Legal Director

Company Description Lumentis is a global designer and manufacturer of advanced automotive lighting solutions that enhance both safety and vehicle brand identity. With decades of experience and a team of 2,800 employees worldwide, the company delivers headlamps, tail lamps, signal, and ambient lighting systems for leading automakers. Lumentis integrates optical engineering, electronics, and software to develop LED, adaptive, and dynamic lighting from concept through series production. Team members collaborate with major automotive brands on cutting-edge lighting technologies that shape the future of vehicle design and performance.

Role Description

The Director, Legal is Lumentis's senior in-house lawyer and reports directly to the General Counsel. The role leads all commercial legal matters, including contracting with OEM customers and suppliers, and oversees corporate governance and entity management across Lumentis's global legal entities. The Director also supports the business in other legal areas, including employment, trade and regulatory compliance, intellectual property and litigation, by helping the General Counsel manage external legal specialists.

The Director, Legal will enable Lumentis to make sound, profitable decisions by providing timely legal partnership, protecting enterprise value, maintaining strong governance and compliance, and managing risk efficiently.

The role is primarily hands-on. The Director handles day-to-day contract and dispute management directly and supports the General Counsel in managing the external counsel and legal service providers the business relies on. Success requires a partnership mindset: working alongside business leaders as a collaborative partner, not a gatekeeper.

Lumentis is building its legal function from the ground up. The Director will shape processes, templates, and outside counsel relationships, and may build and lead a legal team as the business grows. This position is based in Novi, Michigan or South Simcoe County, Ontario.

Vacancy Status: Replacement Position – Existing role

Salary Range: Starting at $150,000 annually plus annual discretionary bonus

Key Responsibilities

The Director, Legal leads all commercial legal matters, reporting to the General Counsel. The role is directly involved in the legal and compliance management of Lumentis's operations in the US, Mexico, Canada, Brazil, and China, while overall legal responsibility remains with the General Counsel. The Director also actively participates in enterprise-wide legal and compliance initiatives.

Legal Business Partnership: Provide practical, commercially focused legal guidance that supports strategy, transactions, and operations.

• Partner with commercial, operations, engineering, HR, and finance leaders as a collaborative, business-minded advisor.
• Train business teams on contracting practices and legal risk.

Commercial and Transactional Support: Support the execution of commercial agreements while protecting Lumentis's profits and key value drivers.

• Draft, review, and negotiate OEM customer agreements, including supply agreements, purchase orders, customer terms and conditions, and program nomination letters.
• Negotiate supplier agreements, including raw material, component, tooling, logistics, and services contracts.
• Advise on key commercial risk terms: warranty, recall and field-action cost sharing, liability caps, pricing, and IP ownership.
• Draft and manage confidentiality agreements, development agreements, and sample and prototype arrangements.
• Build and maintain contract templates, playbooks, and approval workflows.
• Support transition services and separation agreements arising from the carve-out from Magna.

Regional Legal First Point of Contact: Serve as the first point of contact for legal matters in the US, Mexico, Canada, Brazil, and China, covering labor, regulatory, intellectual property, litigation, and commercial matters, and coordinate with the General Counsel in alignment with corporate legal standards.

• Field legal questions from regional business teams, resolving routine matters directly and escalating others to the General Counsel.
• Coordinate with local counsel in each region in support of the General Counsel.
• Help keep local contracting, labor, and regulatory practices aligned with Lumentis legal standards.

Governance and Compliance: Support Lumentis's corporate governance and compliance framework, including entity governance and policy adherence.

• Oversee the management of corporate records and compliance of Lumentis entities in the US, Canada, Mexico, Brazil, and China.
• Prepare board and shareholder resolutions, minutes, and written consents.
• Maintain officer and director slates, signing authority matrices, and powers of attorney.
• Oversee annual filings, registrations, and good-standing requirements in each jurisdiction.
• Draft and maintain intercompany agreements.
• Support adoption of, and adherence to, company policies.

Compliance: Develop and maintain programs that keep Lumentis legally and ethically compliant.

• Develop and maintain legal and ethical compliance programs and policies.
• Conduct compliance risk assessments and recommend mitigation strategies.
• Support internal investigations and compliance reviews.

External Counsel and Cost Discipline: Support the General Counsel in managing external counsel to ensure quality, efficiency, and disciplined legal spend.

• Help manage external legal specialists supporting employment, trade and regulatory compliance, intellectual property, litigation, and other areas, including scoping work and overseeing quality.
• Help track and report on legal budgets and outside counsel spend.

Risk Management and Issue Resolution: Identify legal risks and work with the leadership team to manage them, addressing disputes and sensitive matters with sound judgment and timely escalation.

• Manage day-to-day commercial disputes, claims, and customer and supplier escalations.
• Escalate significant or sensitive matters to the General Counsel promptly.

Enterprise Initiatives and Team Development

• Support the General Counsel on enterprise-wide legal initiatives and special projects.
• Help build the legal function, including hiring and developing team members over time.

Qualifications

Education and Professional Credentials

• J.D. from an ABA-accredited US law school, or a Bachelor of Laws (LLB) from a Canadian law school.
• Active license in good standing with the State Bar of Michigan or the Law Society of Ontario.

Experience

• Minimum of 4 years of post-qualification legal experience.
• Demonstrated experience drafting and negotiating commercial contracts.
• Working knowledge of corporate governance and entity management.
• Working knowledge of other specialty legal areas such as employment, trade and regulatory compliance, intellectual property, and litigation.

Preferred Experience

Candidates from law firm, in-house, or mixed backgrounds are welcome. The following are a plus:

• Experience in the automotive, manufacturing, or industrial sectors.
• Familiarity with OEM customer terms, supply chain contracts, or tooling arrangements.
• Cross-border experience involving the US and Canada, or Latin America and Asia.
• Experience with carve-outs, M&A integration, or private equity-backed companies.
• Experience managing multi-jurisdictional entity portfolios.
• Experience managing commercial disputes and directing outside counsel or other external legal providers.
• Interest in, or experience with, building and leading a team.

Knowledge, Skills and Abilities

• Strong commercial judgment and business acumen.
• Ability to provide practical, risk-based legal advice in a fast-paced manufacturing environment.
• Excellent negotiation, drafting, and advocacy skills.
• Strong project management and organizational capabilities, with the ability to work independently and manage multiple priorities.
• Excellent written and verbal communicator, capable of influencing senior executives and business leaders.

Leadership Competencies

• Strategic thinker with a proactive and solution-oriented approach.
• High degree of integrity, professionalism, and sound judgment.
• Collaborative, partnership mindset, capable of building strong relationships across all levels of the organization.
• Demonstrates accountability, resilience, and adaptability in a global business environment.

Travel

• Up to 20%, including international travel to Lumentis facilities in Mexico, Brazil, and China.

Equal Opportunity

We are proud to be an equal opportunity employer committed to creating an inclusive workplace where everyone feels valued and respected. Employment decisions are based on qualifications, experience, and business needs, without regard to race, ancestry, place of origin, religion, gender, sexual orientation, age, marital status, disability, gender identity, or any other protected characteristic. Accommodation is available throughout the recruitment process upon request.

Privacy & Recruitment Technology

To support a fair and efficient hiring process, we may use technology, including AI-assisted tools, to help screen applications. These tools are used to support our recruitment team only; all hiring decisions are made by the hiring manager and the hiring team. Candidate information is managed securely and in accordance with applicable privacy and data protection laws. Where required by law, applicants may request information about how these tools are used in the recruitment process.