Make sure you have a robust and dynamic resume and use distinctive and compelling words to explain your experience and work history succinctly. Position yourself to be waiting with bated breath when the right job opening becomes available.