UCL
Legal Counsel
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About us
UCL is a global powerhouse: over 50,000 students, 16,000 staff and an annual turnover of £1.9bn, consistently ranked among the world's top 10 universities. Behind that scale sits the Office of the General Counsel - led by the General Counsel, reporting directly to the President and Provost - which brings together Legal Services, Data Protection and Freedom of Information, Governance, Policy, and Risk and Compliance to keep UCL's ambitions on a sound legal and governance footing.
Legal Services, led by the Director of Legal Services, is the in-house team candidates will be joining. It's a close-knit, highly regarded department that advises across the full breadth of university life - commercial, property, employment, IP, research, charity and governance matters - giving lawyers here a variety and depth of work rarely found in a single in-house role.
About the role
As Legal Counsel, you'll be a valued member of the Legal Services team, delivering pragmatic, commercially astute advice that helps UCL move forward with confidence. You'll build genuine expertise across a portfolio shaped around your interests and the department's needs, spanning:
- General commercial and university work - drafting and negotiating complex agreements, intellectual property, research agreements, charity matters, governance, student complaints and appeals, regulatory compliance and international matters.
- Property - complex commercial purchases and sales, development and construction projects, and portfolio and asset management.
- Employment and disputes - contentious and non-contentious employment matters, commercial dispute resolution, discrimination and equality issues, freedom of speech, trade unions, change management, pensions and policy development.
You'll also deputise for the Senior Legal Counsel when needed - a role with real visibility and room to grow.
Main Responsibilities
- Work as an active member of Legal Services, aligned to the department's strategy and objectives, deputising for Senior Legal Counsel as required.
- Line-manage more junior colleagues (paralegals or trainees) where required - supporting their development, training and performance.
- Lead or contribute to teams of legal and non-legal colleagues on institutional projects, with oversight of delegation, quality control and risk escalation.
- Help the department run efficiently - sharing knowledge, briefing colleagues, and using external legal support judiciously.
- Provide flexible, high-quality legal support across your portfolio: commercial, charity, governance, employment, pensions, IP, disputes, property, research, regulatory and procurement compliance, and international matters.
- Give solutions-focused, commercially astute advice aligned with UCL's Strategic Plan, instructing external counsel where it adds the most value.
- Champion good governance, quality-control governance papers, and provide briefing papers and ad hoc analysis for senior stakeholders.
- Spot legal risks early and shape practical mitigation - and keep on top of the legislation, case law and regulation that matters to UCL.
- Project-manage matters through to a timely conclusion.
- Partner with stakeholders across the Office of the General Counsel, UCL and its wider group, becoming a trusted adviser to the teams you support.
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About you
You'll thrive in this role if you can bring:
Essential
- Qualification as a solicitor or barrister, holding (or entitled to hold) a current SRA or Bar Standards Board practising certificate, or Registered Foreign Lawyer status/registration with the SRA.
- Strong knowledge of legal issues relevant to general commercial and university matters, including drafting and negotiating complex agreements and giving pragmatic advice in a complex organisation.
- A track record of briefing and influencing at management level, and of building strong stakeholder relationships.
- Experience contributing to legal project management on significant, cross-disciplinary projects.
- Confidence taking on new or unfamiliar legal issues, sound judgment, and excellent analytical skills.
- A genuine commitment to advancing equality, diversity and inclusion.
Desirable
- 6+ years' relevant post-qualification experience gained at a leading law firm or in-house (candidates with strong skills and less PQE are still very welcome to apply).
- Subject-matter expertise - or a developing interest - in intellectual property, IT, research, charities, governance, corporate structuring or philanthropy.
- An appreciation of higher education and empathy with academic life, even without direct sector experience.
How to apply
Please copy the essential and desirable criteria above into your Statement in Support of your Application and describe, with examples, how you meet each one - you'll be scored against these criteria.
What we offer
- Up to 41 days' annual leave (27 days plus closure days and bank holidays), with the option to purchase additional leave.
- One of the most highly regarded pension schemes in the sector (USS).
- Hybrid and flexible working, genuinely supported in practice, not just on paper.
- A strong culture of professional development - training, mentoring and the chance to broaden your expertise across a wide legal portfolio.
- Staff discounts, season ticket loans, an electric vehicle lease scheme, and access to UCL's world-class museums, lectures and events.
- The chance to do legal work that genuinely matters - shaping the institution behind world-changing research and teaching.
Our commitment to Equality, Diversity and Inclusion
As London's Global University, we know diversity fosters creativity and innovation. We are committed to equality of opportunity, to being fair and inclusive, and to being a place where we all belong. We particularly encourage applications from candidates underrepresented in UCL's workforce, including those from Black, Asian and ethnic minority backgrounds, disabled people, and - for Grade 9 and 10 roles - women. Read more: UCL Equality, Diversity and Inclusion. Applicants should also familiarise themselves with UCL's policies on: Prevention of Bullying, Harassment and Sexual Misconduct Policy and Personal Relationships Policy.
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Desired Skills and Experience
- Qualified solicitor or barrister with relevant post-qualification experience and holding, or being entitled to hold, either: i) a current practising certificate issued by the Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA), Bar Standards Board, or the regulator of a profession approved by the SRA for Registered Foreign Lawyer (RFL) status, or ii) registration as an RFL with the SRA.
- Strong knowledge of legal issues in areas aligned to the subject matter focus of the role, particularly general commercial and university matters, and including drafting and negotiating complex agreements and providing pragmatic, solutions-focused advice in a complex organisational environment.
- Experience of briefing and influencing at management level.
- Experience of involvement in legal project management in relation to significant organisational cross-disciplinary projects involving legal and non-legal stakeholders.
- Experience of positively contributing to building stakeholder relationships.
Skills and abilities
- Experience dealing with a range of legal issues on a self-standing basis and a willingness to take on new tasks in unfamiliar areas and to react confidently and quickly to emerging issues.
- Evidence of a developing ability to create confidence and trust with stakeholders through the provision of pragmatic, accurate and timely advice, working collaboratively with stakeholders and considering the strategic priorities of the organisation.
- The ability to propose and deliver workable solutions to a wide variety of legal issues and to manage and prioritise a varied workload in a timely and cost-effective manner.
- Up to date technical knowledge and a willingness to undertake further training and development as necessary.
- A demonstrable contribution to advancing equality, diversity and inclusion.
- Good commercial acumen gained in the public or private sector.
- Excellent analytical skills and sound judgment.
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