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Principal Counsel, Corporate

Perplexity· Legal
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San Francisco$250k - $350kFull-timePosted 2mo ago

About the role

Perplexity AI seeks a Principal Counsel, Corporate to serve as the company’s primary lawyer for corporate governance, equity, and financing matters. Responsible for the full corporate legal lifecycle including board/governance, equity administration, financings, secondary transactions, and entity management as the company scales globally.

Responsibilities

  • Lead corporate governance for Perplexity and its subsidiaries, including board and committee meeting preparation, agendas, minutes, resolutions and written consents, charters, organizational documents, corporate policies, and corporate records.
  • Structure, draft, and negotiate equity and debt financings from term sheet through closing, including preferred stock financings, credit facilities, convertible instruments, and related diligence and closing deliverables.
  • Own secondary transactions and liquidity programs, including tender offers, company repurchases, direct secondaries, transfer approvals and the related stockholder communications and consents.
  • Partner with Finance, Accounting, Tax and People on equity compensation and cap-table administration, including option and RSU grant processes, 409A valuations, pool sizing and refreshes, fully diluted share reconciliation, and Carta hygiene.
  • Support M&A, acquihires, strategic investments, and other corporate transactions, including structuring, diligence, definitive agreement negotiation, closing, and post-closing integration, and manage outside counsel to budget and schedule.
  • Build and scale corporate legal infrastructure, including consent and resolution precedent libraries, grant and vesting exhibit templates, signature and approval workflows, entity management systems, and formation and foreign-qualification processes for domestic and international expansion.
  • Support corporate readiness workstreams, including audit support, internal controls over corporate approvals, subsidiary governance, and the sequencing of policies and processes that position the company for future financing or public-company requirements.
  • Monitor legal and market developments affecting private-company governance, equity, and securities matters, and translate them into practical guidance for the executive team and the board.

Qualifications

  • JD and in good standing with an active US state bar membership, or eligible to register as in-house counsel in California
  • At least 9+ years of law firm and/or in-house experience
  • Track record leading venture or growth equity financings, secondary transactions, and corporate governance for high-growth private technology companies
  • Deep familiarity with cap-table mechanics, equity compensation administration, and charter and stockholder agreement provisions, with the precision to reconcile numbers before they reach the board
  • Strong business acumen and ability to partner with finance, accounting, people, and executive stakeholders
  • An ability to communicate clearly with business and technical audiences and effectively translate legal concepts for non-lawyers
  • Hands-on attitude to tackle projects large and small, low-ego approach to working across the organization
  • Positive collaborative attitude, comfort with change and a fast pace, high level of integrity, and intellectual curiosity
  • Comfortable working in a fast-paced, dynamic environment

Benefits

  • Full-time U.S. employees enjoy a comprehensive benefits program including equity, health, dental, vision, retirement, fitness, commuter and dependent care accounts, and more.
  • International Benefits: Full-time employees outside the U.S. enjoy a comprehensive benefits program tailored to their region of residence.
Last updated Aug 19, 2026. Interested? Apply on the company site.

About Perplexity

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Company profileWebsite

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