Knowledge Engineering Jobs in California (NOW HIRING)

Latham & Watkins is one of the world's leading global law firms advising the businesses and institutions that drive the global economy. We are the market leaders in major financial and business centers around the world. Our investment in people, commitment to innovation, and focus on the future empower you to build an incredible career and thrive as an exceptional professional in a supportive culture. If you aspire to be the best, and work with the best, this is where you belong.

The Associate Director of Artificial Intelligence - Knowledge Transformation is an integral part of Latham's Technology & Information Services team. This role will be responsible for leading a team of expert knowledge professionals who are focused on identifying, curating, structuring, and optimizing the firm's transactional precedents, playbooks, and accumulated practice expertise for use in AI-powered systems, while leading and developing a team of expert knowledge professionals responsible for transforming the firm's institutional legal knowledge into AI-ready assets, providing strategic direction, performance oversight, coaching, and professional development, and ensuring all team members maximize their effective use of AI to better serve the firm. This role will be located in either our New York, Washington D.C., Boston, Los Angeles, or Bay Area offices. Please note that this role may be eligible for a flexible working schedule that allows for a hybrid and in-office presence.

Other key responsibilities include:

• Defining and implementing the firm's knowledge transformation strategy, establishing multi-year roadmaps for converting transactional precedents, contract templates, and practice playbooks into structured, AI-optimized knowledge repositories
• Establishing and overseeing knowledge engineering standards, including taxonomies, metadata schemas, tagging conventions, and quality assurance protocols to ensure consistency, accuracy, and retrievability of knowledge assets across AI systems at scale across the firm
• Overseeing the development and maintenance of structured knowledge repositories, including clause libraries, negotiation playbooks, market terms databases, brief banks, motion templates, litigation strategy guides, and practice-specific guidance materials optimized for utilization as AI context
• Partnering closely with Innovation Attorneys, Legal Engineering teams, Knowledge Management Lawyers, AI Services Attorneys, and other technology colleagues to ensure knowledge assets are effectively integrated into AI-powered workflows for document drafting, due diligence, contract analysis, deal execution, legal research, brief drafting, and case strategy development
• Establishing and monitoring KPIs, quality metrics, and utilization measures for knowledge assets, using data-driven insights to guide prioritization, optimization, and expansion of knowledge transformation initiatives
• Protecting and maintaining any highly sensitive, confidential, privileged, financial, and/or proprietary information that Latham & Watkins retains 

We'd love to hear from you if you:

• Possess deep expertise in knowledge management, taxonomy development, and information architecture, with the ability to structure complex legal content for optimal AI consumption and retrieval
• Demonstrate a strong understanding of transactional legal practice, including M&A, finance, and capital markets workflows, with the ability to identify and curate high-value precedents and practice knowledge
• Exhibit advanced knowledge engineering capabilities, including developing taxonomies, metadata schemas, tagging standards, knowledge repositories, and quality assurance frameworks for AI-powered legal tools

And have:

• A bachelor's degree, preferably in law, library science, information science, computer science, or a related field
• A Juris Doctor (JD), preferably
• A minimum of ten (10) years of experience in knowledge management, legal technology, or legal practice, with demonstrated experience in knowledge engineering, taxonomy development, or AI systems
• Previous management experience required
• Experience in transactional legal practice, preferably, with litigation practice experience also valued

Successful candidates will not only be provided with an outstanding career opportunity and welcoming environment, but will also be provided with a generous total compensation package with bonuses awarded in recognition of both individual and firm performance. Eligible employees can participate in Latham's comprehensive benefit program which includes:

• Healthcare, life and disability insurance
• A generous 401k plan
• At least 11 paid holidays per year, and a PTO program that accrues 23 days during the first year of employment and grows with tenure
• Well-being programs (e.g. mental health services, mindfulness and resiliency, medical resources, well-being events, and more)
• Professional development programs
• Employee discounts
• Affinity groups, networks, and coalitions for lawyers and staff

Latham & Watkins is an equal opportunity employer. The Firm prohibits discrimination against any employee or applicant for employment on the basis of race (including, but not limited to, hair texture and protective hairstyles), color, religion, sex, age, national origin, sexual orientation, gender identity, veteran status (including veterans of the Vietnam era), gender expression, marital status, or any other characteristic or condition protected by applicable statute.

Please click here to view the full job description for this role.

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