Silicon Valley software company Palantir doesn’t have in-house lawyers, it has “legal ninjas” — and it wants to find one in London, where the term will surely never catch on…
In the anything-goes world of Silicon Valley, it probably feels uplifting for lawyers to think of themselves as “legal ninjas”, as they are encouraged to do by software company Palantir. In the words of the company’s website:
“Legal Ninjas: Skilled. Elegant. Nimble. These were the words first used to describe the elusive Ninja. Today, we have come to embody a state-of-the-art in-house legal team — highly skilled and motivated individuals who have a deep understanding of both the legal and business needs of Palantir.
“If you have a deep desire to safeguard our company, believe legal is a value-add, and want to help us successfully scale the business, you may have just what it takes to be part of the Legal Ninja team.”
The ninja blurb carries this accompanying photo of a group of people in black tracksuit tops, who presumably are members of Palantir’s legal team.
However, as fun as being a legal ninja looks, it’s possible that in cynical London this form of self-actualisation may struggle to catch on. Nevertheless, brave Palantir is going to have a crack at revolutionising the way in-house lawyers understand themselves. Last week, the company launched a hunt for its first-ever UK-based ninja. The ad, which places emphasis on the desirability of “speed, skill and agility”, is below.
Legal Ninjas [Palantir]