Group Legal Counsel - 9 Month Ftc

Valeo Foods; England; Sur place; GBP 65 000 - 85 000; Plein temps

Résumé du poste

Valeo Foods is seeking a qualified lawyer to help shape a Group legal function with ownership and impact. You will draft and negotiate commercial, procurement, IT and HR contracts, support M&A workstreams, and help build governance, compliance, and legal tech tools as the Group scales.

You will work with central teams across Procurement, IT, People, Finance/Treasury and ESG, gaining exposure to senior stakeholders early on and shaping how the function operates in a growing international business.

Qualifications

• Qualified lawyer in England & Wales with commercial contracting experience.
• 3–5 post-qualification experience or equivalent; other PQEs may be considered.
• In-house experience preferred but private practice candidates considered.
• Experience with procurement/IT contracting, M&A support, governance basics and privacy operations is advantageous.
• Exposure to corporate M&A transactions and familiarity with governance basics.

Responsabilités

• Draft, review and negotiate commercial, procurement, IT and HR contracts.
• Establish and maintain clause banks and guidance for self-serve, track key terms.
• Help create the legal front door and templates/playbooks.
• Support legal workstreams across acquisitions/divestments and restructurings.
• Coordinate post-close integration and governance/Company Secretarial tasks.
• Support global IP strategy execution and regulatory horizon scanning.
• Assist in privacy operations, compliance programs and data protection frameworks.
• Help implement core legal tech (CLM, trackers, dashboards) and SOPs.

Description du poste

Job Description

A role built for someone who wants to grow fast, with ownership, impact and the opportunity to help shape a Group legal function from the ground up.

You’ll join Valeo Foods Group at a pivotal moment in our growth journey, working at the heart of a fast‑moving international consumer business.

This role gives you the opportunity to grow alongside the function you’ll help build. Rather than stepping into a legacy structure, you’ll be part of shaping how Legal operates as the Group scales, contributing ideas, creating tools and processes, and helping define what “great” looks like for years to come.

You’ll work closely with central teams across Procurement, IT, People, Finance/Treasury and ESG, gaining exposure to a wide range of work streams and senior stakeholders early on. The day to day is hands on and varied: drafting and negotiating commercial, procurement and technology contracts, and helping teams move quickly with clear, practical guidance.

• Commercial Contracts & Central Function Support
  • Draft, review and negotiate commercial, procurement, IT and HR contracts.
  • Establish and maintain clause banks and guidance to enable self-serve for low-risk matters and track key terms.
  • Help create the legal “front door”.
• M&A Enablement & Integration
  • Support legal workstreams across acquisitions/divestments as well as restructurings.
  • Coordinate legal post-close integration.
• Governance, Company Secretarial & Litigation Oversight
  • Maintain and help create corporate governance frameworks.
  • Maintain the Group litigation/claims tracker and help create supporting processes.
  • Support and design delegations of authority and power of attorney mapping and implementation.
• Brand & Regulatory Protection
  • Support global IP strategy execution.
  • Assist in regulatory horizon scanning (EU/UK and industry updates) and convert into actionable guidance.
  • Compliance, Privacy & Training
    • Support the rollout of Group compliance frameworks.
    • Help build data protection operational frameworks with People/IT.
  • Ways of Working
    • Help create template/playbook library and help implement core legal tech (CLM, trackers, dashboards).

Qualifications

• Qualified lawyer in England & Wales (or EU/Commonwealth equivalent) with commercial contracting experience.
• 3–5 post qualification experience or equivalent – this is provided as a guide and other PQEs may be considered.
• In-house exposure preferred but private practice candidates considered.
• Proven commercial contracting experience.
• Experience with procurement/IT contracting, M&A support, governance basics and privacy operations is advantageous.
• Exposure to corporate M&A transactions.
• Familiarity with governance and Company Secretarial basics.
• Working knowledge of privacy/GDPR operations and compliance program elements.
• Process orientation: able to create templates, SOPs and simple dashboards; interest in legal tech (CLM, trackers, MS 365, Sharepoint).
• Strong communication and stakeholder skills; ability to present clear recommendations to non-lawyers.

Additional Information

• The opportunity to work on Group‑level strategic priorities with significant visibility
• Exposure to M&A integration, divestments, operating model work and commercial/operational transformation
• A role where your work will genuinely influence the future direction of the business
• A culture built around accountability, agility, discipline, transparency and teamwork
• The chance to shape how a growing international organisation works together