Legal Counsel- Award-Winning University, Dundee

Exceptional new in-house role for a legal counsel looking to work with an award-winning University based in Dundee, Scotland. 

Role Profile:

• The primary function of the role is to work closely with the Director of Legal to advise on a wide range of legal and related commercial issues and to develop and deliver expert advice and support to the University.
• You will ensure effective corporate governance and the development and maintenance of effective working relationships with, and services to, all University employees, staff, internal, and external stakeholders.
• You will work, under the direction of the Director of Legal, directly with business and senior management teams including business development units (Research and Innovation Services (RIS) and Education Partnership Development Unit (EPDU)) who will rely on you for your commercially focussed, solution orientated advice.
• On this basis you will have strong communication skills combined with commercial insight. It’s a crucial task that you sit on project teams and shape complex contractual negotiations and arrangements from origin to completion.

Core Responsibilities:

• Key to this pivotal role is previous commercial contract experience (ideally learnt in-house), and the drive to grow a highly risk aware culture promoting compliance with all legal and regulatory requirements of the University and a dynamic, robust personality. 
• You will be able to work in a regulatory and commercial environment.
• You will blend excellent analytical skills with a gift for dealing with people. It’s important you manage significant stakeholders, including the academic community and industry, as well as high-performing professional teams.
• You will also be comfortable leading on the drafting of complex commercial contracts with industry and HE sector collaborators in a commercial (and at times international) context.  Appliance of sound commercial judgement to legal issues will be central to success.
• You will have a hardworking and can do attitude, and be willing and able to get involved a number of different areas of work. A confident solicitor who is a real team player and enjoys challenging themselves on a daily basis.
• You will relish the chance to make a real contribution to the leadership and management of legal risk within the University and deliver balanced commercial outcomes.
• You shall provide dedicated support to a group of schools and departments on their respective legal risk issues.
• You will be reviewing and negotiating a wide range of commercial agreements including research contracts, collaboration agreements, framework agreements and clinical trial agreements. 
• Additional responsibilities include providing commercial and legal advice throughout a project’s or collaboration’s lifetime, developing and maintaining standard templates and providing training and support to junior members of the team. 

Candidate Requirements:

• 4 year's post qualification legal experience in private practice and/or in an in-house role- experience within the education sector would be advantage but not essential.
• Recent relevant commercial contracts experience in a high paced environment.
• Ability to provide commercial advice and take a pragmatic approach to solving legal and commercial problems.
• An ability to effectively communicate complex topics and concepts to a diverse audience and demonstrate the highest professional standards of operation and service is essential.
• The candidate will possess a high degree of self-confidence and convey an authoritative manner and will command the respect of others whilst being seen as someone of integrity, sincerity and in whom others place their trust.
• The ability to develop strong working relationships with a range of internal and external stakeholders and have strong influencing skills is required. The role holder must demonstrate a thorough approach to work, be detail conscious, have high personal standards and be able to organise them self and others effectively whilst demonstrating commercial awareness and understanding.  
• The capability and desire to succeed are essential in this role. The successful candidate must have the ability and willingness to take responsibility for difficult decisions.

To discuss this role in confidence or to apply, please contact David Thomson, Director at Thomson Legal by completing the Apply Now details in the box below. Alternatively, please click on the Thomson Legal logo to access our recruiter profile where you can contact us directly via telephone, email or social media.