Miami Aviation Associate

Latitude Legal Recruitment Limited; Miami (FL); On-site; USD 165,000 - 210,000; Full time

Job summary

Latitude Legal in St. Louis, MO is seeking a Senior Corporate Counsel to shape the company’s legal strategy and serve as a trusted advisor to the C-suite.

You will drive the contract lifecycle—from drafting to closing—across MSAs, SaaS, and vendor agreements while managing complex regulatory compliance and risk. The role emphasizes high-velocity negotiation, governance, and due diligence for potential acquisitions, with opportunities to implement scalable processes and CLM best practices for a

Qualifications

• 7+ years post-qualification experience (PQE) with significant in-house or top-tier law firm experience.
• Licensed to practice law in Missouri or eligible for in-house counsel registration.

Responsibilities

• Own the contract lifecycle: drafting, negotiating, and closing MSAs, SaaS agreements, vendor contracts, and NDAs.
• Navigate regulatory frameworks relevant to Latitude's sector (GDPR, CCPA, HIPAA, etc.).
• Provide strategic advisory and support for M&A activities, due diligence, and integration planning.

Skills

Commercial contracts

Regulatory compliance

M&A

General corporate governance

Job description

This opportunity was posted more than 30 days ago and no application deadline was provided. You can explore active listings below.

Senior Corporate Counsel

L

Organising Institution / Firm

Not Specified by Organiser

St. Louis, MO, USA

Not Specified

Experienced corporate attorneys with strong background in commercial contracts, regulatory compliance, M&A, and general corporate governance. Must be licensed to practice law in Missouri or eligible for in-house counsel registration. Typically requires 7+ years post-qualification experience (PQE) with significant in-house or top-tier law firm experience.

Full-time Job

Full Opportunity Brief

Navigating the Gateway to In-House Excellence: The Latitude Legal Senior Counsel Opportunity

For the ambitious legal professional eyeing a transition from the billable-hour grind of private practice to the strategic epicenter of a dynamic organization, the Senior Corporate Counsel role at Latitude Legal in St. Louis, Missouri represents a pivotal career inflection point. This is not merely a vacancy; it is an invitation to architect legal strategy, mitigate enterprise risk, and serve as a trusted advisor to the C-suite. In a market where in-house roles are notoriously competitive and often opaque, understanding the nuance of this specific opportunity—its implicit expectations, the strategic value of the location, and the preparation required to secure it—separates the candidates who get interviewed from those who get hired.

Why St. Louis? Why Latitude Legal? The Strategic Geography of Your Career

St. Louis is frequently underestimated as a legal hub, yet it hosts a dense concentration of Fortune 500 headquarters, a thriving startup ecosystem fueled by Cortex Innovation Community, and a cost of living that allows senior counsel to build genuine wealth—not just income. Latitude Legal operates within this unique intersection. While the public job description is characteristically lean, the reposting of this role (23 hours ago at time of analysis) with 16 early applicants signals a hiring manager who is selective, not desperate. They are looking for a specific profile: a lawyer who views the law not as a cost center, but as a business enabler.

Insider Perspective

In the Midwest legal market, "Senior Counsel" titles often carry broader scope and higher autonomy than equivalent titles in coastal mega-corps. You are likely the *sole* or *lead* subject matter expert for commercial transactions, meaning your fingerprint is on every revenue-generating agreement.

Deconstructing the Mandate: Beyond the Job Description

The LinkedIn snapshot is sparse by design. However, for a "Senior Corporate Counsel" at a firm like Latitude Legal, the unwritten mandate typically encompasses three pillars that you must demonstrate mastery over during the interview process:

• Commercial Contract Velocity & Precision: You will own the contract lifecycle—drafting, negotiating, and closing MSAs, SaaS agreements, vendor contracts, and NDAs. The expectation is high velocity with low friction. You must articulate how you balance legal rigor with commercial pragmatism.
• Regulatory Navigation & Compliance Architecture: Depending on Latitude's sector (fintech, healthtech, logistics, or professional services), you may face GDPR, CCPA, HIPAA, or industry-specific regulatory frameworks. You aren't just "complying"; you are building the compliance infrastructure.
• Strategic Advisory & M&A Support: Senior Counsel roles in mid-market companies frequently involve tuck-in acquisitions, joint ventures, or strategic divestitures. Highlight any due diligence leadership, disclosure schedule management, or integration planning experience.

The "Latitude Legal" Profile: What They Really Value

Organizations with names like "Latitude" often signal a culture of autonomy, breadth, and entrepreneurial spirit. They likely value:
1. Generalist Depth over Specialist Narrowness: They need a lawyer who can handle an employment dispute in the morning, a data processing addendum at noon, and a term sheet review in the afternoon.
2. Business Fluency: Can you read a P&L? Do you understand CAC/LTV ratios? Your legal advice must be framed in the language of the business.
3. Low Ego, High Output: In lean legal departments, there is no "support staff" to delegate formatting or redlining. You are the drafter, the negotiator, and the project manager.

Crafting the Winning Application: A Tactical Blueprint

With applications managed off LinkedIn, your first touchpoint is likely a recruiter screen or a direct hiring manager review. Your materials must pass the "6-second scan" and the "deep dive."

Resume Architecture for In-House Transition

• Lead with a Professional Summary: Replace the "Objective" with a 3-line value proposition: "Senior Corporate Counsel with 8+ years negotiating complex commercial transactions for SaaS/Fintech clients. Proven track record reducing contract cycle time by 30% and leading due diligence for $50M+ M&A transactions. Licensed MO."
• Quantify Private Practice Experience: Don't list "Drafted contracts." Write: "Negotiated 100+ enterprise SaaS agreements annually ($50K-$2M ARR), reducing liability exposure via tailored limitation of liability clauses."
• Highlight "Business-Facing" Wins: Did you build a contract playbook? Implement CLM (Ironclad, LinkSquares, DocuSign CLM)? Train sales teams on negotiation guardrails? These are in-house currency.

The Cover Letter: Your Strategic Memo

"I understand Latitude Legal is scaling rapidly. My experience building a contract playbook from scratch at [Previous Co.] cut legal review time by 40% while maintaining zero indemnity breaches. I am eager to bring that same operational discipline to your commercial legal function."

Acing the Interview Loop: The Competency Framework

• The "Impossible Deadline" Sales Deal: "Walk me through a time Sales brought you a redlined MSA at 4 PM Friday needing signature by Monday. How did you triage risk?"
• The "Regulatory Curveball": "We are launching a new product line in [State/Country]. What are the first three legal questions you ask the Product team?"
• The "Difficult Stakeholder": "Describe a situation where a business leader wanted to accept a clause you deemed unacceptable. How did you resolve it without saying 'no'?"

Questions *You* Must Ask (Signal High Intent)

• "What is the current legal tech stack, and what is the appetite for CLM implementation?"
• "How does the legal team currently interface with the Board/Audit Committee?"
• "What does 'success' look like for this role in the first 90 days? 1 year?"
• "How is the legal budget structured—fixed vs. variable outside counsel spend?"

For a Senior Counsel role in St. Louis, market data (Robert Half, Major Lindsey & Africa, GoInhouse) suggests a base salary range of $165,000 – $210,000, with a target bonus of 15-25% and equity (RSUs/Options) typically ranging 0.1% - 0.5% depending on company stage. Your leverage points:

• Portable Business: If you bring client relationships or a book of regulatory knowledge that saves immediate outside counsel spend, quantify it.
• Bar Admission Status: Active Missouri license = immediate value. Waiver/In-house registration pending = slight delay risk; negotiate start date or signing bonus to offset.
• Specialized Certifications: CIPP/US, CCB, or PMP certifications justify premium bands.

The Long Game: Career Trajectory Post-Latitude

Accepting this role positions you for three distinct upward trajectories within 3-5 years:

• General Counsel Track: If Latitude scales to $100M+ ARR or exits, you are the heir apparent for the GC seat.
• VP Legal / Deputy GC at Large Corp: The breadth of experience (commercial, privacy, employment, M&A, compliance) makes you a prime lateral candidate for Fortune 500 Deputy GC roles in Chicago, Dallas, or NYC.
• Legal Operations / Chief Legal Officer (CLO) in PE-Backed Portfolio: Private Equity firms prize operators who have built legal functions from "messy" to "machine." This role is that proving ground.

Frequently Asked Questions

Q: I am currently in private practice at an AmLaw 100 firm in New York. Is the transition to a St. Louis in-house role a "step down" in prestige?

A: Absolutely not. The legal market has fundamentally shifted. "Prestige" is now defined by scope of responsibility, business impact, and work-life integration. A Senior Counsel role at a growing company in St. Louis offers broader P&L exposure, direct Board access, and equity upside that a 6th-year associate in Big Law rarely sees. Many partners lateraling in-house take title "haircuts" (e.g., Partner to Senior Counsel) for significantly higher total compensation trajectory and autonomy. The Midwest market is fiercely competitive for top talent precisely because the quality of life to compensation ratio is unmatched.

Q: The job posting says "Responses managed off LinkedIn." Does applying via LinkedIn Easy Apply hurt my chances?

A: It does not hurt, but it is rarely sufficient. "Managed off LinkedIn" typically means an external recruiter (like Major Lindsey, BarkerGilmore, or a boutique search firm) or an internal ATS (Greenhouse, Lever, Workday) is the system of record. Best Practice: Apply via LinkedIn immediately to get into the pipeline, then within 24 hours, find the Latitude Legal careers page or the recruiter's LinkedIn profile and send a direct connection request with a note: "Applied for Senior Counsel role via LI. Wanted to ensure my materials reach you directly. [One sentence value prop]." This demonstrates the proactive hustle the role demands.

Q: What if I am not licensed in Missouri but am licensed in Illinois (or another UBE state)?

A: This is a solvable hurdle, not a disqualifier. Missouri allows Admission on Motion (Reciprocity) for attorneys with 5+ years active practice in a UBE jurisdiction (score 260+). The process takes 3-6 months. Alternatively, Missouri Supreme Court Rule 8.03 allows "In-House Counsel Registration" for lawyers employed full-time by an entity headquartered in MO, provided you are in good standing in another jurisdiction. This registration is faster (weeks) and permits you to practice *for the employer only*. Address this proactively in your cover letter: "Licensed in IL (UBE 290); eligible for MO In-House Counsel Registration (Rule 8.03) immediate start; pursuing Admission on Motion concurrently."

Q: How do I evaluate Latitude Legal's stability and culture before the final interview stage?

A: Conduct "Reverse Due Diligence":
1. PitchBook/Crunchbase: Check funding history, investors, valuation trends, headcount growth.
2. Glassdoor/Blind/Fishbowl: Filter for "Legal Department" reviews. Look for GC/CLO tenure—long tenure = stability; high turnover = red flag.
3. LinkedIn Alumni Search: Search "Latitude Legal" + "Former Employee" + "Legal". Message 2-3 former counsels: "Considering a role there. Would value 5 mins on culture/GC leadership style. Anonymous if preferred." Most will respond candidly.
4. Court Dockets (Case.net / PACER): Search the entity name for litigation volume/type. High employment litigation or contract disputes may signal internal chaos.