Sr. Group Counsel - Intellectual Property - Ashland Inc

Are you the kind of person that is always thinking, sketching, seeking, and adjusting? Who needs to understand how things work and then figure out how they can work better? Are you a passionate, tenacious, solver who loves to work with others who share your drive? Are you positive, constructive, and ingenious?

Are you always solving?

Then we’d like to meet you and bet you’d like to meet us.

Ashland has an exciting opportunity for a Senior Group Counsel - Intellectual Property to join our Ashland LLC,  business at our Bridgewater, NJ or Wilmington, DE location. This is a very visible, significant role within the Company and the legal function. This position will report to SVP and General Counsel.

*This is a hybrid role for someone living in the NJ or PA/DE locations

The responsibilities of the position include, but are not limited to, the following:

• manage intellectual property activities for Ashland’s businesses, including all aspects of legal protection for patents, trademarks, copyrights, trade secrets, domain names and software developed by Ashland
• regular and close interactions with business and technical teams to understand and offer directions on patent issues
• draft and prosecute patent applications in the United States and oversee the prosecution of corresponding worldwide patent applications
• manage a successful IP group including a European patent attorney, patent and trademark professionals in the United States, and 7 patent professionals in Hyderabad, India
• support Ashland’s substantial R&D activities in the U.S., France, Germany, Great Britain, Ireland, China, India, Brazil and other locations throughout the world

In order to be qualified for this role, you must possess the following:

• Law degree from ABA accredited institution
• BS in chemistry, chemical engineering, materials science, or materials engineering (knowledge of polymers highly desirable)
• Admitted to practice law in at least one state (preferably Delaware or New Jersey) and in the United States Patent and Trademark Office
• 10 years of experience practicing before the USPTO
• Ability to provide competent legal advice and counsel to business and technical clients on a wide range of intellectual property issues
• Familiarity with the USPTO's Public and Private PAIR systems and internal patent and trademark docketing systems and databases
• Knowledge of laws and conventions surrounding employee duty of loyalty/non-competition, confidentiality and trade secrets, as applicable to intellectual property. 
• Ability to develop and implement legal strategies and solutions. Knowledge of the principles and procedures of legal research
   

In more than 100 countries, the people of Ashland LLC. (NYSE: ASH) provide the specialty chemicals, technologies and insights to help customers create new and improved products for today and sustainable solutions for tomorrow. Our chemistry is at work every day in a wide variety of markets and applications, including architectural coatings, automotive, construction, energy, personal care and pharmaceutical. Visit www.ashland.com to see the innovations we offer.
 
At Ashland our vision is to be a leading, global specialty chemicals company whose inspired and engaged employees add value to all we touch. In fact our people, employees, customers and vendors define who we are. They are the driving force behind everything we do.
 
Not only do we value our customers but we value our employees, and we work to offer them a dynamic and challenging environment. We hold ourselves to high standards at Ashland, and we value integrity and honesty.
 
Ashland has a history of attracting the best people and keeping them. The reasons are simple: industry competitive salary and benefits, pay-for-performance incentive plans and a diverse work environment where employees feel challenged and valued. People come to Ashland and stay. As a growing Fortune 500 specialty chemicals company, we offer opportunities for development and advancement throughout our global organization. Our values define who we are and what we care about as a company. If you are looking for a relationship with a company instead of simply a job, this may be a great fit.

Ashland is proud to be an Equal Opportunity Employer Minorities/Women/Veterans/Disabled/Gender Identity/Sexual Orientation. 

All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, gender identity, sexual orientation, national origin, or protected veteran status and will not be discriminated against on the basis of disability. NOTE:  We do not accept resumes from external staffing agencies or independent recruiters for any of our openings unless we have a signed recruiting agreement in place to fill a specific position.