Counsel, Intellectual Property

Zillow

In-house patent counsel serving Zillow's IP, Marketing & AI team. Leading patent strategy, managing operations, and collaborating with engineering and product leaders.

Posted 4/29/2026full-timeRemote • California, Connecticut, District of Columbia, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New York, Washington • 🇺🇸 United StatesMid-LevelSenior💰 $136,300 - $217,700 per yearWebsite

About the role

Key responsibilities & impact

Serve as the primary in-house patent counsel on the IPAM team
Lead patent strategy and portfolio management
Partner with engineering and product leaders to identify and protect inventions
Manage outside patent counsel on patent drafting and prosecution
Own core patent operations including docketing, maintenance, and improvements to workflows
Contribute to patent education and self-service resources
Serve as primary contact for open-source license questions
Help maintain and operationalize open-source policies and processes
Provide product-facing counseling on AI-enabled features

Requirements

What you’ll need

4+ years of intellectual property practice experience
meaningful in-house counsel experience at a technology, software, or platform company
substantial hands-on experience with patent drafting, prosecution, and portfolio management for software and/or AI-related inventions
demonstrated experience supervising or leading a patent portfolio
working knowledge of open-source licensing
practical experience counseling engineering teams on compliant use, contribution, and distribution
J.D. with active state bar admission or eligibility for in-house registration
USPTO registration is a plus, but not required

Benefits

Comp & perks

competitive base salary
equity awards based on factors such as experience, performance and location

ATS Keywords

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Applicant Tracking System Keywords

Tip: use these terms in your resume and cover letter to boost ATS matches.

Hard Skills & Tools

patent draftingpatent prosecutionportfolio managementopen-source licensingAI-related inventionsdocketingworkflow improvementscounseling engineering teamscomplianceself-service resources

Soft Skills

leadershipcollaborationcommunicationstrategic thinkingproblem-solvingeducationsupervisionpartnership

Certifications

J.D.active state bar admissionUSPTO registration