Legal Counsel

Gensler; City Of London; On-site; GBP 60,000 - 80,000; Full time

Job summary

A global design firm in London seeks a Legal Counsel to provide legal support and advise on contract negotiations. Applicants should be qualified solicitors with 3+ years in construction and design law, and possess strong communication and relationship-building skills. This is a non-remote position focused on collaboration and partnership within the team.

Benefits

Medical and dental insurance

Season ticket loans

Pension plan

Bonus opportunities

Qualifications

• 3+ years of post-qualification experience in construction and design.
• Demonstrated ability to work in a high-energy, fast-paced practice.
• Emotional intelligence and interpersonal skills are essential.

Responsibilities

• Provide legal support to practitioners and negotiate contracts.
• Engage with management to balance business opportunities and challenges.
• Lead legal training for Gensler’s staff.

Skills

Relationship-building skills

Presentation skills

Negotiation skills

Creative problem solving

Strong communication skills

Time management skills

Education

Qualified Solicitor of England & Wales

Job description

Overview

Your Role

Gensler is seeking a Legal Counsel to join our Legal Studio, reporting to Senior International Counsel. The position is located in our London office and will provide dedicated support to our London, Birmingham, Munich, Berlin and Paris offices, but will also have the opportunity to support our Greater China and Asia Pacific, Middle East offices with our other Legal Studio teammates. The Legal Counsel will work in a team with the Paralegal and Senior International Counsel to counsel and train project teams, review and negotiate contracts, address project issues and support in managing claims, implement risk mitigation strategies, provide ethical conduct management, and provide other ad-hoc advice. The Legal Counsel is expected to become a trusted advisor to senior regional leadership on legal issues and risk management strategy. The Legal Counsel will also support the Legal Studio with enterprise-wide initiatives.

This is a rare opportunity for a lawyer with a passion for understanding the business of design and a desire to work with creative leaders to become part of the Gensler family. This is not a conventional, back-office, black-letter legal role; at Gensler you will be on the front-line, dealing with our most valued clients daily, and work in partnership to navigate opportunities and challenges in an ever-complex world. We are not just looking for an extremely talented legal professional, we need someone who is enthusiastic, curious, and driven to build relationships across our practice and help us realize on our commitment to improve our world through the power of design.

Please note, this role is not remote. We look forward to working with our new Legal Counsel in our incredible London office.

What You Will Do

• Lead on providing legal support to our practitioners.
• Review and negotiate contracts for design, architecture, and related professional services and sub-consulting disciplines.
• Engage with business management to balance opportunities and challenges and make informed business decisions.
• Manage and analyse project issues, including allegations of design and construction deficiencies.
• Work with project teams to mitigate potential claims and escalate response as appropriate.
• Develop and deliver legal training for Gensler’s staff.
• Advise on general business issues (e.g., collections, staffing, licensure).
• Assist Corporate and Compliance Counsel, as needed, with respect to practice requirements.
• Mentor and develop others in the Legal Studio, including the Paralegal.

Your Qualifications

• Qualified Solicitor of England & Wales (or similar).
• 3+ years of post-qualification experience (transactional or litigation) in construction and design.
• Strong emotional intelligence and relationship-building skills.
• Excellent presentation and negotiation skills.
• Creative problem solver with a demonstrated ability to tailor communication style to diverse audiences and creatively resolve negotiation barriers.
• Demonstrated ability to work in a high-energy, fast-paced practice with diverse clients, including the ability to respond quickly to the demands of the day.
• Strong communication and interpersonal skills.
• Administrative self-sufficiency and strong time management skills.
• Periodic travel required.

Life at Gensler

We encourage every person at Gensler to lead a healthy and balanced life. Our comprehensive benefits include medical and dental insurance, season ticket loans, pension and twice annual bonus opportunities.

As part of the firm’s commitment to professional development, Gensler offers reimbursement for certain professional qualifications and associated renewals and exam fees. In addition, we reimburse tuition for certain eligible programmes or classes. We view our professional development programmes as strategic investments in our future.