Head of Legal

Allevia Hospitals; Auckland; Hybrid; NZD 180,000 - 300,000; Full time

Job summary

Allevia Health Group seeks a senior in-house lawyer to establish and lead the Company's newly created in-house legal function in Newmarket. You will partner with the executive team to provide pragmatic legal advice, build contracting standards, and drive governance across the healthcare group.

The role offers strategic and operational visibility, with flexibility in work arrangements and the opportunity to shape legal capabilities across multiple healthcare businesses within the group.

Qualifications

• Qualified lawyer with NZ practising certificate (or eligibility to hold one).
• At least 8 years' post-qualification experience, ideally including both in-house and private practice.
• Strong grounding in corporate and commercial law.
• Experience drafting, negotiating and managing commercial contracts across service, procurement, technology or healthcare.
• Ability to influence and advise executive stakeholders with clarity and confidence.
• Balance risk with operational needs through strong commercial judgement.
• Proactive, solutions-focused and collaborative style; know when to move matters forward.
• Comfort with digital tools to improve workflow, including AI-enabled contract review tools.

Responsibilities

• Build foundations of an effective in-house legal function and governance framework.
• Advise on a broad range of legal matters including commercial contracts, governance, privacy and data security.
• Work closely with senior leaders and executives to provide commercial and pragmatic legal guidance.

Skills

NZ practising certificate

8+ years post-qualification experience

Contract drafting & negotiation

Commercial contracts experience

Influence executive stakeholders

Commercial judgement

Proactive & collaborative

AI-enabled contract review tools

Tools

AI-enabled review tools

Contract management systems

Microsoft Office Suite

Job description

• Exciting opportunity to establish the in-house legal function
• Variety, challenge and influence
• Based in Newmarket with flexible work options

• Newly created role
• Exciting opportunity to establish the in-house legal function
• Variety, challenge and influence
• Based in Newmarket with flexible work options

This is a rare opportunity to shape the in-house legal function for one of New Zealand's largest private healthcare groups, in a newly created role with genuine influence, variety and purpose.

About The Company

Allevia Health Group is a New Zealand-owned private healthcare group with interests in more than 25 healthcare businesses. Across hospital, outpatient, diagnostic, mobile medical and surgical services, clinical supply management, veterinary imaging and trans-Tasman occupational health, Allevia brings together significant clinical capability and operational scale. With more than 2,300 staff, the Group is focused on delivering a better health journey for every patient.

About The Role

Reporting to the Group COO, with a dotted line to the Group CFO, you will work closely with the Executive team and senior leaders across the Group. You will be the Group's primary legal adviser, providing clear, commercial and pragmatic advice that helps leaders make sound decisions in a complex and regulated healthcare environment.

Role

Your early focus will be on building the foundations of an effective in-house legal function. This is not a narrow advisory role. It is a hands-on opportunity to put in place the systems, standards and ways of working that will give the business faster, clearer and more consistent legal support. This will include:

• Working with the Group Procurement Manager to improve contracting standards, templates, approval pathways and practical guidance for the business
• Refreshing and aligning inter-entity agreements, service levels and accountabilities with Group policies, procedures and governance frameworks
• Strengthening the Group's legal governance and compliance framework, including practical controls, assurance processes and reporting

As the role matures, you will advise on a broad range of legal matters including commercial contracts, corporate governance, consumer law, privacy and data security, regulatory change, disputes and external counsel management. You will also contribute to strategic projects and help lift legal capability across the business through practical guidance and training.

This role will suit a confident, commercially minded senior lawyer who is already operating with influence and enjoys being close to the business. You may already be working at Head of Legal level, or be a strong senior in-house or commercial lawyer ready to take on broader ownership in the right environment. Either way, you will need to be comfortable working at both strategic and operational levels, cutting through complexity, giving practical advice, and building trusted relationships with senior leaders.

What We Are Looking For

• Qualified lawyer with NZ practising certificate (or eligibility to hold one)
• At least 8 years' post-qualification experience, ideally including both in-house and private practice experience, with a strong grounding in corporate and commercial law
• Strong experience drafting, negotiating and managing commercial contracts, ideally including service, procurement, technology or healthcare-related arrangements
• A broad, adaptable legal skill set and the confidence to work across a wide range of legal issues
• Experience working in complex organisations, including aligning contractual obligations with governance frameworks, policies, procedures and operating accountabilities
• The ability to influence and advise executive stakeholders with clarity and confidence
• Strong commercial judgement with the ability to balance risk and operational needs
• A proactive, solutions-focused and collaborative style, with the judgement to know when to move matters forward
• Confidence using digital tools to improve workflow efficiency, including openness to AI-enabled contract review tools and other systems that help focus legal effort where it adds the most value

Healthcare experience would be useful but is not essential. What matters most is sound judgement, commercial nous, curiosity and the ability to quickly understand a regulated clinical environment and the practical realities of supporting people who deliver patient-centered care.

For someone motivated by meaningful scope, senior-level influence and the chance to build a practical in-house legal function in a purpose-led healthcare group, this is a compelling opportunity. You will work with capable senior leaders, join a knowledgeable and committed team, and play an important part in supporting better health journeys for patients across Allevia Health.

For general information regarding the role please email [e-mail].