Senior Attorney, Corporate & Commercial

Eastman Chemical Company; Kingsport (TN); On-site; USD 140,000 - 210,000; Full time

Job summary

Eastman Chemical Company seeks a Senior Attorney, Corporate Securities and M&A to lead transactional workstreams, including due diligence, drafting, negotiating, and closing across domestic and cross-border deals.

The role partners with regional counsel and internal stakeholders to manage governance, securities compliance, financing activity, and related disclosures while supporting commercial teams on contract matters. A JD and 3–5 years of relevant experience are required.

Qualifications

• Juris Doctor from an accredited law school and active license to practice law in at least one U.S. jurisdiction.
• Approximately 3-5 years of relevant experience in corporate securities and M&A law.
• Experience supporting securities compliance matters and corporate transactions, drafting and negotiating transactional documents, managing due diligence and closing processes.

Responsibilities

• M&A, Joint Ventures, and Strategic Transactions: manage due diligence, draft and negotiate confidentiality agreements, LOIs, purchase agreements and related documents; coordinate signing and closing.
• Cross-Border Transactions and Global Coordination: work with regional counsel to manage jurisdiction-specific requirements across borders.
• Corporate Securities and Public-Company Support: assist with securities compliance, proxy and annual meeting support, debt offerings and financing activity.

Skills

Legal drafting

Analytical thinking

Stakeholder management

Communication

Education

Juris Doctor

Tools

Microsoft Office

Outlook

Teams

Document management systems

Virtual data rooms

Contract management systems

E-billing tools

Job description

Overview

Senior Attorney, Corporate & Commercial role at Eastman. Eastman is a global specialty materials company focused on safety and sustainability with a broad product range and a presence in more than 100 countries. The company has approximately 13,000 employees and reported 2025 revenue of about $8.8 billion. Location: preference for Corporate Headquarters in Kingsport, TN; will consider candidates for St. Louis, MO.

Role Description

The Senior Attorney, Corporate Securities and M&A will report to the Senior Corporate Securities Attorney and Assistant Corporate Secretary. This role supports a broad range of domestic and cross-border strategic transactions in a global company environment, including acquisitions, divestitures, joint ventures, minority investments, internal reorganizations, and related subsidiary matters. The position will own transactional workstreams such as due diligence, drafting and negotiation, closing execution, post-closing follow-up, and coordination with regional counsel and internal business stakeholders. In addition to its M&A and transactional focus, the role will support recurring corporate securities matters, including public-company compliance, proxy and annual meeting support, debt offerings and related financing activity, stockholder communications coordination, and other disclosure-related work as appropriate. The role may also provide targeted support to the commercial and procurement teams on contract matters when needed, while remaining primarily a strategic transactions and corporate legal role.

Responsibilities

• M&A, Joint Ventures, and Strategic Transactions. Support core legal workstreams for acquisitions, divestitures, joint ventures, minority investments, internal reorganizations, and other strategic corporate transactions. Manage due diligence, draft and negotiate confidentiality agreements, letters of intent, purchase and sale agreements, joint venture agreements, merger and ancillary documents, and coordinate signing and closing mechanics, closing conditions, post-closing deliverables, and integration-related follow-up. Provide practical legal guidance that balances risk with commercial objectives and escalate significant issues with sound judgment.
• Cross-Border Transactions and Global Coordination. Support cross-border transactions and identify legal, structural, and execution issues in a global company environment. Work with regional counsel and local advisors to coordinate jurisdiction-specific requirements, approvals, and closing steps. Ensure cross-border legal risks, timing considerations, and global subsidiary implications are identified early and managed effectively throughout the transaction lifecycle.
• Corporate Securities and Public-Company Support. Provide legal support on recurring corporate securities matters, including securities law compliance, proxy and annual meeting support, and transaction-related disclosure matters. Assist with debt offerings, private placements, and other financing activity as applicable. Partner with senior legal colleagues and internal teams to maintain accurate, timely, and practical public-company compliance processes.
• Global Subsidiary and Governance Coordination. Partner with the Corporate Secretary function and governance support roles to align transactions with board and committee approvals, global subsidiary maintenance, entity documentation, and post-closing legal-entity actions. Support subsidiary transactions, entity simplification projects, and related records with accuracy, confidentiality, and discipline. Ensure governance and transaction processes remain coordinated and well documented.
• Outside Counsel, Corporate Development, and Cross-Functional Partnering. Manage outside counsel on assigned matters, including scope, quality, timing, and budget discipline. Work with corporate development, finance, treasury, tax, accounting, real estate, procurement, HR, and business stakeholders to move matters forward efficiently and resolve issues early. Serve as a practical legal partner on deal structuring, diligence priorities, negotiation strategy, and transaction execution.
• Process Improvement and Legal Technology. Contribute to templates, playbooks, and process improvements to make transactional and securities work more efficient, consistent, and scalable. Familiarity with AI-enabled legal tools and workflow automation is valuable, particularly for due diligence, document review, knowledge management, and contract process support. Experience working with IP counsel is beneficial for technology, licensing, or IP-rich assets.
• Commercial and Procurement Contract Support. Provide selective support to the commercial and procurement teams on contract matters as business needs require, especially during periods with lighter transaction volume. This may include review, drafting, and negotiation of commercial agreements or procurement-related contracts.

Qualifications

Minimum Qualifications

• Juris Doctor from an accredited law school and active license to practice law in at least one U.S. jurisdiction.
• Approximately 3-5 years of relevant experience in corporate securities and M&A law, gained in a law firm, in-house legal department, or a combination of both.
• Meaningful experience supporting securities compliance matters and corporate transactions, drafting and negotiating transactional documents, managing due diligence and closing processes, and handling multiple concurrent matters under time-sensitive conditions. Strong writing, analytical, communication, and stakeholder-management skills, with the ability to maintain confidentiality and exercise mature judgment.

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience advising a public company on securities compliance, insider trading administration, stockholder communications, annual meeting or proxy support, and transaction-related disclosure matters.
• Prior in-house experience is valuable, as is experience with subsidiary governance, entity-management processes, and outside counsel management.
• Exposure to financing transactions, treasury support, or a background in accounting, finance, or corporate governance may stand out.

Core Competencies

• Strong legal drafting, disciplined issue spotting, practical judgment, and the ability to balance legal risk with business priorities.
• Sound commercial instincts, client-service orientation, clear written and verbal communication, and ability to work across functions.
• Strong organization, calm execution under pressure, discretion with sensitive information, and a continuous-improvement mindset.

Tools/Systems Experience

• Proficiency with Microsoft Office, Outlook, Teams, and standard legal-document workflows.
• Experience with document management systems, virtual data rooms, and contract, matter-management, or e-billing tools.
• Familiarity with governance, records, or legal-entity systems due to interface with securities, subsidiary, and approval processes.

Notice

Eastman will not accept applicants for this offered position who require visa sponsorship, including those whose status is F-1 visa OPT who subsequently would require ongoing visa sponsorship.

Benefits

Your total rewards go beyond a competitive salary. Eastman offers programs to protect health, grow wealth, and fuel your career.

• Compensation & Incentives: Base pay plus performance-based incentive opportunities.
• Health & Wellness: Medical, prescription, and dental coverage with optional Health Savings Account and a range of voluntary benefits. Wellness resources include financial-planning tools, family-building support, parental leave, and confidential EAP counseling.
• Retirement & Financial Strategies: 401(k) with company match and additional retirement contribution.
• Time Away: Eleven paid holidays, one personal day, paid time off, and vacation.
• Growth & Development: Mentorship, learning resources, and leadership programs.

Eastman is an equal opportunity employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to protected characteristics as designated by law.

Additional Information

Nearest Major Market: Asheville. Nearest Secondary Market: Knoxville.