Legal Researcher

In this hourly, remote contractor role, you will work as a Legal Research Subject Matter Expert (SME) to review AI-generated legal research outputs and/or produce expert legal research content, evaluating reasoning quality and step-by-step issue analysis while providing precise written feedback. You will assess solutions for accuracy, clarity, completeness, and adherence to the prompt; identify errors in issue spotting, jurisdiction handling, authority selection, citation accuracy, and rule application; verify that legal statements are appropriately supported by primary authority (where required); write high-quality explanations and model research memos that demonstrate correct, risk-aware legal reasoning; and rate and compare multiple responses based on correctness and reasoning quality. This role is with SME Careers, a fast-growing AI Data Services company and subsidiary of SuperAnnotate, delivering training data for many of the world’s largest AI companies and foundation-model labs. Your legal expertise directly helps improve the world’s premier AI models by making their legal reasoning more accurate, reliable, and clearly explained.

Important: There is no immediate project for this role; however, if qualified, you will be among the first experts we reach out to when relevant opportunities arise. This will also provide you with access to future projects available through our expert network.

Key responsibilities

• Develop AI Training Content: Create detailed prompts and gold-standard legal research outputs (issue outlines, research plans, memo templates, authority summaries).
• Optimize AI Performance: Evaluate and rank AI responses to improve accuracy, defensibility, citation support, and clarity.
• Ensure Model Integrity: Test AI outputs for inaccuracies, misleading certainty, jurisdictional errors, and bias; validate reliability across legal scenarios.

Your profile

• JD/LLB (or equivalent) or advanced paralegal/legal research background with substantial primary-law research experience; active bar membership is a plus.
• 5+ years of professional experience performing legal research (law firm, in-house, government, academia, or legal publishing).
• Strong ability to conduct structured research: issue framing → jurisdiction selection → authority retrieval → synthesis → caveats/uncertainty.
• Proven experience interpreting statutes, regulations, and case law, including understanding holdings vs dicta and procedural posture relevance.
• Strong citation hygiene: ability to verify quotations, pinpoint citations, and proposition support, and to flag unsupported assertions.
• Comfortable handling jurisdictional variation and clearly stating assumptions/limits (e.g., US state vs federal, EU member states, common law vs civil law).
• Excellent attention to detail; minimum C1 English proficiency with clear, concise legal writing.
• Reliable, self-directed, and able to deliver consistent quality in an hourly, remote contractor workflow across time zones.
• Familiarity with legal research tools (e.g., Westlaw/Lexis or equivalents) and citation formats (Bluebook or local standards) is a plus.
• Prior experience with AI data training/annotation, editorial QA, knowledge management, or legal publishing is strongly preferred.

🌍 Geographic Availability This role is available to qualified experts globally. However, as a U.S.-based company, SME Careers complies with U.S. export control and sanctions regulations. Eligibility depends on your country of residence and any applicable trade restrictions. Some projects may have additional language or region-specific requirements.

💰 Pay Rate May Vary Based on Your Location Your actual compensation will be determined based on your location and local market conditions. See regional job listings for localized pay information, or the application process will clarify your specific rate.

If you're unsure whether you're eligible, proceed with the application—SME's screening will determine your jurisdiction status and applicable compensation.