Senior Legal Counsel

FLBK FUJIFILM Diosynth Biotechnologies UK Limited; Billingham; On-site; GBP 110,000 - 170,000; Full time

Job summary

FUJIFILM Biotechnologies, Billingham, is seeking a Senior Legal Counsel to lead complex commercial contracts and regulatory matters across CDMO and Life Sciences operations. The role offers executive exposure and broad autonomy in a global setting.

You will draft MSAs, SOWs, and supply agreements, advise senior leaders on risk, and shape long-term legal strategy with cross-functional and international teams.

Qualifications

• Qualified lawyer with right to practice in the UK, US, or Denmark.
• 7+ years PQE in commercial law and complex contracts.
• Experience influencing senior leadership and cross-functional teams.

Responsibilities

• Draft, review, and negotiate complex MSAs, SOWs, and NDAs.
• Advise on legal/regulatory risks for CDMO/Life Sciences operations.
• Lead and train teams; develop playbooks and templates.
• Engage external counsel and manage budgets and scope.
• Drive policy alignment across UK, Denmark, US, and wider teams.

Skills

Commercial law

Contract drafting

Negotiation

Stakeholder management

Regulatory compliance

Education

Qualified in England & Wales

Tools

Document management

CLM systems

e-signature tools

Job description

Join a global life sciences leader at the forefront of innovation. We’re searching for a Senior Legal Counsel to serve as a principal advisor to FUJIFILM Biotechnologies globally, shaping high‑value commercial deals, influencing strategy, and elevating legal standards across multiple jurisdictions. If you’re a seasoned commercial lawyer who thrives on sophisticated, business‑centric work with real enterprise impact, we’d love to hear from you.

This role must sit at our Billingham, United Kingdom facility, with limited flexible home working.

As Senior Legal Counsel, you will be the go‑to expert for complex commercial, procurement and site related matters affecting our Contract Development and Manufacturing (CDMO) and Life Sciences operations. You will negotiate mission‑critical agreements, advise senior leaders on risk, help shape long‑term strategy, and drive continuous improvement in how we contract and deliver for our customers. The role offers significant autonomy, executive exposure, and the chance to influence industry‑leading standards.

Travel: Occasional international travel for negotiations, meetings, and training.

What you’ll do

• Draft, review, and negotiate complex, business‑critical agreements (e.g., MSAs, SOWs, supply, development/manufacturing/services, quality agreements, NDAs).
• Advise senior management on legal and regulatory risks relevant to CDMO/Life Sciences (including GMP interfaces, data privacy/GDPR, competition, and pharmacovigilance touchpoints), proposing pragmatic mitigation strategies.
• Act as a principal legal advisor and thought leader—build formal networks with key internal and external stakeholders and represent Legal in executive forums.
• Partner with Commercial and Program teams on strategic collaborations and bids to drive timely, sustainable deal outcomes.
• Support horizon scanning and develop frameworks that shape long‑term legal strategy, standards, and templates across multiple geographies.
• Manage a high‑volume, complex caseload independently, prioritising by enterprise value and risk; communicate positions clearly to stakeholders at all levels.
• Provide guidance on non‑contentious IP (licensing, background/foreground IP, know‑how, freedom to operate) and help shape IP allocation standards for platform deals.
• Design and deliver legal training, playbooks, and guidance that uplift commercial acumen and compliance culture.
• Optimise legal processes and tooling to improve cycle times, quality, and consistency.
• Engage and manage external counsel (e.g., disputes, employment, real estate), ensuring value, quality, and budget alignment.
• Support dispute avoidance/resolution and contribute to corporate matters and transactions as needed.
• Drive cross‑group alignment of policies and precedents with UK, Denmark, US, and wider FUJIFILM Legal/Compliance teams.

What you’ll bring (minimum requirements)

• Qualified/licensed lawyer, solicitor or barrister (England & Wales) or equivalent jurisdiction with the right to practise in the UK, US, or Denmark; strong academic record.
• 7+ years PQE with a strong track record as a commercial lawyer drafting/negotiating complex contracts and managing a busy, varied caseload.
• Recognised expertise in commercial law, contracting theory/practice, and legal design; high judgment in ambiguous, time‑sensitive matters.
• Excellent negotiation skills and executive‑level communication; proven ability to influence senior stakeholders and drive cross‑functional decisions.
• Strong analytical, pragmatic, and customer‑focused problem solving; balances near‑term delivery with long‑term strategic objectives.
• Effective collaboration in matrixed/global environments.
• Familiarity with key compliance topics (e.g., GDPR/data privacy, competition, anti‑bribery).
• Proficiency with modern legal technology (document management, e‑signature; comfort with CLM and collaboration platforms).
• It’s a plus if you have Experience in CDMO, Life Sciences/Pharmaceuticals, or Healthcare.
• Non‑contentious IP experience (licensing, IP allocation/ownership, technology transfer in a CDMO context).
• Familiarity with quality frameworks and regulatory interfaces impacting CDMO operations.
• Experience managing outside counsel and/or supervising legal staff.
• A track record of improving legal processes, templates, playbooks, and guidance.
• Experience with international contracting and multi‑jurisdictional risk assessments.

Why join FUJIFILM Biotechnologies

Work that matters: Help enable breakthrough therapies by shaping strategic deals and risk positions that underpin our growth.

High impact: Operate with wide latitude, executive visibility, and the ability to set standards across functions and regions.

Growth and autonomy: Lead on complex matters, influence long‑term strategy, and develop your profile as a recognised expert.

Collaborative environment: Opportunity to work with a global high quality; high functioning team in a world leading organisation with a desire to adopt innovative solutions.

Benefits and compensation

Benefits and compensation will be governed by the location that you are based from and considered your home site.

Personal data policy

As part of any recruitment process, FUJIFILM Biotechnologies collects and processes personal data relating to job applicants. The organisation is committed to being transparent about how it collects and uses that data and to meeting its data protection obligations and may share this as part of the global recruitment process with hiring managers in Europe and the United States.

About FUJIFILM Biotechnologies

We are part of the Fujifilm Group, and we all share the same purpose. Giving our world more smiles. We bring diverse ideas, unique capabilities, and extraordinary people together to change the world. FUJIFILM Biotechnologies works in strategic collaboration with biopharmaceutical and biotech companies to develop and manufacture the latest in biologics, advanced therapies and vaccines. With production facilities in the US and Europe, we give our customers everything they need to develop and commercialize treatments and therapies effectively and efficiently to make patients’ lives better. We are driven to revolutionize the industry through our Partners for Life mindset, seeking to build global partnerships based on trust with our customers. Our global teams fully embrace our aspiration of being the leading and most trusted Partners for Life in the biopharmaceutical industry.