Executive Compensation Attorney

About the company

Our client is a law firm.

The role

Raydar is recruiting for this role on behalf of our client. Counsel corporate clients on pay and benefits arrangements for senior leaders, combining advisory and transactional work. The position sits within a small, collaborative group and offers substantive responsibility and client exposure early on.

What you'll do

- Prepare and negotiate agreements governing senior executive employment, departures and change-of-control protections.

- Create and document stock-based incentive programs for both privately held and publicly traded clients.

- Provide compensation-related guidance on corporate acquisitions and sales, including tax-driven analysis of payments triggered by a deal.

- Manage tax compliance matters tied to deferred and equity pay, including the structure and ongoing administration of deferred pay arrangements.

- Assist public company clients with the pay-related sections of their securities filings, including narrative drafting and supporting data.

- Partner with the firm's corporate and transactional attorneys on deal-related pay questions.

- Advise board compensation committees on director pay, recoupment policies, incentive design and executive perquisites.

- Take on a growing share of direct client work as your experience develops.

Requirements

What we're looking for

- 1 to 7 years of experience in executive compensation, employee benefits or benefits-focused tax work, gained at a law firm.

- Working command of the key Internal Revenue Code provisions governing deferred pay, equity transfers and change-of-control payments (sections 409A, 280G and 83).

- Experience drafting equity incentive plans for both private and public companies.

- A primarily advisory or transactional background rather than benefits litigation.

- Law firm training; a purely government background is not a fit.

- JD from an accredited US law school.

- Active New York bar admission, or willingness to waive in or sit for the New York bar.

- Ability to explain complex tax concepts clearly to boards, senior executives and HR teams.

- A collaborative, low-ego working style and a responsive, proactive communication approach.

- Based in, or willing to relocate to, the Rochester or Buffalo area.

- Comfort with a hybrid schedule of about 50% in-office and an 1,800-hour annual billable target.

Bonus points

- LL.M. in Taxation.

- Familiarity with IRC sections 457(f) and 457A.

- Experience drafting executive employment and separation terms.

- Experience advising on executive pay in corporate transactions.

- Experience with public company pay disclosure.

Benefits

Compensation and benefits

- Base salary: USD 120,000 to 170,000 per year

Location and work model

- Rochester, New York, United States (Buffalo, New York as a secondary option)

- Hybrid, approximately 50% in-office over the year

- Full-time