Counsel / Senior Counsel

Eatvow; Australia; Presencial; AUD 180.000 - 280.000; Jornada completa

Ventajas ofrecidas por este puesto de trabajo

Paid parental leave

Unlimited personal leave

Flexible working hours and location

Equity in the company

Descripción de la vacante

Vow is seeking an experienced Counsel/Senior Counsel to cover parental leave on a fixed-term contract of 10 months (Oct 2026–Jul 2027). You will provide day‑to‑day legal support across the business, handling commercial contracts, regulatory work and IP with support from external counsel when needed.

The role is hands-on and requires a pragmatic, commercial approach, strong drafting skills and the ability to engage with multiple teams from Commercial to Finance.

Formación

• Admitted to practise law in Australia and hold a current practising certificate.
• 5+ years PQE across in-house, private practice or both.
• Strong capability in drafting, reviewing and negotiating NDAs, supply and commercial agreements.
• Experience with regulatory and IP matters is advantageous.

Responsabilidades

• Draft, review and negotiate commercial contracts and MTAs.
• Advise on regulatory and product approvals and market entry.
• Manage relationships with external counsel and internal stakeholders.
• Provide practical legal guidance to support business objectives.

Conocimientos

Admitted to practise law in Australia

5+ PQE

Commercial contracts drafting

NDAs

Supply agreements

Herramientas

IP & trade mark management

Descripción del empleo

Vow is a cultured meat company on a mission to feed billions and create food that’s good for your tastebuds, your health and your planet. We’re bringing together cutting edge innovations in science, engineering, culinary and design to create new meats that meat lovers can choose selfishly because it’s nutritious and delicious, and we’re doing so in a sustainable way.

The Role +

(We are open to this role being full or part time)

We're looking for an experienced Counsel / Senior Counsel to provide parental leave cover on a fixed-term contract, running 10 months from October 2026 to the end of July 2027. You'll be Vow's day-to-day legal support across the business, keeping our commercial, regulatory and IP work moving while our permanent Legal Counsel is on leave.

The focus is continuity. You'll pick up a live pipeline of commercial contracts and ongoing regulatory work as we expand into new markets, trade mark management, and the steady stream of ad hoc legal and commercial questions that come with a fast-moving biotech. You'll know when to resolve something yourself and when to route it to our external counsel, who will support on matters requiring specialist input.

You'll work closely with teams across the business, from Commercial and Regulatory to People and Finance, translating legal risk into clear, practical guidance. This is a hands‑on role for a confident generalist who can hit the ground running with minimal onboarding and keep things running smoothly through to a clean handover.

• Admitted to practise law in Australia, with a current practising certificate (or eligible to obtain one).
• 5+ years' post-qualification experience (PQE), gained in house, in private practice, or a combination of both.
• Strong commercial contracts capability: drafting, reviewing and negotiating NDAs, supply agreements, material transfer agreements (MTAs), and customer and commercial agreements.
• Comfortable self-manging a varied workload and knowing when to escal
• A pragmatic, commercial approach. You translate legal risk into clear, practical advice that helps the business move, not just a list of what could go wrong.
• Exposure to regulatory work is an advantage, ideally in food, health, biotech, or another regulated environment, particularly around product approvals and market entry.
• Familiarity with IP and trade mark management, including working with external IP advisers.
• Excellent organisation and prioritisation.
• Strong communication and stakeholder skills. You can explain risks and trade-offs clearly to non-lawyers at all levels of the business.
• Comfortable with ambiguity and a bias to action. You make sensible decisions with incomplete information and iterate.
• Draft, review and negotiate Vow's commercial contracts, including NDAs, supply agreements, material transfer agreements (MTAs), and customer agreements with restaurants and commercial partners.
• Support Vow's regulatory work as we pursue product approvals in new markets, advising on the legal aspects of regulatory submissions and market entry.
• Manage Vow's trade mark portfolio and IP matters, liaising with our external IP advisers.
• Maintain and apply Vow's contract templates and legal playbook, keeping documents such as the tasting waiver current and fit for purpose.
• Act as the first point of contact for day-to-day legal and commercial questions from across the business, resolving what you can and referring specialist or complex matters to external counsel.
• Be a visible, accessible legal resource, so people across Vow know where to go for support.
• Keep legal matters organised and tracked, and provide regular updates on the status of key work to the business.
• Provide ad hoc legal support on corporate and commercial matters as they arise.
• Participate in and contribute to the Vow Work Health and Safety Committee (WHSC) in line with its charter.

In your first few weeks you'll have got up to speed on Vow's live legal matters, the contract pipeline, our templates and playbook, and our external counsel relationships. You'll have met the key people across the business who rely on legal support, and picked up a clean handover so nothing drops during the transition.

By a couple of months in, you'll be running the legal function independently and confidently. Contracts will be turning around promptly, regulatory and IP work will be progressing, and the business will feel no gap in legal support. People across Vow will know you're their go‑to for legal and commercial questions.

By the end of the contract in July 2027, you'll have kept Vow's legal work moving throughout the cover period, progressed matters cleanly, and prepared a clear, well-documented handover for the returning Legal Counsel. Files will be in order, matters will be up to date, and there will be no loose ends.

A diverse, mission-led, dream team of Vowzers

Our mission is to feed billions, which means making food products for everyone. To do this we need a team that’s representative of the people we serve. We celebrate multiple approaches and points of view and have built a culture to match. Be yourself and come as you are.

Learn from the best

Our team includes some of the world’s top scientists, innovators, operators, and creatives with decades ofindustry experience. Despite our experiences, we all strive to build, break, learn, and repeat. We see the impossible as temporary and strive to learn and support our company and fellow Vowzers' growth as much as possible.

Cutting-edge technology

We’re bringing together innovations in science, engineering, and food, to create the world’s most unique culinary experiences. All without compromising on ethics or our planet. Since our inception in 2019, we have held the title of being the first startup tocultivate meat from the cells of an undomesticated animal. We're wild because we can be.

Backed by the best

We can make a real impact thanks to our investorsBlackbird Ventures, Square Peg Capital, Grok Ventures, Tenacious Ventures, P7 Ventures, Toyota Ventures and PeakBridge VC.

Everyone is an owner

In addition to competitive base salaries, each and every ‘Vowzer’owns equity in the companyso we can all benefit from our hard work and future success.

Paid parental leave

For those who choose to start a family, we offer 8 weeks of paid caregiver leave and an additional 8 weeks paid leave for the birth giver.

We offer support for interstate or overseas team members, their families and, of course, their pets.

Unlimited personal leave

We understand life is hard sometimes. Emergencies happen, kids get sick, medical complications make it hard to be our best selves. Whatever the case, when faced with truly difficult situations, we don't want you to worry about work. Which is why Vow has an unlimited personal leave policy. We'll keep the lights on while you take care of yourself.

Flexible working hours and location

We value work-life balance and we recognise that everyone works differently. We want you to do your best work, so you can choose how and where you do it.

Converted warehouse 'campus'

Complete with a glass-walled lab, manufacturing lines, snacks, a culinary centre and professional-grade coffee machine.

Heaps of tasty samples from our culinary centre

Our fantastic "food inventors" on the Vow team are always cooking up new product prototypes, and all Vowzers are given the opportunity to taste, give feedback, and learn from their culinary prowess.

Human and dog friendly office

An inclusive community and culture, in a welcoming office, we encourage you to bring your true self…and your dogs.

A variety of social clubs

It's Vowzers who make our culture. From book clubs to hiking groups, we’re always looking for ways to learn and engage with each other.