Senior Employment Counsel

SonarSource; Austin (TX); On-site; USD 150,000 - 230,000; Full time

Job summary

Sonar is seeking an exceptional employment lawyer to join our Austin, TX team. You will drive global employment compliance, manage critical matters, and build scalable processes as Sonar grows.

We need a proactive, solution-oriented thinker who rolls up sleeves, owns initiatives, and partners with outside counsel across USA, UK, Europe, and APAC. J.D. and 5+ years in employment law are preferred; in-house tech experience is ideal.

Qualifications

• 5+ years of employment law experience, preferably in-house at a multinational tech company.
• Knowledge of U.S. employment law including California; preference for EMEA and APJ markets.
• Excellent English written and verbal communication skills; ability to influence stakeholders.
• Startup mentality: can roll up sleeves, clear blockers, and drive projects.
• Global fluency with flexibility for calls outside regular time zones.

Responsibilities

• Provide global employment law counsel on hiring, performance, terminations, leaves, wage/hour, and investigations.
• Lead cross-functional policy rollouts and trainings with the Head of Global Employment Law.
• Advise on compensation, pay equity, and benefits compliance and handle sensitive employee relations issues.

Skills

Strong communication

Global fluency

In-house experience

Project management

Education

J.D. degree with Texas bar admission

Job description

Who is Sonar?

Sonar is driving the future of agent-centric software development. As the leader in AI code verification and governance, we solve a critical problem: ensuring that software generated by AI-assisted developers or autonomous agents is reliable, secure, and maintainable.

Integrating seamlessly with Claude Code, Codex, Cursor, GitHub Copilot, Gemini, and Devin, we help over 75% of the Fortune 100 build trusted, reliable, compliant software. Customers who use Sonar are 44% less likely to report an outage due to AI-generated code.

We believe code verification is the critical missing link in the Agent-Centric Development Cycle (AC/DC). Industry giants like Nvidia, ServiceNow,Booking.com, Goldman Sachs, AstraZeneca, and Ford Motor Company count on us to provide independent, explainable, consistent review and governance of their AI-generated code via products like:

• SonarQube: The world’s leading AI code review and verification platform.
• SonarQube Foundation Agent: Currently topping the leaderboards for agentic software repair.
• SonarSweep & Sonar Context Augmentation: Providing the enterprise-grade context and constraints agents need to be truly effective.

Our team operates across global hubs in Austin, Bochum, Dubai, Geneva, London, Singapore, Tokyo, and Washington D.C. We move with a mindset we call CODE:

• Committed to our customers and community.
• Obsessed with quality.
• Deliberate in our decisions.
• Effective as one team.

With over $400M in revenue and profitable, fast-paced growth, we are building the backbone of the AI software revolution. If you’re hungry to have an impact, want to build at a fast pace, and ready to work at the forefront of AI, we want to hear from you.

Position description

We are looking for an exceptional and dynamic employment lawyer to join our team in Austin, TX. As a key member of our legal team, you will drive initiatives and manage critical matters relating to employment compliance. We are seeking a proactive, solution-oriented thinker who is ready to take ownership and build scalable processes as Sonar grows. We need someone who doesn't just advise–someone who rolls up their sleeves, drives projects to completion, and enjoys solving hard problems. This role reports to the Head of Global Employment Law.

What you will do

• Provide global employment law counsel on hiring, performance management, terminations, leaves/accommodations, wage and hour, and investigations in the USA, Switzerland, United Kingdom, Germany, Ireland, France, Singapore, Japan, the UAE, and various EOR locations, with the support of outside counsel.

• Drive cross-functional projects (policy rollouts, trainings, compliance initiatives) forward in partnership with the Head of Global Employment Law.

• Provide creative, compliant, and business-enabling solutions regarding sensitive employee relations issues, and organizational change .

• Independently identify opportunities to streamline processes and partner with functional stakeholders to drive change management to meet compliance expectations.

• Embrace new challenges and manage a dynamic workload of emergent legal issues, supporting high-growth company initiatives relating to global expansion, employee privacy, equity, immigration, compliance, and M&A integration..

• Advise on global compensation, pay equity, and benefits compliance.

Experience and qualifications

The ideal candidate will:

• Strong Legal Foundation: Hold a J.D. degree and active bar admission in good standing (Texas bar or eligible for registered in-house status) with 5+ years of employment law experience, preferably in-house at a multinational organization and/or fast-growing tech company.

• Initiative & Domain Leadership: Have deep knowledge of U.S. employment law, including California. Preference for experience with employment law in EMEA (Switzerland, United Kingdom, Germany, Ireland, France, UAE) and/or APJ (Japan, Singapore) markets.

• Exceptional Communication & Influence: Demonstrated ability to develop strong, collaborative relationships with key stakeholders and teams across the business, backed by excellent communication skills.

• Adaptability & Ownership: The ability to prioritize, manage multiple work streams, and maintain composure in a fast-paced environment.

• Start-up Mentality: A willingness to roll up your sleeves, clear blockers, think creatively, and consistently find solutions to support the business in driving projects to completion.

• Global Fluency: Excellent English written/verbal communication skills and flexibility with your work schedule to accommodate occasional calls outside of your regular time zone.