The Role:Moderna is seeking a Senior Director, Litigation to lead and manage complex global litigation matters, including product liability defense, government investigations, regulatory enforcement actions, and commercial disputes. This role requires a seasoned litigator with a proven ability to assess, prioritize, and respond to legal risk in a strategic and scalable manner in the biotechnology, pharmaceutical, or life sciences industries.
You will be a key legal strategist, advising leadership on high-exposure litigation risks and regulatory challenges while ensuring resources are deployed effectively based on the level of risk. Hands-on in-house experience managing high-stakes government investigations, regulatory enforcement actions, and external counsel in complex litigation is critical.
You'll also provide strategic foresight-not just responding to today's risks, but helping the business anticipate and prepare for tomorrow's legal challenges in an increasingly complex global environment. This high-impact role offers meaningful visibility to executive leadership and significant opportunity to shape Moderna's long-term litigation strategy.
Here's What You'll Do:- Lead and execute Moderna's global litigation strategy, overseeing a diverse portfolio of cases, including product liability, commercial disputes, and government investigations.
- Assess and prioritize litigation risk, ensuring that responses are proportionate to the level of risk and impact on the business, and advising leadership on when immediate, high-level engagement is required versus when a measured response is appropriate.
- Act as a lead strategist and decision-maker in high-exposure government investigations, subpoenas, and regulatory enforcement actions, ensuring Moderna's responses are comprehensive, strategic, and aligned with business priorities.
- Demonstrate extensive hands-on litigation experience, including working directly with outside counsel, overseeing discovery, managing case strategy, and guiding settlement negotiations.
- Prepare and support Moderna employees for depositions, government interviews, and investigations, ensuring they are well-informed, protected, and aligned with legal strategy.
- Develop and implement internal protocols for handling subpoenas, regulatory inquiries, and litigation responses to ensure swift, effective decision-making.
- Proactively assess, prioritize, and mitigate legal risks, collaborating with internal stakeholders in Compliance, Regulatory Affairs, R&D, and Commercial to ensure legal strategies support Moderna's business objectives.
- Advise senior leadership on high-profile legal matters, litigation trends, and evolving impacting the company's global operations.
- Become a leader in leveraging generative AI and other advanced technologies in litigation strategy, discovery, and cost management-partnering with external counsel to implement forward-thinking, tech-enabled approaches that drive efficiency, enable favorable outcomes and surface actionable insights.
- Manage external counsel relationships strategically, ensuring alignment with business goals and optimizing litigation outcomes while maintaining cost-effectiveness.
Here's What You'll Bring to the Table:- Juris Doctor (JD) from an accredited law school and an active license to practice law in the U.S.
- 15+ years of litigation experience, with significant in-house experience at a biotechnology, pharmaceutical, or life sciences company and a top-tier law firm specializing in life sciences litigation.
- Extensive, hands-on experience managing complex litigation matters, including product liability, commercial disputes, and regulatory enforcement actions.
- Proven success leading responses to government investigations, regulatory inquiries, and enforcement actions from agencies such as the DOJ, FDA, SEC, and foreign regulatory bodies.
- Exceptional ability to assess, prioritize, and respond to legal risks in a strategic and scalable manner, ensuring the right level of response for each situation.
- Experience preparing and guiding employees through depositions, government interviews, and internal or external investigations.
- Track record of leading and managing external counsel, including budget oversight, litigation strategy, and case resolution.
- An innovation mindset and curiosity around how emerging legal technologies-particularly AI-can be used to reduce cost, improve discovery processes, and surface novel insights.
- Ability to lead with confidence, discretion, and pragmatism in a high-visibility role where sound judgment and business acumen are paramount.
- Strong leadership and communication skills, with the ability to advise and influence executive leadership and cross-functional teams in a fast-paced, high-growth environment.
Pay & BenefitsAt Moderna, we believe that when you feel your best, you can do your best work. That's why our US benefits and global well-being resources are designed to support you-at work, at home, and everywhere in between.- Best-in-class healthcare coverage, plus voluntary benefit programs to support your unique needs
- A holistic approach to well-being, with access to fitness, mindfulness, and mental health support
- Family planning benefits, including fertility, adoption, and surrogacy support
- Generous paid time off, including vacation, volunteer days, sabbatical, global recharge days, and a discretionary year-end shutdown
- Savings and investment opportunities to help you plan for the future
- Location-specific perks and extras
The salary range for this role is $210,900.00 - $379,200.00. This is the lowest to highest salary we in good faith believe we would pay for this role at the time of this posting. An individual's position within the salary range will be based on several factors including, but not limited to, specific competencies, relevant education, qualifications, certifications, experience, skills, performance, and business or organizational needs.The successful candidate may be eligible for an annual discretionary bonus, other incentive compensation, or equity award, subject to company plan eligibility criteria and individual performance.
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