Associate General Counsel, Energy & Regulatory

Position Description

The Associate General Counsel, Energy & Regulatory will play a critical role helping us navigate a wide range of energy-related legal, regulatory, and public policy matters, as we continue to develop, build, and scale our powerhouse fleet. We are looking for an attorney with 7-10 years of energy regulatory experience, with substantial experience managing FERC and State Public Utility Commission (PUC) engagements and submissions, and supporting interconnection applications.

This person’s primary responsibilities will be to lead our FERC, State PUC, and interconnection-related legal work, including representing Oklo in FERC and PUC proceedings and supporting interconnection agreements and processes. They will also support energy-related policy work, including monitoring and engaging in FERC and related regulatory rulemaking efforts, monitoring relevant policy developments with ISOs and RTOs, and working closely with our government affairs team on federal, state, and local legislative engagements. Beyond FERC and energy-related regulatory support, they will support other pre-construction regulatory and zoning efforts, including supporting environmental reviews and engagements, and local zoning and permitting work, leveraging outside counsel as needed. Note that we have a dedicated team to handle nuclear regulatory engagement with the NRC and Department of Energy, and that work is outside of the scope of this role (although you will certainly work in coordination with them on related matters).

This role sits at the intersection of cutting-edge nuclear energy technology and energy regulatory law. The ideal candidate will have deep experience in FERC practice and energy project development, and will bring hands-on experience navigating complex regulatory approval processes. As a high-growth company, you will also help with other legal needs across the company as they arise. This role, which reports directly to our General Counsel, is perfect for an experienced energy regulatory attorney who is ready to roll up their sleeves and help a growing company navigate (and improve) a complex regulatory landscape.

We are not looking for someone who is looking to operate in a silo: we are a lean team and hire lawyers who are great at what they do, but are excited to do work beyond their areas of expertise. Oklo is growing fast and every day presents new opportunities and challenging legal questions—we care more about you and your ability to learn and grow than your specific substantive experience or which boxes you check. If you are someone who thrives in exciting and fast-moving environments, and are eager to grow and push yourself, this role may be for you.

Specific responsibilities may include:

• Lead all FERC-related legal matters, including filings, compliance, and proceedings before FERC; advise on generator interconnection processes, wholesale power market rules, and transmission access matters;
• Support energy-related public policy work, including monitoring FERC and other regulatory rulemakings and participating in comment processes;
• Work closely with our government affairs team on federal, state, and local legislative and regulatory initiatives;
• Support pre-construction regulatory and zoning work, including environmental reviews (NEPA and state equivalents), local permitting, land use approvals, and siting matters, managing outside counsel as needed;
• Help to review and negotiate interconnection agreements, and support our commercial legal team with energy-related requirements in agreements being negotiated; and
• Track regulatory developments across key jurisdictions and advise business teams on regulatory strategy and compliance risk.
• Provide expertise and technical assistance supporting federal, state and local government affairs teams on legislation and policy analysis that could impact or improve outcomes.

Minimum Qualifications:

• A J.D. from an ABA-accredited law school and admission to practice law in at least one U.S. state;
• 7–10 years of energy regulatory experience at a large law firm or in-house legal department;
• Substantive FERC practice experience, including experience with FERC filings, rulemakings, and proceedings;
• Experience with State PUC filings and matters;
• Experience with generator interconnection processes and/or transmission access matters, or other experience with state public utility commission proceedings;
• Experience with energy-related public policy and legislative affairs, and close collaboration with government affairs teams;
• Strong attention to detail and ability to manage and prioritize multiple matters simultaneously.

Bonus Qualifications:

• Experience working on data center related matters;
• Prior experience working at or with FERC or State PUCs;
• Experience working in-house at a high-growth or startup company;
• Familiarity with energy project permitting and pre-construction regulatory approvals, including NEPA and state environmental review;
• Experience supporting local zoning or permitting efforts;
• Interest in experimenting with AI and other tools;
• Nuclear and/or nuclear-adjacent technologies or renewables experience.

Competencies

We are looking for an Associate General Counsel, Energy & Regulatory that is:

• Deeply knowledgeable in FERC practice, power markets, and energy regulatory law, with hands-on experience in FERC proceedings and filings;
• Familiar with State Public Utility Commission processes;
• Experienced with generator interconnection processes, transmission access, and wholesale power market rules;
• Effective at triaging and prioritizing across a wide range of tasks and project managing cross-functional tasks to completion;
• An excellent communicator (including to engineers and other non-lawyers) focused on solutions and willing to explain the “why” behind legal advice;
• Substantively agile: someone who enjoys leaning into new areas, and is comfortable learning new things (and learning quickly!);
• Detail-oriented while moving lightning fast;
• Passionate about clean energy and making advanced fission a reality;
• An optimist at heart;
• Resourceful, inquisitive, and willing and able to learn quickly;
• Comfortable in a fast-paced, highly iterative startup environment.

Who you are:

A startup person: You aren't driven by titles or hierarchy, and prefer efficiency to excess process. You don't need or expect to have a lot of guidance but you enjoy working in a fast-paced team. If you prefer the culture and feel of a large organization, that is great, but you likely won’t enjoy working with us! There is plenty of important work and plenty of good opportunities with organizations like that.

Motivated: You are self-motivated. You bring an enthusiasm to the team, and imbue a sense of passion that goes beyond clocking in and clocking out. This isn’t about a fake or arbitrary “pieces of flair” mentality or lack of work-life balance! It is about being a part of the vision and feeling a part of reaching team goals.

A team-player: Oklo genuinely is a team. We aren’t about taking credit for ourselves, and we aren’t about pushing blame to others. We do incredible things because we work as a team.

An excellent communicator: We need a person who is not only technically competent but also a clear and upbeat communicator.

Creative: Being creative means that when things fall outside clear scopes or processes or problems arise without clear solutions, you are able to identify it as well as invent ways to solve a problem or fill a need without micromanagement. The successful person in this job will not only be creative, but also enjoy being creative and solving open-ended problems which may change day-by-day.

Detail-oriented: This focus is a big part of excellence, consistency, and quality. Excellent grammar and spelling matter for both good communication as well as the image of the company that we put forward.

About Oklo travel requirements:

Oklo requires remote employees to travel to headquarters (Santa Clara, CA) twice a quarter annually, based on business or team needs, including attendance at team meetings, off-sites, and other company events or gatherings. For the first two weeks of onboarding, employees are required to be in person at headquarters in Santa Clara, CA. This role will also likely need to travel occasionally to our project sites, which include locations in Idaho, Ohio, Tennessee, and Texas.

About Oklo compensation:

Salary: $230,000-$250,000

Oklo offers flexible time off, equity, bonuses, competitive pay, 401(k), health insurance (with employer contribution), HSA, FSA, flexible work hours, wellness credits, and other benefits.

This position may involve access to information subject to U.S. export control laws. Only applicants who meet the definition of a U.S. person under applicable laws may be eligible.