Role: Senior Legal Counsel (Fixed Term Contract)
Location: Shoreham-by-Sea, West Sussex (Hybrid, typically 3 days on-site / 2 days from home)
Contract: Fixed Term Contract, approx. 9 months (divestment-related cover) with potential to become permanent
Salary: £85,000 (some flexibility for the right person, potentially up to £90,000 to £95,000)
Start: ASAP (client is looking to move quickly)
The opportunity
We are working with a well-established engineering and consulting organisation to appoint a Senior Legal Counsel on a fixed term contract. This is a hands-on role supporting a busy engineering business, advising on complex commercial contracts, tender activity, and broader legal risk.
This position suits someone who can step in with minimal handover, take ownership of existing projects and agreements, and provide practical, commercially focused advice to senior stakeholders.
Key responsibilities
- Draft, review and negotiate a range of commercial agreements including: customer and supplier contracts, consultancy agreements, framework agreements, SLAs, NDAs.
- Support bid and tender activity, contract negotiations, and dispute management as required
- Provide pragmatic legal guidance aligned to internal policies and risk appetite
- Promote and support compliance with internal contracting processes
- Support corporate governance requirements for UK entities (board support, statutory compliance and filings where needed)
- Advise on regulatory and compliance topics relevant to the business, including sectors linked to UK defence and export controls
- Manage disputes and claims, and coordinate external counsel where required
- Work closely with the General Counsel within a lean legal team during a period of change
What we are looking for
- Qualified Solicitor (England and Wales)
- Strong commercial contracts background, including negotiating complex agreements
- In-house experience strongly preferred (engineering or technical environment beneficial)
- PQE is flexible, candidates around 5+ years PQE will be considered
- Confident working autonomously, able to pick up live matters quickly without hand-holding
- Desirable: exposure to defence-related work and export controls
Security checks
Due to the nature of some projects, the client may complete security screening (likely BPSS level).
Process
- Stage 1: 45-minute Teams interview with the General Counsel (technical commercial questions)
- Stage 2: Informal on-site visit