Legal Counsel

AALTO HAPS; Farnborough; On-site; GBP 90,000 - 130,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Performance Bonus

Generous Annual Leave

Private Healthcare

Pension Contributions

Income Protection & Life Assurance

Electric Vehicle & Car Scheme

Employee Assistance Programme

Employee Discounts

Job summary

AALTO, based in Farnborough, is seeking a Legal Counsel to work with the General Counsel on a broad range of commercial and strategic matters. You will help shape the legal function to support international growth and new business opportunities, balancing risk with growth.

With a background in in-house or top-tier law firm settings and expertise in commercial contracts, tech/IP, and regulatory law, you will build scalable legal frameworks and partner with colleagues across the company to enable

Qualifications

• Qualified solicitor in England & Wales with in-house or law firm experience.
• Deep expertise in commercial contracts, tech/IP, corporate or regulatory law.
• Strong commercial awareness and sound legal judgement.
• Excellent drafting, communication and analytical skills.
• Ability to build effective stakeholder relationships.
• Willingness to adapt to a fast-paced, international business environment.

Responsibilities

• Partner with General Counsel to strengthen AALTO's legal and compliance function.
• Structure, draft, review, negotiate and execute broad commercial agreements.
• Be a trusted legal partner across the business, delivering practical solutions.
• Support strategic international expansion and cross-functional programmes.
• Develop legal frameworks, policies, and training materials.
• Monitor regulatory developments and translate into guidance.
• Support governance, entity management and corporate matters.
• Manage external advisers to ensure cost-effective support.
• Build know-how, precedents and tools for scalability and efficiency.
• Own projects and drive them to completion with stakeholders.

Education

Law degree or equivalent

Qual. as solicitor in England & Wales

In-house or top-tier law firm experience

Commercial contracts expertise

Tech/IP, corporate or regulatory law

Strong commercial awareness & judgement

Excellent drafting & communication

Stakeholder relationship building

Adaptability to fast-paced international business

Willingness to develop new capabilities

Interest in technology/aerospace sector helpful

Job description

AALTO, a global leader in Stratospace. Based in Farnborough, AALTO is an Airbus subsidiary that manufactures, operates, and delivers services with its solar-powered, stratospheric platform: Zephyr.

Zephyr’s persistence enables continuous flight for months at a time. Its current flight-time record of over 67 days in the stratosphere. From above 60,000+ft, or 20km above ground, AALTO can deliver several applications including direct-to-device connectivity and high-resolution Earth observation.

AALTO operates in a new operational layer between most of air traffic and low-Earth orbit, Stratospace. This is where high-altitude platforms led by Zephyr deliver services to commercial and government partners. We can help monitor environments, observe borders, track natural disasters and connect unconnected communities.

Join us as we create a new domain of aerospace: Stratospace. You’ll be part of a highly-skilled, innovative and passionate group of people – Team AALTO. Together, we can Unlock Stratospace.

About The Role

Help shape the legal function behind AALTO’s international growth. As Legal Counsel, you’ll work closely with our General Counsel on a broad range of commercial and strategic matters, combining sound legal judgement with practical advice that helps the business move forward.

From negotiating commercial agreements to supporting new business opportunities and international expansion, you’ll partner with colleagues across the company to solve complex problems, balance risk and enable growth. You’ll also help build the frameworks, policies and ways of working that make a legal function effective and scalable.

If you enjoy taking ownership, bring depth in your legal specialism and are curious to work beyond it, this is an opportunity to make a meaningful impact. You’ll gain significant exposure to senior stakeholders while helping shape how legal support evolves with the business.

Responsibilities to include

• Partner with the General Counsel to develop and strengthen AALTO’s legal and compliance function.
• Lead the structuring, drafting, review, negotiation and execution of a broad range of commercial agreements, including customer, supplier, strategic partnership, and other commercial arrangements.
• Be a trusted legal partner to teams across the business, turning complex issues into clear, commercially focused and practical solutions.
• Support strategic projects, international expansion, new business opportunities and cross-functional programmes.
• Develop and improve legal frameworks, policies, processes and training materials that help colleagues work effectively.
• Monitor legal and regulatory developments and translate them into practical guidance for business decisions.
• Support corporate governance, entity management and other corporate matters as required.
• Manage external legal advisers to deliver efficient, cost-effective support.
• Build legal know-how, precedents and tools that improve the legal function’s effectiveness, scalability and efficiency.
• Take ownership of projects and workstreams, driving them through to completion with appropriate supervision and stakeholder engagement.

Skills and Knowledge Required

• A law degree or equivalent.
• Qualification as a solicitor of England and Wales, or equivalent.
• Post-qualification experience in an in-house legal team and/or a reputable law firm.
• Deep expertise in at least one relevant legal discipline, such as commercial contracts, technology/IP, corporate or regulatory law.
• Strong commercial awareness and sound legal judgement, with a pragmatic, risk-balanced approach.
• Excellent drafting, communication and analytical skills, alongside the ability to build effective stakeholder relationships.
• The adaptability to work effectively in a fast-paced, evolving and international business.
• Confidence working beyond your core specialism and a willingness to develop new capabilities as business needs evolve.
• A strong sense of ownership, initiative and curiosity, with a drive to keep improving how things work.
• An interest in technology, including legal technology, innovation and the aerospace sector would be advantageous, but is not essential.

In addition to a competitive, market-aligned salary, we offer a comprehensive benefits package designed to support your wellbeing, financial security, and work-life balance

• Performance Bonus Benefit from our short-term incentive plan, recognising and rewarding individual and company success.
• Generous Annual Leave Enjoy 25 days of annual leave, giving you the time to rest, recharge, and spend time on what matters most.
• Private Healthcare Access private medical insurance, alongside dental and optical cashback schemes, helping you and your family stay healthy.
• Pension Contributions Plan confidently for the future with our competitive personal pension scheme.
• Income Protection & Life Assurance Gain added peace of mind through income protection and life assurance cover, providing support when you need it most.
• Electric Vehicle & Car Scheme Access our salary sacrifice vehicle scheme, offering a cost-effective way to drive the latest cars.
• Employee Assistance Programme Receive confidential professional support whenever you need it through our dedicated employee assistance programme.
• Employee Discounts Enjoy a wide range of discounts and offers through Perkbox, covering everything from shopping and travel to leisure activities and everyday essentials.

This is all part of our commitment to creating an environment where our people can thrive both professionally and personally.

Does this opportunity excite you but you’re not 100% sure if you meet all the requirements for the role? Or are you concerned that ‘normal’ office hours aren’t possible given your personal circumstances? Whilst we can’t accommodate every flexible working request, we’ll try to find a practical solution. So why not engage with us and find out more about this role?

QWE

Will this role count as your QWE, and who will confirm it?

Check it against the SRA’s questions in two minutes. If there is no COLP or solicitor where you work, the SRA lets a solicitor outside confirm it: an FQPS solicitor can, from £149.