General Counsel

The Law Society of Scotland

City of Edinburgh

Hybrid

GBP 80,000 - 120,000

Full time

14 days+

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Benefits offered by this job

Hybrid working environment

Flexible working

Competitive pension provision

Family-friendly benefits

Learning and Development opportunities

Private medical insurance

Health and wellbeing benefits

Job summary

A legal services organization in Edinburgh is seeking a General Counsel to lead its Legal and Governance Team. The ideal candidate will be a qualified Solicitor or Advocate with significant senior legal and leadership experience. The role includes providing expert advice to the CEO and ensuring compliance with legal requirements while safeguarding the organization’s interests.

Qualifications

Significant senior legal and leadership experience in-house or in private practice.
Ability to advise senior leaders and Board on corporate matters.
Expertise in managing complex risks.

Responsibilities

Lead and manage the Society’s Legal and Governance team.
Provide strategic legal advice across the organization.
Ensure compliance with legal requirements.

Skills

Senior legal experience

Leadership

Corporate governance

Risk management

Legal compliance

Education

Qualified Solicitor or Advocate with a current unrestricted practising certificate

Job description

HR Manager at The Law Society of Scotland

The Law Society of Scotland is seeking General Counsel to join the organisation at a pivotal time. This is a new and exciting opportunity to join the Society in leading our Legal and Governance Team.

The General Counsel will be responsible for leading and managing the Society’s Legal and Governance team, providing expert advice and support across the organisation. As a trusted adviser to the CEO and other stakeholders, the role will safeguard the organisation’s interests, ensures compliance with legal requirements and help the Society deliver its strategic objectives with integrity and confidence.

Reporting to the CEO this role will provide strategic legal advice to a range of stakeholders as well as deliver guidance on corporate, legal, employment, and governance matters. The General Counsel will ensure organisational compliance with statutory, legal and governance requirements whilst working to evolve our governance structures. The role holder will monitor legal developments, lead on the identification and management of risks and manage disputes and litigation.

The ideal candidate will be a qualified Solicitor or advocate with a current unrestricted practising certificate and will have significant senior legal and leadership experience gained in‑house or in private practice. A proven ability to advise senior leaders and Board in corporate, commercial, regulatory and governance matters with expertise in managing complex risks is essential.

As a senior position within the Society the candidate will embody our core values of Respect, Openness, Progress, Inclusion, and Integrity which drive our teams to deliver the best possible service for the legal sector.

What we offer our employees?

We offer a comprehensive benefits package to support our colleague’s professional and personal needs. Some of these include:

A hybrid working environment.
Flexible working, to allow you to work around your lifestyle and commitments.
A competitive pension provision scheme.
Excellent family friendly benefits.
Learning and Development opportunities to enhance your skills or through programmes leading to professional or academic qualification.
Private medical insurance including dental and optical.
Various health and wellbeing benefits such as confidential counselling services, bike to work scheme, eyecare, and offers on well-known brands through our Lifestyle savings offering.

The Law Society of Scotland is proud to hold a Leaders in Diversity Award in recognition of our commitment to advance fairness, respect, equality, diversity, inclusion and engagement both within our organisation and in the Scottish legal sector. More information can be found on our Equality and Diversity page.

We are always looking for new talent to join our incredible workforce. If you are looking for a new opportunity within the society, we would love to hear from you!

If this opportunity sounds like the one for you, click Apply now.

This vacancy will close at 11:30am on Monday 3rd November 2025.

Due to the volume of applications, we are unable to provide feedback to applicants who are not selected for interviews.

Seniority level