Legal Counsel

Legal Counsel | Major British Charity | London | Salary £80,000 - £90,000 per annum

This a rare opportunity for a qualified legal professional to join a major British charity. This role reports to the Head of Legal (Investments) and is based in London; offering the chance to work with and learn from the best. 

The Charity: 

• An innovative, major UK asset owner, responsible for managing the £10bn+ endowment fund of one of the UK's most recognisable charities. 
• A registered charity and a global leader in responsible investment.

The Role: 

MAIN DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES:

Commercial Contract Advice

• Review and negotiation of non-investment commercial contracts with external service providers and vendors, including letters of engagement for consultants, software-as-a-service agreements, managing agent agreements and data licences (in liaison with the Legal Office, the Head of Investment Legal and the Vendor and Contracts Manager as appropriate).
• Drafting, reviewing and negotiating non-disclosure agreements, reverse solicitation letters and powers of attorney about investment and non-investment activity.
• Preparing legal agreements for execution and obtaining/collating signatures within the organisation as required.
• Analysis of existing legal agreements to summarise and/or extract key information and data for management information purposes.

Investment Process Support:

• Arranging for and reviewing external legal reports of proposed investments and providing support on the preparation and negotiation of fund documentation, side letters and investment management agreements.
• Arranging for internal tax reviews of proposed investments and obtaining confirmation of the relevant organisation investing entity.
• Review of subscription documents and application forms prepared by the Investment Operations team for closed-ended and open-ended investment funds across various asset classes.
• Supporting the Investment Operations team in their dealings with third-party fund managers and administrators when confirming entity and individual AML and 'know-your-client' requirements and ensuring timely delivery of all documentation.
• Assist with regular and ad-hoc reporting of the outcome of investment legal reviews.

Other Legal Services:

• Assisting with the management and oversight of external legal counsel.
• Collating and filing final legal documentation.
• Undertaking ad-hoc legal research on asset management, real estate and regulatory matters as required.

Profile:

The successful candidate will be a qualified lawyer licensed to practise in the UK. The following are essential skills and qualifications required to thrive in this position:
Professional Qualifications and Experience

• The role will suit a newly qualified solicitor or a solicitor with up to two years of post-qualification experience.
• Preferably admitted to practice in England and Wales and/or another common law jurisdiction.
• Knowledge or previous experience of commercial contracts either at a commercial law firm or in-house is preferred. Previous experience in financial services and/or asset management is desirable but not mandatory.

Skills/Aptitudes

• Approachable style with strong verbal and written communication skills.
• Excellent organisational skills, accuracy and attention to detail.
• Ability to work independently and show initiative.
• Ability to respond to and work through often changing and competing priorities and demonstrable experience of working to and meeting deadlines
• Ability to work with and manage large amounts of data and information.
• Good interpersonal skills.

Personal attributes:

• Self-motivated and dedicated with a demonstrable drive to achieve objectives.
• Ability to quickly build effective working relationships with other team members and other teams.
• A demonstrable ability to prioritise, multi-task and work to tight deadlines.
• Operates with discretion and integrity.

Job Offer:

This role offers a generous salary and a flexible working environment.

Take your career forward, reach out and apply for this Legal Counsel position via the portal below; we look forward to welcoming you onto the team.