Associate Legal Counsel

CleanTech Global Renewables, Inc.; Cavite City; Sur place; PHP 1 200 000 - 1 800 000; Plein temps

Résumé du poste

CleanTech Global Renewables, Inc. is seeking an Associate Legal Counsel to provide comprehensive legal support for renewable energy projects from pre-development through operations.

The role partners with development, engineering, finance, and O&M teams to mitigate risks while keeping projects on schedule and within budget. Responsibilities include due diligence, permitting, contract drafting and negotiation, regulatory compliance, and contract lifecycle management.

Qualifications

• Strong communication, negotiation, analytical, and problem-solving skills.
• Experience in legal practice (at least 5 years) in law firm or in-house.
• Extensive background in project development, permitting, and operations of energy projects.

Responsabilités

• Provide legal analysis and risk assessment for project development and transactions.
• Conduct due diligence on property rights, environmental and permitting matters, and disputes.
• Negotiate and draft contracts including NDAs, land documents, PPAs, EPCs, and service agreements.
• Ensure compliance with regulatory requirements across development, construction, and operations.
• Lead contract lifecycle management and maintain contract database with version control.
• Prepare legal opinions, memoranda, and briefs with proper citations.
• Coordinate with government agencies and internal stakeholders to secure permits and approvals.

Connaissances

Communication

Negotiation

Analytical thinking

Problem solving

Formation

LL.B. or J.D.

Bar membership (Integrated Bar of the Philippines)

Description du poste

The Associate Legal Counsel provides comprehensive and end-to-end legal support for renewable energy projects, from pre-development, permitting, construction and commissioning, and operations. They shall primarily monitor all compliances for the projects at all stages of the development and operations and act as a business partner to the development, engineering, finance, and operations and maintenance departments, identifying and mitigating legal and regulatory risks while keeping projects on schedule and within budget.

Job Responsibilities:

Project Development and Permitting

• Provide the legal analysis (strategies and risks) in the development of the projects and advise on the appropriate development and transaction structures
• Conduct and/or lead the legal due diligence on project-related matters such as those involving property rights, environmental and permitting concerns, legal claims and disputes, and other stakeholder issues
• Identify legal risks that may affect project feasibility, investment decisions, construction, or commercial operations

Construction, Testing and Commissioning

• Provide legal support to the relevant departments in the engineering, procurement, and construction (EPC), of the projects
• Liaise with relevant government agencies to secure the necessary permits for the activities
• Negotiate with counterparties on the rights and obligations under the relevant agreements

Operations and Maintenance

• Ensure compliance with the regulatory requirements for operating plants
• Draft, negotiate, and administer O&M and asset agreements and ensure alignment with warranty terms
• Provide legal support for all matter such as those involving regulatory agencies such as show-cause orders, inspection reports, etc.

Regulatory Compliance

• Establish or manage compliance registers consisting of permits, timelines, and status of the regulatory compliances of the projects
• Track compliance and ensure that all compliance requirements are timely submitted to the appropriate regulatory agencies
• Maintain a regulatory change log of relevant regulatory issuances and update templates, if necessary
• Periodically prepare briefers pertaining to updates in the regulatory frameworks or compliance requirements relevant to the projects

Contracts Drafting, Organization, and Management

• Draft, review, and revise a wide range of contracts such as NDAs, technical services agreement, land documents, supply and services agreements, financing agreements, power purchase agreements, EPC contracts, and other contracts needed for the day-to-day operations of the Company and those needed for the projects of the Company.
• Organize and maintain the Company's contract database/repository (physical and electronic), ensuring version control and accessibility
• Track contract expiration, renewal dates, and key obligations; issue reminders to relevant departments
• Maintain a centralized filing system for corporate, project, and land documents in compliance with data privacy and document retention policies
• Lead the contract lifecycle management

Legal Research and Writing

• Conduct thorough and complete legal research with proper citation
• Prepare legal opinions, memoranda, briefs, and summaries presenting findings in a clear, organized, and practical manner
• Monitor developments in relevant laws, regulations, and jurisprudence that may affect the Company operations, contracts, or projects, and escalating significant updates to their Direct Superiors
• Maintain an organized repository of legal research materials, reference documents, and precedents for ease of retrieval and reuse in future matters
• Coordination with other relevant department or teams, where necessary, to obtain insights, specialized guidance, and overall direction
• Keep up-to-date with developments on legislation, laws, issuances, and other compliance and project-specific requirements

Land Due Diligence and Acquisition

• Assist in land title verification, tax declaration checks, and tracing of land ownership for project sites and right-of-way requirements
• Prepare and review land-related documents such as deeds of sale, deeds of assignment, lease agreements, easement/right-of-way agreements, and usufruct agreements
• Support negotiations and documentation with landowners, including for ancestral domain and agrarian reform clearance requirements, where applicable
• Maintain a repository of all land-acquisition related records
• If necessary, coordinate with the Registry of Deeds, Assessor's Offices, and LGUs for title transfers, annotations, and tax mapping

Notarial Support

• Maintain a valid notarial commission
• Notarized documents as may be requested by the Company
• Ensure compliance with the notarial rules on filing and record-keeping

General Management and Administrative Support; Cross Functional Coordination

• Lead and manage paralegals and technical working groups, as may be assigned;
• Liaise with external stakeholders like government agencies and instrumentalities as may be needed in the performance of their tasks, including performing offsite work, meetings, and other tasks;
• Develop and maintain standard legal templates, transaction checklists, and internal legal policies;
• Engage in cross-functional coordination across the relevant departments of the Company;
• Prepare, maintain and organize all legal documents and transmittals as may be endorsed to the Department
• Assist in the management of day-to-day legal and corporate activities; and
• Perform other duties and functions as assigned by the Chief Legal Officer, the Leadership Team, or the President

Work Experience:

• At least five (5) years of legal practice either in a law firm or in an in-house capacity
• Extensive experience and background on project development. permitting, and operations of energy projects
• Well-versed on the regulatory frameworks and compliance requirements of energy projects and preferably with prior experience dealing with the Department of Energy, the Energy Regulatory Commission, and the National Grid Corporation of the Philippines
• Familiarity with project financing and other commercial transactions
• Background on renewable energy is highly desirable

Educational Background:

• Bachelor of Laws (LL.B.) or Juris Doctor (J.D.) Degree from a reputable academic institution
• A member in good standing of the Integrated Bar of the Philippines

Skills and Competencies Requirements:

• Strong communication, negotiation, analytical, and problem-solving skills
• Ability to work closely with senior management and various business functions
• Excellent time management skills and ability to multitask