VP, Legal

GITAI; Los Angeles (CA); On-site; USD 160,000 - 210,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Health Insurance

401(k) Plan

Equity

Relocation Support

Paid time off

Office perks

Job summary

GITAI is seeking a legally seasoned leader to build and operate the company’s legal function as it scales in space robotics. You will draft, redline, and negotiate with customers, suppliers, and partners, handling government programs, export controls, IP rights, and corporate governance.

Reporting to the General Counsel, you will collaborate across engineering, program management, finance, HR, security, and leadership to move deals quickly while managing risk and ensuring compliance with U.S.

Qualifications

• J.D. and active license to practice law in at least one U.S. jurisdiction.
• 5+ years of legal experience in corporate, commercial, transactional, technology, or other business-facing matters.
• At least 1 year of in-house legal experience at a venture-backed startup.
• Experience with government contracts, FAR/DFARS, ITAR, EAR.
• Ability to translate legal issues into practical business judgment.
• Strong communication and stakeholder management skills.
• U.S. citizenship and eligibility for security clearance.
• Experience with technology, robotics, aerospace, defense, or a highly technical industry.
• Experience owning or helping operate a compliance function.

Responsibilities

• Help build a legal function that enables faster deals and smart risk-taking as the company scales.
• Review, interpret, and advise on RFPs, purchase orders, customer terms, supplier terms, and contract documents.
• Support proposal, negotiation, and execution for government, commercial, and strategic programs.
• Draft, redline, and negotiate agreements with customers, suppliers, contractors, consultants, partners, and third parties.
• Translate legal issues into clear business choices and escalation paths.
• Collaborate with program management, engineering, procurement, finance, HR, security, and leadership.
• Structure positions on deliverables, payment terms, IP rights, data rights, confidentiality, liability, and export control.
• Build and improve contract templates, negotiation playbooks, and internal guidance.
• Support new customer opportunities, supplier relationships, strategic partnerships, and new business initiatives.
• Manage outside counsel efficiently while keeping business context in-house.
• Prepare risk summaries and deal recommendations for GC, senior management, board, and advisors.

Skills

Contract judgment

Communication

Stakeholder management

High ownership

Executive collaboration

Education

J.D. from a U.S. law school

Job description

GITAI is a space robotics company working to reduce the cost of work in space by 100x.

Space is no longer defined only by the cost of launch. Satellites, space stations, lunar infrastructure, and defense systems are becoming more capable and more ambitious. But getting hardware to space is only the first step. The harder problem is doing useful work once it is there.

GITAI develops robotic systems for orbital, lunar, and defense applications. Our robots are designed for tasks such as assembly, inspection, maintenance, construction, and surface operations in environments where human labor is expensive, dangerous, or impractical. To move fast and drive cost down, we keep hardware, software, testing, and integration close together. This allows our team to learn from real tests, shorten development cycles, and reduce dependency on slow external handoffs.

We are still early. The systems, the company, and the market are all being built at the same time. The work is difficult, and many answers are still not written down. If the work pulls you in, and you want to move it forward with your own hands, GITAI is the right place for you.

Your Mission

The VP, Legal will help build and operate the legal function behind GITAI’s next stage of growth as a space robotics company. This role reports to GITAI’s General Counsel and works closely with leadership, program management, engineering, finance, HR, security, and outside counsel. The mission is to make legal work a practical operating function for the business, not a slow approval layer. This is not a pure advisory role. You will draft, redline, negotiate, organize, elevate, and close. You will handle legal issues close to the actual work: U.S. government programs, commercial contracts, export‑controlled technical data, suppliers, strategic partnerships, corporate governance, fundraising support, employment matters, and the operating risks that come with building real hardware for space and defense applications. GITAI needs a legal leader who can protect the company without stopping the company. The right person can make sound risk calls under time pressure, write clearly, negotiate directly, and build legal systems that are strong enough for government and defense work but light enough for an early‑stage startup.

What You’ll Drive

• Help the General Counsel build a legal function that enables GITAI to move faster, close better deals, and take smart risks as the company scales.
• Review, interpret, and advise on RFPs, purchase orders, customer terms, supplier terms, contract documents, and agency requirements.
• Support proposal, negotiation, and execution work for government, commercial, and strategic programs by identifying key business and legal terms early.
• Draft, redline, and negotiate agreements with customers, suppliers, contractors, consultants, partners, and other third parties.
• Translate legal issues into clear business choices: what we can accept, what we should negotiate, what needs escalation, and what should stop the deal.
• Work closely with program management, engineering, procurement, finance, HR, security, and leadership to keep contracts, customer obligations, supplier commitments, and internal execution aligned.
• Help structure practical positions on deliverables, acceptance terms, payment terms, IP rights, data rights, confidentiality, liability, indemnity, warranty, termination, cybersecurity, export control, and security requirements.
• Build and improve contract templates, negotiation playbooks, approval paths, tracking systems, and internal guidance so the company can move with speed and discipline.
• Support new customer opportunities, supplier relationships, strategic partnerships, and new business initiatives from early review through negotiation and execution.
• Manage outside counsel efficiently, using them for specialized judgment while keeping ownership of the business context inside GITAI.
• Prepare clear risk summaries, deal recommendations, and decision materials for the General Counsel, senior management, board stakeholders, customers, auditors, and outside advisors as needed.

What We’re Looking For

We are looking for a business‑minded legal professional who can work close to the company’s actual execution. The right person is not only a legal reviewer, but someone who can help structure deals, clarify risk, and support fast decision‑making in a technical, high‑growth environment.

• J.D. from an accredited U.S. law school and an active license to practice law in at least one U.S. jurisdiction.
• 5+ years of legal experience at a law firm, in‑house legal department, or both, with meaningful exposure to corporate, commercial, transactional, technology, or other business‑facing legal matters.
• At least 1 year of in‑house legal experience at a venture‑backed startup.
• Strong contract judgment, including experience reviewing, interpreting, and advising on RFPs, purchase orders, customer terms, supplier terms, and other business‑critical legal documents.
• Ability to translate legal issues into practical business judgment, including what to accept, what to negotiate, what to elevate, and when to stop a deal.
• Clear communication and strong stakeholder management skills, with the ability to work directly with executives, engineers, program managers, finance, HR, security, customers, suppliers, and outside counsel.
• Ability to manage outside counsel efficiently while keeping ownership of the business context inside the company.
• High ownership and willingness to draft, redline, negotiate, organize, and close work directly.
• U.S. citizenship is required, as this role may require eligibility to obtain and maintain a U.S. government security clearance.
• Experience with technology, robotics, aerospace, defense, advanced manufacturing, government contracting, or another highly technical industry.
• Experience reviewing RFPs, purchase orders, or contract documents from U.S. government agencies or defense‑related customers.
• Deep knowledge of U.S. foreign investment and export control rules, including ITAR, EAR, CFIUS‑related issues, controlled technical data, foreign person restrictions, and technology access controls.
• Experience with government contracts, commercial transactions, regulatory matters, litigation management, intellectual property, cybersecurity requirements, FAR/DFARS, data rights, or security obligations.
• Experience owning or helping operate a compliance function in a company where legal, security, export control, and business execution had to move together.

Compensation

Base salary for this role is expected to range from $160,000 to $210,000 per year. Final title, compensation, and equity will depend on the candidate’s experience, legal judgment, startup operating experience, and ability to help GITAI move quickly while managing legal and business risk.

LA salary range: $160,000 – $210,000 USD.

• Health Insurance – Platinum medical plan with 100% company‑paid medical, dental, and vision coverage for employees; 90% for dependents.
• 401(k) Plan – Company match up to 3.5%, with traditional and Roth options.
• Equity – Stock option eligibility depending on role.
• Relocation Support – Available for qualifying positions.
• Time Off – 12 paid holidays per year, 12 days of paid vacation per year, and paid sick leave (in accordance with applicable law).
• Office Perks – Free snacks and drinks, plus regular team events.

GITAI USA is an Equal Opportunity Employer. Employment with GITAI USA is governed on the basis of merit, competence and qualifications and will not be influenced in any manner by race, color, religion, gender, national origin/ethnicity, veteran status, disability status, age, sexual orientation, gender identity, marital status, mental or physical disability or any other legally protected status.