VP of Legal

Position Summary

Pine Creek is seeking an experienced VP of Legal to serve as our in-house attorney in Saint Petersburg, FL. This role requires 5+ years of experience drafting and negotiating commercial contracts, ideally within the energy, construction, or infrastructure sectors. Candidates may come from law firm practice or another in-house role; prior in-house experience is welcome but not required. The ideal candidate is a strong drafter and negotiator who is equally comfortable owning the systems behind our transactions: managing diligence data rooms, tracking executed documents through closing, and keeping our prevailing wage compliance records audit-ready. This is a hands-on role with unusually broad ownership: you will build the legal function from the ground up, set the systems and standards it runs on, and define the support it needs as the company grows. The VP of Legal is the company’s primary legal advisor, advises the CEO and executive team directly, and decides which matters are handled internally and which are referred to outside counsel.

Essential Duties and Responsibilities

• Contract Drafting & Negotiation : Draft, negotiate, and approve recurring commercial agreements, including NDAs, subcontracts, purchase orders, change orders, and consulting agreements; build and maintain the company’s template and precedent library so that routine documents can be executed in-house without outside counsel involvement.
• Legal Advice & Risk Management : Serve as the primary legal advisor to the CEO and executive team on commercial, corporate, employment, and regulatory questions as they arise; assess and communicate legal risk in business terms and recommend a course of action rather than a menu of options.
• Financing & M&A Support : Lead the legal workstream on financing, tax equity, and M&A processes: build and maintain the virtual data room, manage indexing, permissioning, and version control, respond to counterparty diligence requests, and coordinate deal counsel through signing and closing.
• Final Document Tracking : Own the closing checklist and executed-document lifecycle: circulate signature packets, confirm full execution, assemble closing binders, and maintain a single authoritative record of final documents.
• Prevailing Wage & Incentive Compliance : Own the company’s prevailing wage and apprenticeship compliance program: set the documentation standards contractors and subcontractors must meet, build those requirements into subcontract terms, oversee collection and review of certified payroll, applicable wage determinations, and apprenticeship records, and keep files audit-ready to support qualification under the investment tax credit (ITC), Section 45Z, and other applicable incentive programs in coordination with tax advisors and auditors.
• Contract Calendar & Renewals : Maintain a centralized contract register capturing effective dates, terms, expiration dates, and auto-renewal and notice windows across NDAs, master agreements, and other contracts; provide advance notice to internal stakeholders so the company can renew, renegotiate, or terminate each agreement deliberately rather than by default.
• Deliverable & Obligation Tracking : Track legal and contractual deliverables across existing and future agreements, including reporting obligations, milestone certifications, consents, certificates of insurance, and lien waivers; follow up with internal owners and counterparties to confirm timely completion and escalate items at risk.
• Outside Counsel Management : Select, engage, and manage outside counsel and other legal service providers; scope engagements, negotiate rates, set and enforce budgets, and review legal spend against them.
• Corporate Governance & Entity Management : Maintain the company’s entity records, minute books, board and member consents, foreign qualifications, and annual filings; support equity issuances, capitalization records, and related documentation.
• Disputes, Claims & Insurance : Manage pre-litigation demands, contract and construction claims, lien and payment disputes, and any litigation, working with outside counsel; oversee insurance placement, tenders, and certificate requirements.
• Additional Responsibilities : Perform other duties as assigned in support of the company’s transaction, compliance, and administrative needs.

Qualifications

• Bar Admission : Active admission and good standing with the Florida Bar; or active admission in another U.S. jurisdiction with eligibility to register as Authorized House Counsel in Florida under Florida Bar Rule 17-1.
• Experience : 5+ years practicing as a licensed attorney, with substantial commercial transactional work and demonstrated ownership of matters from intake through closing. Prior in-house experience is not required.
• Industry Experience : Substantive experience advising energy, construction, infrastructure, or real estate clients, whether in-house or at a firm, including familiarity with how these projects are contracted, financed, and built.
• Contract Drafting & Negotiation : Demonstrated ability to draft, negotiate, and take commercial agreements to signature without supervision, and to exercise independent judgment on non-standard terms and risk allocation.
• Document & Data Room Management : Hands-on experience with virtual data rooms and document management systems, paired with exceptional organizational discipline and version control habits.
• Prevailing Wage Compliance : Working knowledge of Davis-Bacon or state prevailing wage regimes, certified payroll reporting, and IRA prevailing wage and apprenticeship requirements, and the documentation discipline these programs demand.
• Incentive Programs (Preferred) : Familiarity with investment tax credits (ITCs), the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS/RINs), or the Section 45Z Clean Fuel Production Credit is a plus, but is not required.
• Systems & Tools : Proficiency with virtual data room platforms, electronic signature tools, and Microsoft Office; experience with contract lifecycle management software is a plus.
• Education : J.D. from an ABA-accredited law school.
• Skills : Sound business judgment and a willingness to give practical, timely advice on incomplete information; comfort operating as the company’s only internal legal resource; meticulous attention to detail; and the ability to manage numerous simultaneous deadlines and communicate clearly with executives, counterparties, and outside advisors.

Physical Demands and Work Environment

Work is performed in a standard office environment and requires the ability to operate standard office equipment and keyboards, and to remain at a workstation for extended periods. Occasional travel to project sites or counterparty offices may be required. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions of this position.

Compensation

We offer competitive compensation commensurate with relevant education, experience and skills, in addition to a full benefits package.

Equal Employment Opportunity

Pine Creek is an equal opportunity employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, age, disability, veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by applicable law.