Becoming GC: Tara Young’s Journey Through Setbacks, Strategy & Adaptability

In this episode of This Legal Life, host Ben Chiriboga sits down with Tara Young, General Counsel of Spearmint Energy, as she walks us through her remarkable career from a 2008 layoff to navigating private equity pressures and ultimately finding her place as a strategic leader in the fast-changing energy sector.

Tara shares how mentors, executive coaching, and learning to be “comfortable being uncomfortable” shaped her path. Her story offers legal professionals a candid and practical look at what it takes to grow, adapt, and thrive in modern in-house leadership.

Meet Tara:

Ms. Young is a seasoned attorney with 20 years of experience including 15 as an in-house attorney and 10 in the energy industry. She is currently General Counsel, Corporate Secretary and Chief Compliance Officer of Spearmint Energy, a utility-scale battery storage developer. She has also held positions with Plus Power, NV Energy and Berkshire Hathaway Energy. Earlier in her career, Ms. Young worked at a variety of companies and law firms in Las Vegas where she resides. Ms. Young also serves as a probono attorney for children in foster care. Outside of work, Ms. Young is the mom of 5 children (ages 19 to 6) and runs marathons to maintain her sanity.