Business Counsel & Operator

About the role

This is a full-time hybrid legal and business role for someone who wants to use their legal background, commercial judgment, and operating discipline to help build an early-stage energy infrastructure company. You will operate as Sebana's legal lead, owning the legal function and building the legal, outside counsel, compliance, and recurring commercial processes the company needs as it grows. You will also be part of the company's senior decision-making team, working on whatever development or other business priorities most need attention and helping us determine what we build.

Responsibilities

• Draft, review, and negotiate commercial, real estate, procurement, vendor, service provider, equipment supply, financing, development-related, NDA, purchase order, and engagement-letter agreements
• Help the team understand legal risk and commercial tradeoffs in a way that fits the stage, economics, and practical reality of the business
• Own how we use outside counsel, tapping specialist expertise where it is valuable and using it efficiently
• Help the company identify, track, and meet its compliance obligations
• Use AI and legal technology for contract review, drafting, research support, issue spotting, and workflow improvement
• Much of our day-to-day work is development: weighing legal, commercial, technical, regulatory, real estate, and financing factors to decide what is worth building and how to move it forward
• Evaluate utility programs, tariffs, incentives, permitting paths, and market rules to determine target geographies
• Lead customer or landlord conversations
• Drive the development process and project diligence
• Identify and engage vendors, consultants, outside counsel, and other counterparties

Requirements

Desired qualifications:

• J.D. and active bar admission in good standing in New York, or active admission in good standing in another U.S. jurisdiction with eligibility and willingness to register promptly as in-house counsel in New York and satisfy any comparable authorization required where you perform legal services
• Substantial hands-on legal experience drafting and negotiating commercial agreements directly with counterparties, with the ability to own day-to-day legal work and meaningfully shape senior business decisions
• In-house legal experience preferred
• Experience with energy, infrastructure, real estate, construction, project finance, regulated industries, startups, or operating businesses is helpful but not required
• Active use of AI and modern tools to make legal and business work easier while applying independent judgment and verification
• Interest in learning the business deeply and doing hands-on work across a small company's needs

Working style

This role will suit a practical commercial generalist who is comfortable doing senior and hands-on work in the same week - leading a negotiation one day and filling out a permitting application the next.

Compensation and Employment Terms

• Base salary: $200,000-$240,000, based on experience and fit for the role
• Equity upside: In place of a cash bonus, this role includes ongoing grants of phantom equity units, awarded periodically. These are designed to provide ownership-like economic exposure to the value of the business we build together, subject to vesting and plan terms.
• Benefits: 21 days PTO plus holidays; taxable stipend intended to help offset health care costs; travel for in-person gatherings is covered for remote team members
• Employment model: Full-time W-2 employee

Location

This role is remote eligible. Sebana is based in lower Manhattan by Chambers St., and most of our work is focused on New York State and the broader Northeast. We do not want geography to be the main filter for this role. At the same time, because we are a new and rapidly evolving business, remote candidates should expect occasional in-person working sessions to build shared context with the team.

How to Apply

Send your resume to careers@sebana.co, along with a few sentences on what draws you to the business-partner side of this role, beyond the legal work.