VP Legal - Corporate & Central Functions

Collinson; Greater London; On-site; GBP 100,000 - 150,000; Full time

Job summary

A global travel solutions company based in Greater London is seeking a VP Legal – Corporate and Central Functions. This role leads a legal team, providing corporate and commercial contract advice. The ideal candidate will have significant experience in commercial law, particularly M&A, and proven leadership skills. The position involves strategic business partnering and overseeing legal governance as the company continues to grow globally. This role offers a chance to make a significant impact within a dynamic environment.

Qualifications

• Significant post-qualification experience in commercial law including corporate and M&A.
• Experience managing teams of legal professionals.
• Proven leadership in complex corporate agreements.

Responsibilities

• Lead and advise on complex corporate matters including mergers and acquisitions.
• Support significant contract negotiations for various operating companies.
• Act as a strategic partner and deputy to the Chief Legal Officer.
• Maintain and strengthen legal governance standards.

Skills

Corporate law experience

M&A expertise

Leadership skills

Strategic mindset

Strong communication skills

Analytical skills

Education

Qualification as solicitor or barrister

Job description

Collinson is the global, privately‑owned company dedicated to helping the world to travel with ease and confidence. The group offers a unique blend of industry and sector specialists who together provide market‑leading airport experiences, loyalty and customer engagement, and insurance solutions for over 400 million consumers.

Collinson is the operator of Priority Pass, the world’s original and leading airport experiences programme. Travellers can access a network of 1,500+ lounges and travel experiences, including dining, retail, sleep and spa, in over 650 airports in 148 countries, helping to elevate the journey into something special. We work with the world’s leading payment networks, over 1,400 banks, 90 airlines and 20 hotel groups worldwide.

We have been bringing innovation to the market since inception – from launching the first independent global VIP lounge access programme, Priority Pass to being the first to sell direct travel insurance in the UK through Columbus Direct and creating the first loyalty agency of its kind in the travel sector with ICLP. Today we still invest heavily in innovation to ensure that we continue to deliver superior customer experiences.

Key clients include Mastercard, American Express, Cathay Pacific, British Airways, LATAM, Flying Blue, Accor, EasyJet, HSBC, Chase, HDFC.

Our mission is focused on doing good beyond profit, which for us means we seek out opportunities for our people to share in our success and that we give back to the communities and people within which we work.

Never short of ambition, the success of our business is delivered through the diverse and talented team of over 2,200 global colleagues.

Purpose of the job

The VP Legal – Corporate and Central Functions leads a team within Legal globally, providing high‑quality corporate and commercial contract advice to the Airport Dimensions, Valuedynamx, Collinson Insurance businesses, as well as the central services functions (Finance, People & Culture, Procurement, Strategy etc). This executive role combines complex legal expertise with people leadership and strategic business partnering, directly managing a sub‑team and supporting the Chief Legal Officer in shaping and delivering the legal strategy.

The VP Legalis is pivotal in overseeing legal governance, risk management, and supporting business transformation across international regions for the respective areas, ensuring legal frameworks and contracts evolve in line with Collinson’s global growth ambitions.

Key Responsibilities

Corporate & M&A Advisory

• Lead and advise on complex corporate matters including mergers and acquisitions (M&A), joint ventures, group‑wide initiatives, and ad hoc corporate transactions
• Advise on corporate matters such as joint ventures, group‑wide initiatives, and ad hoc corporate transactions.
• Support and advise on integration / separation arrangements and post‑completion obligations
• Corporate finance, capital structure and banking arrangements
• Support CoSec and governance activities

Commercial and Central Functions Legal Support

• Lead and support significant contract negotiations supporting a range of operating companies across our airport operations, loyalty and insurance businesses.
• Provide legal support on intellectual property, compliance, litigation, data protection, and other risk‑related matters.
• Support operational areas, including employment/People & Development matters, policies, and terms and conditions.

Leadership & Strategy

• Act as a strategic partner and deputy to the Chief Legal Officer, helping to implement the vision, structure, and goals of the global Legal Team.
• Lead, mentor, and manage a sub‑team of legal professionals, overseeing matter allocation, workload management, and performance reviews.
• Role‑modelling strategic partnership with all areas of the business, raising standards and the reputation of the Legal Team.
• Support the transformation of the business by ensuring legal frameworks, governance, and risk management align with evolving global operations.
• Collaborate closely with senior stakeholders to influence both day‑to‑day operations and long‑term strategic direction with a particular emphasis on Central Services functions.

Legal Governance & Risk Management

• Maintain and strengthen legal governance standards and oversee risk monitoring across international offices.
• Contribute to the development and roll‑out of Group policies, codes of conduct and training.
• Provide timely advice and updates to the Chief Legal Officer on legal, operational, and corporate matters.
• Deliver training programmes and focused sessions addressing legal and industry‑specific risks.

Continuous Improvement

• Drive improvements in contract management processes, technology solutions, standard agreements, and legal policies.
• Ensure the Legal Team is an enabler of business growth through pragmatic, solution‑focused advice.

Knowledge, skills and abilities

• Qualified solicitor or barrister (or equivalent) with significant post‑qualification experience in commercial law including corporate and M&A law.
• Proven leadership experience managing teams of legal professionals, including through subordinate managers
• Strong commercial and strategic mindset, with the ability to partner effectively with business leaders to enable growth and transformation.
• Proven experience navigating complex corporate agreements.
• Outstanding communication and analytical skills, with strong business judgement and a proactive, solution‑driven approach.
• Experience operating in a fast‑paced, international environment with multiple stakeholders.
• Flexible, adaptable, and entrepreneurial approach to legal and commercial challenges.
• Commitment to collaboration, integrity, and high professional standards.
• Ability to communicate complex legal issues in plain, commercial language with clear options and recommendations.

Collinson is an equal opportunity employer and welcomes differences in all their forms including: colour, race, ethnicity, gender identity, sexual orientation, neurodivergence, family status, age, individuals with disabilities and people from all backgrounds, cultures and experiences as we strongly believe this contributes to our on‑going success.

We are focused on continually evolving our purpose‑driven, high‑performing culture, providing an environment where our people have the opportunity to achieve their full potential and do interesting and meaningful work. Our company values are: Take Action, Do the right thing, One team and Be insight‑led. These help guide everything we do internally in terms of how we think, act and interact, right through to how we deliver value to our customers and clients.

In your application, please feel free to note which pronouns you use (For example - she/her/hers, he/him/his, they/them/theirs, etc).

If you need any extra support throughout the interview process, then please email us at [e-mail]