Legal Counsel (12 Month FTC)

Close Brothers; London; Hybrid; GBP 60,000 - 90,000; Full time

Job summary

Close Brothers is seeking a legal professional to join their Legal Team in London. The role involves providing strategic legal advice, managing legal risks, and supporting corporate transactions. Ideal candidates will have extensive experience in corporate law and a strong understanding of the financial services industry. The company promotes diversity and offers hybrid working arrangements.

Qualifications

• Broad legal experience, including corporate, M&A, and commercial law.
• Strong career track record and understanding of financial services.

Responsibilities

• Providing legal advice on corporate and legal risk management issues.
• Supporting M&A transactions and reviewing commercial contracts.
• Advising on legal, regulatory, and corporate governance frameworks.

Skills

Corporate Law

M&A

Commercial Law

Legal Judgment

Risk Management

Education

Excellent Academic Credentials

Job description

Division Close Brothers Central Functions - Legal

Location: London, United Kingdom

Salary: Competitive Basic Salary + Benefits + Discretionary Bonus

The Vacancy

Overall Summary

At Close Brothers, we seek to recruit individuals from diverse backgrounds and encourage you to apply even if you don’t meet every criterion. We celebrate diversity, promote inclusivity, and are open to flexible work arrangements to help balance your work and home life.

Join the Close Brothers Legal Team, where you will provide advice and manage legal risks across various legal matters. The ideal team member will have experience advising on strategic, corporate, governance, and legal risk issues, with the ability to think strategically and creatively, considering the broader context of legal issues and providing sound advice.

Responsibilities

1. Providing legal advice and support on strategic, corporate, business, and legal risk management issues, collaborating with colleagues across Group Central Functions and relevant divisions (including Corporate Development, Investor Relations, Finance, Company Secretariat, Facilities).
2. Supporting on M&A and other corporate transactions, including structuring advice, heads of terms, non-disclosure agreements, due diligence, data-room processes, and transaction documentation, working with external counsel as needed.
3. Structuring, reviewing, and negotiating a range of commercial and corporate contracts, advising on legal and risk implications, including engagements with external auditors and advisers.
4. Adding value across various legal areas, including intellectual property, supporting areas outside your expertise with external counsel involvement where appropriate.
5. Proactively managing projects and transactions.
6. Advising on the legal, regulatory, and corporate governance frameworks applicable to a listed company, including Listing Rules, Disclosure Guidelines, Transparency Rules, and Corporate Governance Code compliance.
7. Potential involvement in insurance claims management, including litigation, liaising with insurers, external counsel, and internal stakeholders.
8. Developing effective relationships and credibility with internal stakeholders across the Group and external stakeholders such as external counsel, insurers, and advisers.

Candidate Profile

We would love to hear from you if you have:

• Broad legal experience, including corporate, M&A, company, and commercial law, with a willingness to provide generalist legal advice.
• Excellent academic credentials, intellectual capabilities, and a strong career track record.
• A solid understanding of the financial services industry and issues affecting Close Brothers.
• Experience with the legal, regulatory, and corporate governance frameworks relevant to a listed company.
• A technically strong, pragmatic, business-oriented lawyer with experience in corporate, commercial, and regulatory risk issues.
• Good legal judgment with the ability to communicate effectively at all levels of the business.
• Proactive and incisive in providing legal advice.
• Experience operating with internal and external stakeholders in a high-paced environment, aligning legal priorities with business goals.

It is not essential but advantageous if you have:

• In-house experience through secondments or permanent roles.

Inclusivity and Accessibility

We are committed to an inclusive recruitment process. Adjustments can be made for individuals with disabilities or long-term conditions. For alternative formats or to discuss the process, please email us at [e-mail].

About Us

Close Brothers supports employees in balancing work and life, offering hybrid working arrangements. We are a leading UK merchant banking group providing lending, deposit-taking, and securities trading, employing approximately 3,000 people across the UK and Ireland. Our mission is to be the best place in the UK for wealth professionals and their clients, emphasizing financial planning and investment. We value diversity and inclusion and strive to develop an open, respectful, and inclusive workplace, reflecting our commitment to social, economic, and environmental responsibility.