Typical comp shape
In-house counsels usually earn rsu. Common employers include Alphabet, Meta, OpenAI. In-house attorneys at pre-IPO tech firms often hold concentrated ISOs.
What North Carolina changes
In North Carolina, every RSU vest, NSO exercise, and ESPP purchase carries 4.25% state tax on top of federal. For a senior in-house counsel with $300k+ of equity income, the state layer routinely adds $25-45k to the annual bill.
Planning cadence
For a in-house counsel in North Carolina, the three planning windows are: after each RSU vest (withholding check and sell-vs-hold), before any ISO exercise (AMT model at federal only), and in Q4 (estimated tax top-up to clear the safe harbor).