Legal & IP Counsel

<h3>About Alta Ares</h3><p style="min-height:1.5em"><br />Alta Ares is an air defense Neoprime. We build AI-guided interceptors to counter drones and cruise missiles, along with the software platform that powers them.</p><p style="min-height:1.5em">Our customers are NATO-aligned militaries and defense institutions, and our systems are regularly deployed during live exercises and operational demonstrations across Europe, the Middle East, and Asia.</p><p style="min-height:1.5em">Founded in 2024, we have grown to 90 people, raised over $60M, and increased revenue 40× this year. We are now entering a new phase of international expansion, industrial scaling, fundraising, and product development.</p><h3>Role &amp; Mission</h3><p style="min-height:1.5em">As Legal &amp; IP Counsel, you will be Alta Ares' first dedicated in-house legal hire responsible for building and managing the company's legal function across three core pillars: intellectual property, commercial contracts, and corporate law.</p><p style="min-height:1.5em">You will work directly with the CEO and COO on the legal dimensions of Alta Ares' most consequential decisions: protecting the IP that underpins our technology, structuring commercial agreements with defence clients and institutional partners, and ensuring the company's corporate and regulatory foundations are solid as we scale internationally.</p><p style="min-height:1.5em">This is a builder role. You will establish processes, templates, and legal infrastructure from scratch in a fast-moving environment where precision, speed, and discretion are non-negotiable. You will work across multiple jurisdictions (France, UK, US, Ukraine) and across a highly sensitive sector where legal rigour directly impacts national security.</p><h3>1. Intellectual Property</h3><ul style="min-height:1.5em"><li><p style="min-height:1.5em">Own Alta Ares' IP strategy and portfolio: patents, trade secrets, software copyrights, and know-how protection across all product lines (ISR, C-UAS, MLOps, HSI)</p></li><li><p style="min-height:1.5em">Lead patent filing processes in coordination with external patent attorneys: drafting invention disclosures, managing prosecution, and maintaining the patent portfolio</p></li><li><p style="min-height:1.5em">Define and enforce IP protection policies internally: employee IP assignment, contractor IP clauses, and open-source usage governance</p></li><li><p style="min-height:1.5em">Conduct IP due diligence on partnerships, licensing arrangements, and potential acquisitions</p></li><li><p style="min-height:1.5em">Monitor the competitive IP landscape and flag freedom-to-operate risks proactively</p></li><li><p style="min-height:1.5em">Advise Engineering and Product teams on IP-sensitive design decisions and open-source compliance</p></li></ul><h3>2. Commercial Contracts &amp; Defence Agreements</h3><ul style="min-height:1.5em"><li><p style="min-height:1.5em">Draft, review, and negotiate all commercial agreements: customer contracts, MOUs, teaming agreements, NDAs, subcontracting arrangements, and licensing agreements</p></li><li><p style="min-height:1.5em">Own the contract management lifecycle: template creation, negotiation support, execution tracking, and renewals</p></li><li><p style="min-height:1.5em">Advise on the legal specificities of defence procurement contracts across multiple jurisdictions: French DGA, NATO, EU institutions, UK MOD, and US DoD frameworks</p></li><li><p style="min-height:1.5em">Review and negotiate grant agreements under EU defence funding mechanisms: EDF, EUDIS, Horizon Europe</p></li><li><p style="min-height:1.5em">Manage and mitigate contractual risk in multi-party, multi-jurisdiction arrangements</p></li><li><p style="min-height:1.5em">Build and maintain a library of standardised contract templates adapted to Alta Ares' commercial contexts</p></li></ul><h3>3. Corporate Law &amp; Regulatory Compliance</h3><ul style="min-height:1.5em"><li><p style="min-height:1.5em">Support the legal structuring and maintenance of Alta Ares' multi-entity corporate architecture: France (SAS), UK (Ltd), US (Inc.), Ukraine, and any future entities</p></li><li><p style="min-height:1.5em">Advise on corporate governance matters: board resolutions, shareholder agreements, equity plan (BSPCE) documentation, and cap table management in coordination with Finance</p></li><li><p style="min-height:1.5em">Manage regulatory compliance across applicable frameworks: RGPD/GDPR, French corporate law, and sector-specific defence regulations</p></li><li><p style="min-height:1.5em">Support export control compliance across applicable regimes: French AECA / CIEEMG, ITAR, EAR, and dual-use regulation in coordination with the RSSI and Sales teams</p></li><li><p style="min-height:1.5em">Assist in fundraising processes: term sheet review, investor documentation, and legal due diligence responses</p></li><li><p style="min-height:1.5em">Liaise with external counsel across jurisdictions and manage external legal spend efficiently</p></li></ul><h3>4. Legal Advisory &amp; Internal Counsel</h3><ul style="min-height:1.5em"><li><p style="min-height:1.5em">Serve as the go-to legal advisor for all teams: Sales, Engineering, HR, Finance, and Operations</p></li><li><p style="min-height:1.5em">Provide rapid, practical legal guidance on day-to-day questions balancing legal rigour with business pragmatism</p></li><li><p style="min-height:1.5em">Flag and escalate legal risks proactively to the CEO and COO</p></li><li><p style="min-height:1.5em">Maintain organised legal documentation and contract registers in Notion</p></li><li><p style="min-height:1.5em">Contribute to the development of internal policies with legal dimensions: data protection, security, and compliance frameworks</p></li></ul><h3>Candidate Profile</h3><h3>Experience</h3><ul style="min-height:1.5em"><li><p style="min-height:1.5em">3 years of experience in law combining in-house counsel experience and/or private practice in a top-tier firm</p></li><li><p style="min-height:1.5em">Strong background in at least two of: intellectual property law, commercial contracts, corporate law</p></li><li><p style="min-height:1.5em">Exposure to technology, deeptech, defence, aerospace, or dual-use sectors is a strong plus</p></li><li><p style="min-height:1.5em">Experience working with or within a startup or scale-up is a significant advantage: you understand the pace and constraints of a lean legal function</p></li><li><p style="min-height:1.5em">Prior exposure to multi-jurisdictional legal environments (France + UK or US) is valued</p></li><li><p style="min-height:1.5em">Familiarity with French corporate law (SAS governance, BSPCE, equity documentation) is a plus</p></li></ul><h3>Skills &amp; Qualities</h3><ul style="min-height:1.5em"><li><p style="min-height:1.5em"><strong>French fluency is mandatory</strong>: primary legal and corporate jurisdiction is France</p></li><li><p style="min-height:1.5em"><strong>English fluency is mandatory</strong>: commercial agreements, international partnerships, and investor documentation are predominantly in English</p></li><li><p style="min-height:1.5em">Rigorous and detail-oriented, you catch what others miss and never cut corners on substance</p></li><li><p style="min-height:1.5em">Pragmatic and business-minded: you give clear, actionable legal advice, not just risk catalogues</p></li><li><p style="min-height:1.5em">Fast and responsive in a defence startup, legal bottlenecks have operational consequences</p></li><li><p style="min-height:1.5em">Proactive: you anticipate legal issues before they become problems</p></li><li><p style="min-height:1.5em">Discreet and trustworthy you handle the company's most sensitive commercial, financial, and strategic information</p></li><li><p style="min-height:1.5em">Comfortable operating as a generalist in a lean environment where scope is broad and resources are limited</p></li></ul><p>Find more <a href="https://www.arbeitnow.fr/english-speaking-jobs">English Speaking Jobs in France</a> on Arbeitnow</a>