Company
At Vesper Energy, we develop, build, own and operate renewable energy and energy storage facilities across the United States. Our mission is to create high quality, high value assets that contribute to a sustainable, decarbonized future. Founded in 2015 as Lendlease Energy Development, Vesper Energy is a leading developer, owner, and operator of utility scale renewable energy assets. Since its founding, Vesper Energy has commercialized more than 680 MW of solar projects in the United States. Our current development pipeline represents 3 GW of renewable energy and energy storage projects across the country. Much of our pipeline is mature, and we anticipate beginning construction on several projects in 2021. In 2020, Magnetar Capital acquired Lendlease Energy Development, and the company was rebranded as Vesper Energy.
Position
The Senior Corporate Counsel will report to the CEO and be responsible for ensuring contractual terms are consistent with company policy and U.S. laws and regulations, leading corporate strategic and tactical legal initiatives, providing advice on risk management and its implementation, manage the overall legal function, and hire/oversee the work of outside counsel when necessary. The position will be located in Dallas, Texas.
Primary responsibilities:
- Provides legal support for strategic and corporate development activities, including lease/purchase options for real estate, mergers & acquisitions, divestitures, joint ventures, and other strategic alliances
- Lead all legal aspects of commercial contracts and MSA’s with customers, vendors, suppliers, and other third parties
- Prepare, review and negotiate NDAs and various other commercial agreements with suppliers, customers and business partners
- Ensure contractual terms are consistent with company policy and U.S. law and regulations
- Provide practical legal counsel and advice to internal business clients
- Establish best practices for contract review processes and contract management system
- Inform the Company’s executives on contract status, negotiations, business terms and legal risks associated with various transactions
- Develop and update contract templates and policies
- Educate and provide counsel to company’s executive team on compliance, risk management, corporate governance, data security/privacy, intellectual property, and other legal matters
- Provide substantive support and advice to Human Resources on labor and employment related matters including employment agreements, workers’ compensation, employment terminations, harassment and discrimination
- Liaise with outside counsel when needed
- Develop and implement short-term and long-term goals and plans to improve the efficiency and efficacy of the legal representation of the Company
- Maintain knowledge of the Company’s operations and legal documents
- Keep abreast of legislative changes that may affect the company
Qualifications:
- 5 -10 years of real estate, corporate, transactional and/or commercial legal experience
- Strong corporate generalist experience including, but not limited to, real estate, corporate transactions, corporate governance, commercial contracts, and mergers and acquisitions
- JD from an ABA accredited U.S. law school
- Active license to practice law in at least one state in the U.S.
- Dependable, self-motivated, and responsible with the ability to work independently
- Effective time management skills, with ability to intelligently prioritize tasks and produce high quality work under compressed time frames
- Strong negotiation skills, with the ability to find solutions and common ground
- Ability to evaluate complex contractual and commercial legal situations and effectively advise management
- Strong analytical and advisory skills, including the ability to review, evaluate and counsel business colleagues on complex and routine legal matters in the employment, corporate and securities law contexts
- Ability to manage multiple projects in a fast-paced, hands-on environment
- Professional demeanor and team player with high degree of confidentiality
- Ability to make responsible decisions quickly
- Communicate effectively with co-workers, customers, clients, and management