Senior Legal Counsel - Commercial
About the job
- Juris Doctor degree and an active license to practice law in the United States.
- At least 10 years of progressive legal experience supporting commercial transactions within aerospace, defense, advanced manufacturing, or similarly regulated industries.
- Proven success leading contract negotiations on complex commercial transactions.
- Experience partnering with senior business leaders and cross-functional stakeholders to support commercial objectives and risk management.
- Experience supporting complex commercial deals and cross-functional teams.
- Ability to balance speed and risk in a fast-paced environment.
- Excellent negotiation, communication, and stakeholder management skills.
- A hands-on and execution-oriented approach.
- Lead drafting, negotiation, and execution of customer and revenue-generating contracts, non-disclosure agreements, vendor, supplier, manufacturing, strategic partnership, and joint development agreements.
- Partner with product, business development, and procurement teams to enable efficient deal execution.
- Develop scalable contracting processes, templates, and playbooks to accelerate deal velocity.
- Provide practical, risk-calibrated legal advice to cross-functional stakeholders.
- Translate complex legal concepts into clear business guidance for business leaders and cross-functional stakeholders.
- Support new product launches, pricing models, and go-to-market strategies.
- Build and implement contracting workflows, approval processes, and legal systems.
- Establish and maintain standard templates, clause libraries, and fallback positions.
- Improve legal operations to increase efficiency and reduce bottlenecks.
- Support corporate governance and entity management.
- Assist with employment matters, mergers and acquisitions, and other strategic transactions as needed.
- Manage outside counsel effectively across specialty areas.
- Support management of the company’s intellectual property portfolio, including strategy, filings, and coordination with outside counsel.
- Support legal matters related to international operations, including cross-border compliance, corporate governance, employment matters, and coordination with local counsel.
- Identify and proactively manage legal and commercial risks across the business.
- Support development of internal policies and compliance programs.
- Partner with finance and operations on risk allocation and mitigation strategies.
- Progressive law firm experience in technology transactions and/or corporate securities.
- Exposure to government contracting.
- Experience scaling legal processes at an early-stage company.
About the company
CesiumAstro develops end-to-end space and airborne communications systems, including active phased array antennas, software-defined radios, and complete payloads. Its technology enables electronically steered beams for inter-satellite links, high-rate downlinks, lunar and deep-space communication, and 5G/NTN networks. It ships plug‑and‑play, commercially manufactured hardware and SDR software as a full-stack solution, reducing development time and cost. The company targets both government programs (NASA, DoD) and commercial space ventures, aiming to make space-based connectivity more accessible and adaptable.
Company Size
501-1,000
Company Stage
Series C
Total Funding
$780M
Headquarters
Bee Cave, Texas
Founded
2017
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Simplify's Take
What believers are saying
- EXIM and J.P. Morgan backed $300 million financing funds the Bee Cave factory and Texas hiring.
- April 21, 2026 Missile Defense Agency work validates Skylark for national-security modernization.
- The $470 million Series C gives CesiumAstro cash to industrialize manufacturing and scale deliveries through 2027.
What critics are saying
- Three 2026 acquisitions create integration drag and culture clashes before 2027 product revenue lands.
- CesiumAstro still depends on U.S. defense buyers, EXIM financing, and Bee Cave buildout finishing on time.
- L3Harris, Northrop Grumman, Raytheon, and Lockheed can crush margins on phased-array programs; CesiumAstro loses share fast.
What makes CesiumAstro unique
- CesiumAstro vertically integrates antennas, radios, semiconductors, and mission software under one roof.
- Its 2026 Jariet, Vidrovr, and 1Aardvark buys deepen full-stack space-defense autonomy.
- Skylark and Element target software-defined, mobile-ready links across missiles, satellites, and airborne platforms.
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Benefits
Health Insurance
Dental Insurance
Vision Insurance
Life Insurance
Disability Insurance
Health Savings Account/Flexible Spending Account
401(k) Retirement Plan
Stock Options
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The Export-Import Bank of the United States has signed a $300 million credit agreement with CesiumAstro, an Austin-based space and defence connectivity specialist. The agreement, announced on 9 September, aims to consolidate the company's design, manufacturing, assembly and test operations into a single 270,000-square-foot US facility currently under construction. The financing includes a $20 million revolving credit facility from JP Morgan, making it EXIM's largest loan approval under its "Make More in America" initiative. CesiumAstro is the only company to receive a second credit agreement under the programme. EXIM previously approved $185 million in financing to CesiumAstro in January 2026, later increased to $280 million. Founded in 2017, CesiumAstro recently secured a $470 million Series C funding round.
CesiumAstro buys 1Aardvark to add mission software for defense space. * 1Aardvark is a service-disabled veteran-owned and HUBZone-certified business in Manassas, Virginia * Its work covers missile defense and missile tracking programs * The deal follows CesiumAstro's purchases of Vidrovr and Jariet Technologies this year CesiumAstro has acquired 1Aardvark, adding mission software and systems engineering to a portfolio built around satellites and communications payloads. CesiumAstro announced the deal Tuesday. 1Aardvark, based in Manassas, Virginia, builds software, algorithms and systems engineering for national defense programs. It holds service-disabled veteran-owned small business and HUBZone certifications. What does 1Aardvark bring to CesiumAstro? 1Aardvark's software supports missile defense and missile tracking work. The company builds systems that enable distributed platforms to coordinate and execute missions in contested or disconnected environments. CesiumAstro expects the pairing to yield spacecraft that adjust to changing conditions and keep operating when connectivity degrades. Shey Sabripour, founder and CEO of CesiumAstro, said defense space systems increasingly require software that can adapt and make decisions. According to Ryan Kenward, president of 1Aardvark, joining CesiumAstro extends the company's work pushing mission capability to the edge. How does the deal fit CesiumAstro's acquisition strategy? The 1Aardvark deal lands days after CesiumAstro closed its purchase of Jariet Technologies, a semiconductor firm focused on millimeter-wave radio frequency system-on-chip designs. That deal gave the company in-house chip capability to pair with its phased-array antenna and payload work. The company also acquired Vidrovr in March, an AI firm specializing in real-time multimodal signal analysis. Vidrovr co-founder Joe Ellis oversees integration of machine learning tools into the CesiumAstro portfolio. CesiumAstro closed a $470 million Series C round in February and took $200 million in Export-Import Bank financing in January to acquire a 270,000-square-foot West Austin facility.
CesiumAstro’s purchase of Virginia-based 1Aardvark advances its strategy to deliver more resilient, software-defined communications and onboard systems for government missions, strengthening its position in the defence...
CesiumAstro acquires Jariet Technologies, expanding semiconductor capabilities across SATCOM, electronic warfare, radar and space systems.