General Counsel

About the company

Museum of Ice Cream is a playful, inclusive, and immersive brand that blends online experiences with real-world spaces to spark imagination and childlike wonder. The company positions ice cream as a symbol of creativity and uses it as the foundation for a wide, imaginative universe with room to grow and explore.

Role overview

The General Counsel will be the most senior legal leader at the company and a trusted advisor to executive leadership and the Board. As MOIC’s first in-house legal hire, this person will establish and run a scalable legal function that supports expansion, multi-location operations, brand protection, commercial priorities, and employee-related risk.

This role is expected to create a technology-enabled legal operating model, with automated contract workflows, practical controls, and data-informed risk review that keeps pace with business growth.

The General Counsel will also sit on the leadership team and help shape portfolio growth, commercial decisions, and the guest experience.

Location requirement

Candidates must be based in New York City, Los Angeles, Las Vegas, or Miami. Although more than one posting may appear, this notice refers to a single opening.

Key responsibilities

The role includes leading legal strategy across governance, commercial work, employment matters, litigation support, and legal operations.

• Oversee trademark and trade dress protection, including the company’s distinctive environmental designs and brand assets.
• Guide legal risk management for guest safety, food and beverage compliance, privacy requirements such as GDPR, CCPA, and CPRA, and workforce compliance across different markets.
• Support complex commercial leases and construction agreements tied to new market expansion.
• Handle board governance, equity and cap table administration, and support future fundraising or strategic M&A activity.
• Set practical rules for how the company uses AI, including employee data, hiring, privacy, and vendor tools.
• Maintain and update policies, templates, controls, and compliance practices on a recurring basis as the business grows.
• Implement contract lifecycle management tools and automation to streamline high-volume legal work.
• Design an intake and approval process that keeps business moving while preserving control.
• Create standardized automated templates for repeat legal agreements.
• Review major business cycles such as lease negotiations, new museum launches, and brand activations to build approval checkpoints in advance.
• Lead negotiations for major brand partnerships, licensing arrangements, and strategic vendor deals.
• Partner closely with the CEO and senior team by providing clear risk-versus-reward analysis.
• Work alongside People, Operations, Finance, Marketing, and IT/Data so legal guidance is built into decisions early.
• Build systems for handling employee-relations escalations, documentation standards, and manager accountability.
• Own the framework for wage and hour compliance, accommodations, leave management, pay transparency, and multi-state employment obligations.
• Act as the main legal partner to the People team on sensitive investigations and high-risk decisions, bringing in specialized outside counsel when needed.
• Develop a disciplined approach to choosing, managing, and budgeting outside counsel, with clear matter tracking and escalation rules.
• Manage litigation, demand letters, agency matters, regulatory inquiries, and settlements efficiently while protecting the brand.

Compensation

The salary range is USD 200,000 to 250,000 per year, depending on experience. The package also includes an annual bonus and stock options.

Requirements

• 8 to 12+ years of legal practice, including substantial in-house experience with a consumer, hospitality, experiential, or multi-unit retail business.
• A JD from an ABA-accredited law school and an active bar license in good standing.
• Comfort using modern contract and legal management systems, along with a strong interest in reducing manual work through technology. Hands-on implementation experience is helpful but not mandatory.
• A mindset that treats legal as an internal service function that should be optimized for its users.

Benefits

• Competitive compensation
• Annual bonus
• Stock options
• Paid time off and sick leave
• Medical, dental, and vision coverage
• Perks such as ClassPass, commuter discounts, employee assistance support, and unlimited ice cream
• Employee development opportunities
• 16 complimentary museum tickets each year for friends and family, plus free admission for the employee
• 50% discount on retail products
• Opportunity to grow into a broader Chief Administrative Officer role as the company scales, with responsibility that may expand into corporate governance, selected operational functions, and executive leadership

Equal opportunity

The company is an equal opportunity employer and does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion, sex including pregnancy, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, national origin, age, disability, genetic information, marital status, veteran status, or any other legally protected status.