Senior Corporate Counsel @ Aerospace Innovator

Whistler Partners; Los Angeles (CA); On-site; USD 180,000 - 250,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Health insurance

Stock options

401(k) retirement plan

Paid parental leave

Unlimited PTO

Office lunches

Pet insurance

Job summary

Hermeus is seeking a Sr. Counsel, Corporate & Employment to partner with the General Counsel on financing, governance, and employment matters as we scale.

You will own venture financing workstreams, cap table management, and board communications while serving as the primary employment lawyer for the company. The role demands strong in-house experience, multi-state employment knowledge, and the ability to provide practical, senior-level advice across Finance, People, and Recruiting.

Qualifications

• 8+ years of total legal experience with EC/VC or corporate practice.
• Active U.S. state bar membership with in-house eligibility.
• Experience in venture financing and corporate governance.
• Familiarity with government contracting and IP/compliance.

Responsibilities

• Lead venture and debt financings: diligence, board approvals, closing.
• Oversee equity plan administration and 409A cadence.
• Support M&A processes and IPO readiness.
• Manage outside counsel efficiently and in-house resources.
• Lead employment matters across the employee lifecycle.

Skills

In-house counsel experience

Financing experience

Employment law

M&A processes

Board-level experience

Contract management

Education

Juris Doctor (JD)

Job description

Hermeus is a venture-backed high-speed aircraft manufacturer focused on the rapid design, build, and test of high-Mach and hypersonic aircraft for the national interest. With the support of our federal government, we're reclaiming the lost art of rapid iterative prototyping to build the fastest aircraft in the world today. By prioritizing relentless hardware iteration, we deliver high-speed systems at the pace of the modern battlefield.

Job Overview

As Sr. Counsel, Corporate & Employment at Hermeus you will work directly with the General Counsel as a senior lawyer on the team. This is a corporate-first role: you will own financing and corporate governance workstreams while serving as the company's go-to counsel on employment matters as we scale.

Key Responsibilities

Corporate

• Together with the executive team, Legal, Finance, and outside counsel, run point on venture and debt financings: diligence, board and stockholder approvals, closing and post-closing
• Serve as go-to counsel for the Finance and Accounting function, including supporting the Company’s audit workstreams, equity plan administration, government contract compliance, cap table hygiene, 409A cadence, subsidiary management, board and committee support, and corporate records.
• Build scalable processes and templates
• Support M&A processes and IPO readiness
• Manage outside counsel efficiently - knowing what to keep in-house versus send out.

Employment

• Serve as first-line counsel on employment matters across the employee lifecycle: offers, equity grants, restrictive covenants, performance and separation issues, contractor classification, and leaves.
• Spot the employment issues proactively - multi-state hiring, California wage and hour exposure, non-competes and other restrictive covenants.
• Partner cross-functionally with People, Finance, and Recruiting as a business-minded advisor
• Maintain compliance with employment and labor laws and ensure company policies keep pace with headcount growth.

About You

Requirements:

• Juris Doctor (JD) from an accredited law school.
• Active membership in good standing with at least one U.S. state bar (with the ability to register as in-house counsel in the relevant jurisdiction if needed).
• 8+ years of total legal experience, with foundational law firm training in an EC/VC or other corporate practice, ideally including venture and/or debt financings, corporate governance, cap table management, and board-level work.
• Recent hands-on financing experience - priced equity rounds, venture debt, or both - with the ability to step into an active deal without a ramp.
• Meaningful in-house experience, including at a startup and/or high-growth company overseeing a broad portfolio of corporate matters
• Demonstrated expansion of scope into employment law in-house: fluent enough to issue spot and partner directly with the People team on routine matters and sophisticated enough to provide thought partnership as the People function scales and develops its processes, procedures and strategies.
• Drive effective corporate and employment dispute resolution, including pre-litigation claims and active litigation
• Skilled at directing and managing outside counsel and pressure-testing their advice
• Relentless dedication to accelerating the business and reducing drag via process improvements, templatization, working alongside our Corporate & Legal Operations professional.
• Comfortable with ambiguity, context switching, reasoning from first-principles, and providing senior leadership with crisp, practical recommendations on the fly
• Enthusiasm for Aerospace & Defense and Hermeus’ mission

Preferred Skills and Experience:

• Experience at a defense, aerospace, or other hardware/deep-tech company.
• 4+ years of foundational experience at a major law firm
• Familiarity with government contracting and cleared-workforce contracting, compliance, information security, and employment considerations.
• Familiarity with real estate, facilities, and construction matters
• IPO readiness & execution
• Familiarity with M&A processes

U.S. EXPORT CONTROL COMPLIANCE STATUS

The person hired will have access to information and items subject to U.S. export controls, and therefore, must either be a “U.S. person” as defined by 22 C.F.R. § 120.62 or otherwise eligible for deemed export licensing. US persons include U.S. citizens, U.S. nationals, lawful permanent residents (green card holders), and asylees and refugees with such status granted, not pending.

• Health & Wellness: 100% employer-paid healthcare and pet insurance
• Financial: Competitive pay, stock options, 401(k) retirement plan, and potential year-end bonuses
• Time Off: Paid parental leave, 12 federal holidays, unlimited PTO for exempt employees, and generous accrued PTO for non-exempt employees
• Office Perks: Weekly paid office lunches and fully stocked breakrooms