Legal Counsel

Damen; Rotterdam; On-site; EUR 80,000 - 110,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Competitive salary

Vacation & ADV days

Travel allowance

Profit-sharing

Pension

Education & development

On-site work

Job summary

Damen Shiprepair is seeking a Legal Counsel to act as a trusted business partner across tendering, contract negotiations, and project execution for shiprepair and conversion projects.

You will collaborate with project managers, procurement, risk, and insurance teams to manage legal risks while enabling objectives. Occasional travel to yards is required.

Qualifications

• Master’s degree in Law and admission to the bar.
• 2–5 years of contract law experience including drafting and negotiating commercial agreements.
• International shipbuilding or manufacturing experience is preferred but not mandatory.

Responsibilities

• Provide pragmatic legal and contractual advice across the project lifecycle.
• Lead review, drafting and negotiation of commercial agreements including ship repair contracts and NDAs.
• Ensure compliance with company policies and applicable laws and regulations.
• Serve as contract management advisor to project teams and coordinate with the global legal network.

Skills

Contract law

Drafting & negotiating

International business experience

English proficiency

Negotiation skills

Teamwork / independence

Education

Master’s degree in Law

Job description

We offer you an Ocean of Possibilities. Join our family.

About Us

The Damen Shiprepair division is part of the Damen Shipyards Group which was established in 1927. The Damen Shipyards Group is a 100% Dutch family owned international group of companies which operates 35 shipbuilding and repair yards, employing 12,000 people worldwide.

Damen Shiprepair has a worldwide network of repair and conversion yards with dry docks ranging up to 420 x 80 meters. Conversion projects range from adapting vessels to today’s requirements and regulations to the complete conversion of large offshore structures. With more than 1,200 employees, the Damen Shiprepair division provides repair services for all kinds of vessels. The division's shipyards in the Netherlands, France, Senegal and Curaçao have 20+ docks and they complete some 1,300 projects annually. In addition to repairs, the division also executes projects in the areas of conversion (rebuilding) and decommissioning.

This dynamic project environment inherently comes with a wide variety of challenges, like: diverse project scopes, tight deadlines, and the need to collaborate effectively with project teams, clients, and subcontractors.

For the Damen Shiprepair division we are now searching for a Legal counsel where you will become the strategic and legal consultant of the team.

The Role

As Legal Counsel, you will act as a trusted business partner to the Damen Shiprepair division. You will provide pragmatic legal and contractual advice throughout the project lifecycle, from tender stage and contract negotiations through project execution, claims management and close-out.

You will support the business on a broad range of commercial, contractual and legal matters, with a particular focus on complex shiprepair, conversion and offshore projects. You will work closely with project managers, commercial teams, procurement, risk, insurance and management to identify, mitigate and manage legal and contractual risks while enabling the business to achieve its objectives.

You will be part of the legal team dedicated to the Damen Shiprepair division. You will report to the Head of Legal of Damen Shiprepair & Conversion Holding B.V. Further, you will be part of the Damen group wide team of (international) legal counsels, contract managers, compliance officers and risk managers who share knowledge and work together throughout the various divisions.

Key Accountabilities

In this role you will be:

• Providing legal advice to the business in all areas;
• Lead the review, drafting and negotiation of a wide range of commercial agreements, including ship repair contracts, Bimco Repaircon, NDA’s and subcontract agreements.
• Ensuring compliance with company policies and applicable laws and regulations;
• Supporting large and complex projects by acting as contract management advisor to the project team throughout the project lifecycle.
• Interacting actively at Damen Group level with other expertise disciplines within the legal, contract management, compliance, risk and insurance team (> 50 colleagues), under supervision of the Chief Counsel, and acts as One Damen ambassador in the division.

Skills & Experience

You recognize yourself in the following profile:

• Master’s degree in Law
• 2-5 years of experience in contract law, including drafting, reviewing and negotiating commercial agreements.
• Experience in international (shipbuilding) business or manufacturing / construction business is a pre but not mandatory;
• Accurate and quality-oriented;
• Strong (intercultural) communication and negotiation skills;
• Both team player and independent worker;
• Excellent command of the English language, French is an advantage
• Ability to travel occasionally to our yards.

What We Offer

At Damen Shiprepair, you will work on impressive projects unlike anything you will find elsewhere.

We Place Great Value On Supporting And Guiding Talented Professionals. That Is Why We Continuously Invest In Your Development And Offer

• A dynamic and international project environment with an informal working atmosphere.
• A competitive salary in accordance with the Metalektro Collective Labour Agreement (CAO Metalektro).
• 27 vacation days and 13 additional reduction-of-working-hours (ADV) days based on a full-time employment contract.
• Travel allowance covering up to 40 km one-way commuting distance.
• Profit-sharing and a pension contribution.
• Education, training, and career development opportunities
• This role requires a predominantly on-site presence, with limited and not standardized opportunities for remote work.
• Please note; we cannot offer a sponsorship for a visa and/or work permit. Applicants must already have the legal right to work within the Netherlands.