Legal Counsel (Commercial)

<div class="content-intro"><p>At Vast, our mission is to contribute to a future where billions of people are living and thriving in space. Vast is developing next-generation space stations to ensure a continuous human presence in space for America and its allies, enabling advanced microgravity research and manufacturing, and unlocking a new space economy for government, corporate, and private customers. Using an incremental, hardware-rich and low-cost approach, Vast is rapidly developing its multi-module Haven Station. Haven Demo’s 2025 success made Vast the only operational commercial space station company to fly and operate its own spacecraft. Next, Haven-1 is expected to become the world’s first commercial space station when it launches, followed by additional Haven modules to enable permanent human presence by 2030. Our team is all-in, committed to executing our mission safely and on time. If you want to work with the most talented people on Earth furthering space exploration for humanity, come join us.</p></div><p>Vast is looking for a <strong>Legal Counsel</strong>, reporting to the <strong>General Counsel, </strong>to support the development of the systems that will be required for the design and build of human-rated space stations.</p>
<p>This will be a <strong>full-time</strong>, <strong>exempt</strong> position located in our <strong>Long Beach</strong> location. </p>
<p><strong>Responsibilities: </strong></p>
<ul>
<li>Commercial Contracts: Structure, negotiate, and execute transactions ranging from standard agreements to highly complex deals, ensuring alignment with business objectives and regulatory requirements</li>
<li>Business Enablement: Provide practical, business-oriented legal guidance that enables teams to move quickly while maintaining appropriate risk controls. Act as a key resource for navigating legal challenges and ensuring Vast’s success with customers–in the U.S. and around the world</li>
<li>Special Projects: Support our General Counsel and Associate General Counsel on special projects, as requested, and work independently with our internal legal support staff and other internal partners</li>
<li>Intellectual Property Management: Oversee and manage Vast’s intellectual property portfolio, including coordination of patent, trademark, and trade secret matters; support IP strategy, filings, maintenance, enforcement, licensing, and related risk mitigation in alignment with business objectives and technology development</li>
<li>Process & Template Development: Help build and improve contract templates, playbooks, intake processes, and approval workflows to support faster, more consistent customer contracting across the business</li>
<li>Risk & Compliance: Identify and manage legal, regulatory, and operational risks related to commercial transactions, including supply chain, intellectual property, confidentiality, data privacy, export controls, and compliance obligations</li>
</ul>
<p><strong>Minimum Qualifications:</strong></p>
<ul>
<li>2+ years of experience in a legal role at a private company or law firm</li>
<li>Subject matter expertise in commercial contracts and intellectual property </li>
<li>JD with admission to practice law in a state bar in good standing and able to practice in-house in California </li>
<li>Strong problem-solving experience and skills </li>
<li>Strong verbal and writing skills</li>
<li>Process-oriented and team player</li>
<li>Good judgment and the ability to balance risk and productivity in a business environment</li>
<li>Ability to work independently or collaboratively in a fast-pace environment </li>
</ul>
<p><strong>Preferred Skills & Experience:</strong></p>
<ul>
<li>A strong ability to inspire trust, forge relationships quickly, and earn the confidence and cooperation of business stakeholders</li>
<li>Diligent and proactive, you have demonstrated excellent legal and business judgment, technical acumen, communication skills and strategic thinking, along with the ability to work independently and cross-functionally with excellent time management and prioritization skills</li>
<li>Comfortable with and responsive to rapid developments and changes in direction; eager to learn new tech, products, and substantive legal areas to support multiple roles within the legal department</li>
<li>Familiarity with the aerospace industry and its unique legal challenges Ability to identify and mitigate legal risks while enabling business objectives</li>
</ul>
<p><strong>Additional Requirements:</strong></p>
<ul>
<li>Ability to travel up to 25% of the time</li>
<li>Willingness to work evenings and/or weekends to support critical mission milestones</li>
</ul><div class="content-pay-transparency"><div class="pay-input"><div class="title">Pay Range: California</div><div class="pay-range"><span>$155,000</span><span class="divider">—</span><span>$221,000 USD</span></div></div></div><div class="content-conclusion"><p style="line-height: 1;"><strong>COMPENSATION AND BENEFITS<br></strong><br>Base salary will vary depending on job-related knowledge, education, skills, experience, business needs, and market demand. Salary is just one component of our comprehensive compensation package. Full-time employees also receive company equity, as well as access to a full suite of compelling benefits and perks, including: medical, dental, and vision coverage for employees and dependents, generous paid time off; up to 20+ days of vacation for exempt staff and up to 10+ days of vacation for non-exempt staff with the ability to cash-out unused vacation annually, paid parental leave, short and long-term disability insurance, life insurance, access to a 401(k) retirement plan, ClassPass credits, personalized mental healthcare through Spring Health, and other discounts and perks. We also take pride in offering exceptional food perks, with snacks, drip coffee & onsite barista, cold drinks, and dinner meals remaining free of charge, and lunch subsidized as part of Vast’s ongoing commitment to providing high-quality meals for employees.</p>
<p style="line-height: 1;"><strong><br>U.S. EXPORT CONTROL COMPLIANCE STATUS<br><br></strong>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 <a href="https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-22/section-120.62">22 C.F.R. § 120.62</a> or otherwise eligible for deemed export licensing. This status includes U.S. citizens, U.S. nationals, lawful permanent residents (green card holders), and asylees and refugees with such status granted, not pending.<br><br></p>
<p style="line-height: 1;"><strong>EQUAL OPPORTUNITY</strong><br><br>Vast is an Equal Opportunity Employer; employment with Vast 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.</p></div>