Sr. Transactions Counsel

Sr. Transactions Counsel

Location: Bay Area/Remote

Team: Legal/ Operations

The Impact You’ll Make:

The Sr Transaction Counsel will support our business in navigating complex regulatory and contractual matters. The Sr Transaction Counsel will play a key role in advising on a wide range of legal issues, including contract negotiation for equipment and services, and regulatory compliance. This individual will work closely with internal teams and external stakeholders to ensure legal alignment with our strategic goals-especially as they relate to renewable energy projects and technological innovation.  This role is ideal for a practical, solutions-oriented lawyer who can balance protecting the business with enabling speed, flexibility, and smart risk-taking.

Key Responsibilities:

• Draft, review, and negotiate a variety of commercial contracts in the renewable space, including supplier agreements, EPC contracts, solar equipment supply agreements (PV, BESS, Power Electronics), as well as other vendor agreements, service contracts, consulting agreements, SaaS agreements, strategic partnership agreements, and non-disclosure agreements.
• Collaborate with the Executive Team, Operations, and finance teams to ensure legal risk is appropriately assessed and managed.
• Monitor evolving energy regulations and assist in developing policies and procedures to ensure compliance.
• Help create scalable legal processes, playbooks, templates, and risk review frameworks.
• Partner and coordinate with outside counsel.
• Other tasks as needed.

The Skills You Bring:

• J.D. from an accredited law school and licensed to practice in at least one U.S. jurisdiction (preferably California)
• 5+ years of legal experience, with at least 3 years of in-house counsel experience in the renewable energy, energy infrastructure, or clean tech sectors.
• Have experience drafting and negotiating supplier agreements in the renewables space, including EPC contracts, solar equipment supply agreements (PV, BESS, power electronics), services and consulting agreements, Saas, and NDAs. 
• Be able to advise on the interpretation of such documents orally and in writing.
• Excellent drafting, communication, negotiation, and interpersonal skills.
• Comfortable working in a fast-paced, entrepreneurial environment with cross-functional teams.
• Ability to independently manage multiple projects and priorities.
• Comfortable being part of a cohesive team while working independently.
• Located in the Pacific Time Zone.

Nice to Have:

• Background in commercial contracts and project finance/development.
• Exposure to IP, data privacy, and software licensing issues.

Benefits and Perks:

• Competitive Compensation Package

• Health Insurance: We offer 100% coverage of employee premiums under a Gold-level PPO plan. Dental & Vision Insurance: 50% of employee premiums are covered.

• Retirement Plan: A 401(k) plan with a 6% employer match.

Additional Information:

Minimum salary of $200,000 to maximum salary of $260,000 + equity + benefits.

The range provided is 1AP’s reasonable estimate of the base compensation for this role. The actual amount will be based on job-related and non-discriminatory factors such as location, experience, training, skills, and abilities. Consult with your Recruiter during the initial call to determine a more targeted range based on these job-related factors.

About 1st Avenue Power:

At 1st Avenue Power, we are on a mission to deliver simple, fast-to-deploy, customer-centric and intelligent power systems leveraging the abundance of solar to provide inexpensive and reliable clean energy to global customers from data centers to energy starved communities around the world. We envision a future where every community, business, and nation thrives on the limitless potential of clean energy, united in a shared commitment to a sustainable and equitable world.

You will be working with Dr. Tom Buttgenbach, one of the most successful clean energy technology innovators and entrepreneurs who has been a driving force in making solar-based energy solutions the cheapest and most reliable energy option. Tom founded and led Avantus (formerly known as “8minute Solar Energy“), to become one of the largest and most profitable solar and energy storage companies in the United States and the largest in California, including delivering over 17% of Los Angeles’ power.  

When Tom sold his interest in Avantus’ development business  to KKR in mid-2024, it had delivered over $1 billion in profit and secured over $10 Billion in power purchase agreements and project financings with a pipeline of over 30 GW of solar and 90 GWh of energy storage, capable of powering the homes of more than 20 million Americans day and night. 

Tom’s family office investment firm, 1st Avenue Capital, is building teams for the next generation of advanced solar power system architecture and AI to aggressively drive down the cost of and equitable access to clean and reliable energy.[1] 1st Avenue’s advanced large scale power systems are addressing the increasing inadequacy of the grid to meet the massively growing power demands of the digital economy, while its intelligent distributed solar utilities are leapfrogging the grid to provide equitable access to inexpensive, clean and reliable power to underserved communities around the world.

1AI Energy, the employing entity for 1st Avenue Power, and 1st Avenue Power are committed to a policy of Equal Employment Opportunity and will not discriminate against an applicant or employee based on race (inclusive of traits associated with race, including hair texture and protective hairstyles), color, religion, religious creed, national origin, ancestry, sex (including pregnancy, childbirth, and breastfeeding), age, veteran or military status, marital status, physical or mental disability, medical condition, genetic information, gender, gender identity, gender expression, sexual orientation, reproductive decision-making, or any other legally recognized protected class under federal, state, or local law.  We also consider qualified applicants regardless of criminal histories, consistent with legal requirements.. Applicants with disabilities may be entitled to reasonable accommodation under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), the California Fair Employment and Housing Act (FEHA), and local laws. A reasonable accommodation is a change in the way things are normally done which will ensure an equal employment opportunity without imposing undue hardship on 1AI Energy or 1st Avenue Power. Please inform the company's personnel representative if you need assistance completing an application or to otherwise participate in the application process. 

Join our team and make a real difference in the world.

[1: Additionally, 1st Avenue is in the business of acquiring projects where there has been a final notice-to-proceed or financial close.]  

California Pay Range

$200,000—$260,000 USD