General Counsel - Safety and Environmental - Aerospace

Job Description

As a General Counsel for Honeywell, you will be responsible for overseeing legal matters and ensuring compliance with laws and regulations. Your expertise in corporate law, contract negotiation, and risk management will be instrumental in protecting our interests and driving our success.

Serve as the leader on all aspects of the health, safety and environmental (HSE) law practice at Honeywell Aerospace, a newly formed public company that will emerge from the spin of Honeywell’s Aerospace division ($17B annual revenues) by Q3 2026. This position has no direct reports but operates at an executive level in the Law Department reporting to the Chief Litigation Officer and has significant influence on legal and business strategy. The role will work with senior legal, HSE operations and compliance leadership and interact closely with business leaders and other functional professionals including our Integrated Supply Chain, our site managers, our HR, and Finance organizations, among other stakeholders.

Why The Role Matters

The General Counsel, Health, Safety, and Environmental (HSE) serves as the company's most senior legal advisor on all environmental, health, and safety matters, with particular emphasis on the strategic management of a substantial legacy environmental remediation portfolio and comprehensive oversight of occupational health and safety legal risk. This is an executive-level role within the Legal Department of a newly public aerospace company whose operations span active manufacturing, research and development, and a considerable number of current and former operating sites carrying historic environmental liabilities and ongoing workplace safety obligations inherent to aerospace production. Given the company's recently established public company status, the significance of its environmental obligations, and the safety-critical nature of aerospace manufacturing, this role carries outsized importance for the organization's credibility with investors, regulators, and the communities in which it operates.

Responsibilities

Key Responsibilities

Environmental Remediation and Legacy Liability Management. Set and drive the legal strategy for the company's portfolio of environmental remediation sites, including properties subject to CERCLA/Superfund obligations, state voluntary cleanup programs, RCRA corrective action requirements, and other federal and state remediation frameworks. Direct the development and execution of legal positions across multi-site remediation programs, coordinating closely with environmental consultants, remediation project managers, and outside counsel to control cost exposure while meeting regulatory milestones. Manage the defense and resolution of contribution and cost-recovery claims, negotiate consent decrees and administrative orders on consent, and advise on allocation disputes involving multiple potentially responsible parties. Evaluate and recommend legal strategies for legacy liabilities inherited through historical corporate transactions, including indemnification claims, insurance recovery actions, and successor liability issues.

Occupational Health and Safety. Serve as the senior legal authority on all matters arising under the Occupational Safety and Health Act, OSHA regulations, and analogous state-plan occupational safety and health programs. Provide legal counsel on compliance with OSHA's general industry standards, including requirements governing hazard communication, lockout/tagout, permit-required confined spaces, respiratory protection, process safety management, and other standards relevant to aerospace manufacturing and maintenance operations. Oversee the legal response to OSHA inspections, citations, and penalty proceedings, including contest proceedings before the Occupational Safety and Health Review Commission. Advise on recordkeeping and reporting obligations, whistleblower and anti-retaliation protections and workplace safety dimensions of contractor and subcontractor management. Collaborate with the HSE operations team on incident investigations, root cause analyses, and corrective action plans to mitigate legal exposure following workplace injuries or fatalities.

Litigation Management. Oversee environmental, toxic tort, and occupational safety litigation, including personal injury and property damage claims, natural resource damage actions, citizens' suits arising from current or legacy operations, and claims arising from workplace injuries or alleged safety violations. Select, direct, and manage outside counsel handling HSE-related disputes, with a focus on cost-effective resolution strategies. Coordinate with the company's broader litigation function to ensure consistent legal positions and efficient resource allocation across the environmental and safety docket.

Corporate Transactions and Due Diligence. Support mergers, acquisitions, divestitures, and joint ventures by leading environmental and occupational safety due diligence workstreams. Assess and quantify environmental and workplace safety liabilities associated with target companies, assets, and real property, including evaluation of OSHA citation history, abatement obligations, and open enforcement matters. Draft and negotiate environmental representations, warranties, indemnification provisions, and remediation cost-sharing arrangements in transaction agreements. Advise on post-closing integration of environmental and occupational safety compliance programs and remediation obligations.

Public Company Disclosure and Financial Reporting. Partner with the Finance, Accounting, and Investor Relations teams to ensure accurate and timely disclosure of environmental and safety-related liabilities in SEC filings, including Forms 10-K, 10-Q, and 8-K, proxy statements, and earnings materials. Advise on the adequacy of environmental reserves and contingent liability disclosures under applicable accounting standards, including reserves associated with significant OSHA enforcement actions or workplace safety litigation. Support the Audit Committee and Disclosure Committee in evaluating the materiality of environmental and occupational safety matters and the sufficiency of related disclosures. Prepare and deliver periodic briefings to the executive leadership, and support Board presentations on the status of significant environmental and safety matters, emerging risks, and mitigation strategies.

Qualifications

OU MUST HAVE

• Juris Doctor (J.D.) from an accredited law school and active membership in good standing with at least one state bar.
• A minimum of 10 years of substantive experience practicing environmental and occupational safety law, with time spent advising on remediation, contaminated site cleanup, legacy liability management, and OSHA compliance and enforcement matters. A combination of law firm and in-house experience is preferred, with meaningful time in a senior in-house role.
• Deep working knowledge of CERCLA/Superfund, RCRA, the Clean Air Act, the Clean Water Act, TSCA, and analogous state environmental statutes, including practical experience managing matters under these frameworks.
• Thorough understanding of the Occupational Safety and Health Act, OSHA's general industry and construction standards, state-plan OSHA programs, and OSHRC contest proceedings.
• Demonstrated experience managing multi-site remediation portfolios, including oversight of consent decrees, administrative orders, PRP negotiations, and allocation proceedings.
• Familiarity with environmental and workplace safety issues common to the aerospace, defense, or heavy manufacturing sectors, such as solvent contamination, per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), hexavalent chromium, process safety management, and other hazards associated with aerospace production and maintenance operations.
• Experience advising a publicly traded company (or equivalent regulatory reporting environment) on environmental and safety disclosure obligations, including SEC reporting of environmental contingencies and reserves.
• Proven history of managing outside counsel, multidisciplinary teams of environmental consultants and technical experts, and substantial HSE legal budgets.

WE VALUE

• Undergraduate or graduate-level education in environmental science, environmental engineering, chemistry, geology, industrial hygiene, occupational safety, or a related technical discipline.
• Direct experience negotiating and managing long-term consent decrees, unilateral administrative orders, and remedial design/remedial action agreements with the EPA or state environmental agencies.
• Background in government enforcement defense, including responding to Section 104(e) information requests, negotiating penalty mitigation, managing supplemental environmental projects, and defending OSHA citations through informal conference and OSHRC proceedings.
• Experience leading or supporting environmental and occupational safety due diligence and liability allocation in M&A transactions, including post-acquisition integration of environmental and safety compliance programs and remediation obligations.
• Familiarity with environmental and workplace safety insurance products, including pollution legal liability policies, and experience pursuing legacy insurance recovery for environmental claims.
• Working knowledge of ESG reporting frameworks, SEC climate-related disclosure requirements, and evolving sustainability reporting standards relevant to public aerospace companies.

Due to compliance with U.S. export control laws and regulations, candidate must be a U.S. Person, which is defined as, a U.S. citizen, a U.S. permanent resident, or have protected status in the U.S. under asylum or refugee status or have the ability to obtain an export authorization.

The annual base salary range for this position is . Please note that this salary information serves as a general guideline. Honeywell considers various factors when extending an offer, including but not limited to the scope and responsibilities of the position, the candidate's work experience, education and training, key skills, as well as market and business considerations.

This position is incentive plan eligible.

In addition to a competitive salary, leading-edge work, and developing solutions side-by-side with dedicated experts in their fields, Honeywell employees are eligible for a comprehensive benefits package. This package includes employer subsidized Medical, Dental, Vision, and Life Insurance; Short-Term and Long-Term Disability; 401(k) match, Flexible Spending Accounts, Health Savings Accounts, EAP, and Educational Assistance; Parental Leave, Paid Time Off (for vacation, personal business, sick time, and parental leave), and 12 Paid Holidays. For more information visit: Benefits at Honeywell

The application period for the job is estimated to be 40 days from the job posting date; however, this may be shortened or extended depending on business needs and the availability of qualified candidates.