Margaret McCandless
About Margaret McCandless
Margaret McCandless is General Counsel and Corporate Secretary at Local Bounti (LOCL), serving since February 2022 and March 2022, respectively; she is 52 as of the 2025 proxy . She holds a J.D. from the University of Wisconsin Law School and a B.S. in Accounting from the University of Colorado at Boulder . She was a named executive officer in 2024 with total compensation of $443,700, composed of $354,900 salary and $75,000 in RSUs; no bonus was paid . The company’s executive compensation is primarily time-vested RSUs without disclosed operating or TSR metrics; LOCL maintains a Dodd‑Frank compliant clawback and prohibits hedging and pledging (unless pledge is pre‑approved), affecting trading dynamics and alignment .
Past Roles
| Organization | Role | Years | Strategic Impact |
|---|---|---|---|
| Local Bounti | General Counsel; Corporate Secretary | Feb 2022–present | Oversees securities, disclosure, governance; corporate secretary responsibilities |
| Royal Gold (NYSE: RGLD) | Chief Compliance Officer; Assistant GC; Corporate Secretary | 2020–2022 | Led compliance and governance at a public royalty company |
| Intrepid Potash (NYSE: IPI) | VP, General Counsel & Secretary; Assistant GC & Assistant Secretary | 2012–2019 | Public company legal leadership; regulatory and governance |
| CenturyLink/Qwest | Associate GC – Securities, Disclosure & Corporate Governance | 2004–2011 | SEC reporting and governance for large-cap telecoms |
| Hogan Lovells; Cooley | Associate | Pre‑2004 | Foundational corporate/securities practice experience |
External Roles
- None disclosed in company filings .
Fixed Compensation
| Year | Base Salary ($) | Target Bonus (%) | Actual Bonus ($) | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | 354,900 | — | — | 4% salary increase effective Jan 1, 2024 (from $341,250) |
Performance Compensation
| Award Type | Grant Date | Shares/Units | Grant Date Fair Value ($) | Metric | Weighting | Target | Actual | Payout | Vesting |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| RSU (annual grant) | 4/25/2024 | 25,000 | 75,000 | Service-based | N/A | N/A | N/A | RSUs granted | 3 equal tranches vesting on Feb 1, 2025/2026/2027 |
| RSU (prior grant) | 1/1/2023 | 7,052 | — | Service-based | N/A | N/A | N/A | Unvested balance | 3 equal tranches vesting on Apr 1, 2023/2024/2025 |
| RSU (prior grant) | 3/1/2022 | 4,616 | — | Service-based | N/A | N/A | N/A | Unvested balance | 10% vest Mar 1, 2023; 30% vest Mar 1, 2024/2025/2026 |
Outstanding unvested stock awards as of 12/31/2024: 25,000 RSUs ($51,750), 7,052 RSUs ($14,598), 4,616 RSUs ($9,555) based on $2.07 stock price at 12/31/2024 .
Equity Ownership & Alignment
| As-of Date | Beneficially Owned Shares | % of Shares Outstanding | Shares Outstanding Reference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mar 31, 2025 | 25,795 | <1% (*) | 10,633,947 outstanding as of Mar 31, 2025 |
| Aug 11, 2025 | 32,162 | <1% (*) | 22,123,010 outstanding as of Aug 11, 2025 |
- Hedging/Pledging: Insider Trading Policy prohibits hedging and pledging; pledges require compliance officer approval; short sales and derivatives are prohibited .
- Equity Plan: As of 12/31/2024, 1,226,308 shares issuable under outstanding RSUs; no options shown (weighted average exercise price N/A) .
- Ownership Guidelines: Not disclosed in filings reviewed.
Employment Terms
- Role start: General Counsel since Feb 2022; Corporate Secretary since Mar 2022 .
- Clawback: Compensation Recovery Policy adopted Oct 2, 2023 (Dodd‑Frank compliant) .
- Insider Trading Policy: Prohibits hedging, pledging without approval, short sales, derivatives; 10b5‑1 plan guidelines filed with 10‑K .
- Severance/Change‑in‑Control, non‑compete/non‑solicit, tax gross‑ups: Not disclosed for McCandless in reviewed filings.
Compensation Committee Analysis
- Committee composition: Pamela Brewster (Chair), Matthew Nordby; four meetings in 2024; Meridian Compensation Partners retained as independent consultant .
- Process: Committee reviews executive compensation, director pay, succession planning, and incentive plans; management (including General Counsel) may provide recommendations for other executives’ pay .
Governance, Ownership and Voting Context
- Beneficial ownership tables show McCandless <1% ownership at both March and August 2025 checkpoints .
- Special meeting proxy (Aug 25, 2025) appoints McCandless as a proxy holder, reflecting central governance role .
Investment Implications
- Pay-for-performance alignment: McCandless’ variable pay is exclusively time-vested RSUs with no disclosed performance metrics or cash bonus, signaling alignment through tenure rather than operating targets; clawback and no‑hedging policies increase accountability and reduce misalignment risk .
- Vesting and selling pressure: Notable RSU vest dates on Feb 1, 2025/2026/2027 and prior tranches (Apr 1, Mar 1 schedules) could concentrate settlement-related sales around these windows; absence of options and hedging limits speculative pressure but monitor 10b5‑1 plans and Form 4 activity near vesting dates .
- Retention risk: Time-vested RSUs with multi‑year schedules support retention; limited disclosed severance/CoC economics reduces guaranteed downside protection, making equity continuity more important for talent retention .
- Alignment: Beneficial ownership is small (<1%) but ongoing RSU accrual increases exposure; prohibitions on pledging and hedging (with only narrow pledge exception) mitigate alignment red flags .