A privately held company based in Santa Monica, eHarmony Inc. is among the world’s best-known online dating sites. Founded in 2000, the site was designed to help connect singles who are seeking long-term relationships. The company has users in the United States, Canada, Australia, the United Kingdom and Brazil, and is planning on expanding into new international territories. With 300 employees in five office, the company also operates a network of wedding planning and parenting websites.

LEGAL TEAM AND OUTSIDE COUNSEL

Cary Berger, 47, joined eHarmony in 2010 as its first general counsel just as it was making international expansion plans. As a deputy general counsel at Broadcom Corp., Berger had also seen that company through its transition as a U.S. company to one with offices in 18 countries. Unlike Broadcom, which is a business-to-business company, eHarmony’s international legal issues relate more to consumer needs and how its subscription terms meet local rules and regulations. Different countries can have varying age restrictions and licensing rules, for instance. “Data privacy is a hot issue for all companies,” Berger added. “When you are focused on consumers, it’s much more magnified. When you have hundreds of thousands of subscribers, it’s at a completely different level.”