Interim Senior Counsel (Part time or Full time)

Taylor Root; United States; Hybrid; USD 93,000 - 159,000; Full time

Job summary

Taylor Root is partnering with a high-profile UK charitable organisation to recruit an Interim General Counsel/Senior Legal Counsel. This senior, hands-on role covers commercial contracts, governance and charity law while supporting senior stakeholders.

The ideal candidate is a solicitor in England & Wales with substantial in-house experience, comfortable working at Board level, and able to handle multiple priorities with external advisers.

Qualifications

• Qualified as a solicitor in England & Wales
• Strong commercial and generalist in-house legal background
• Significant commercial contracts experience
• Confidence advising senior stakeholders and operating at Board/Executive level
• Strong judgement and ability to provide practical, commercial solutions
• Resilience and adaptability in a complex and changing organisation
• Ability to work independently and manage a varied workload
• Charity or not-for-profit experience would be advantageous but not essential

Responsibilities

• Advise across a broad range of legal and governance matters (commercial contracts, grants, partnerships, charity law)
• Governance, compliance and regulatory issues
• Support senior management, the Executive Team and Board-level stakeholders
• Manage external counsel and specialist legal advisers
• Collaborate with part-time General Counsel within governance function
• Remain hands-on with no direct reports while operating at senior level

Skills

Commercial contracts

Board liaison

External counsel management

Senior stakeholder engagement

Change management

Education

Solicitor in England & Wales

Job description

Taylor Root is partnering with a high-profile UK charitable organisation with a strong social purpose, supporting initiatives that improve accessibility and help people participate more fully in everyday life.

We are looking for an experienced Interim General Counsel / Interim Senior Legal Counsel to join the organisation during an important period of change. This is a broad, hands-on role requiring a senior lawyer who can quickly get to grips with a varied workload, provide pragmatic commercial advice and confidently support senior stakeholders.

The role

Working alongside an existing part-time General Counsel and as part of the wider governance function, you will advise across a broad range of legal and governance matters, including:

• Commercial contracts and supplier agreements
• Grant and partnership agreements
• Corporate and charity law matters
• Governance, compliance and regulatory issues
• Equality and discrimination-related matters
• IP and trade mark queries
• Supporting senior management, the Executive Team and Board-level stakeholders
• Managing external counsel and specialist legal advisers

There are no direct reports, so this will suit someone comfortable remaining close to the detail while operating at a senior level.

The ideal candidate

We are keen to speak with experienced General Counsel, Heads of Legal or senior in-house lawyers who can demonstrate:

• Qualification as a solicitor in England & Wales
• A strong commercial and generalist in-house legal background
• Significant commercial contracts experience
• Confidence advising senior stakeholders and operating at Board / Executive level
• Strong judgement and the ability to provide practical, commercial solutions
• The resilience and adaptability to operate effectively within a complex and changing organisation
• The ability to work independently and manage a varied workload

Previous charity or not-for-profit experience would be advantageous, particularly exposure to charity law, governance or grant agreements, but it is not essential and our client is open to receiving applications for those without this exposure who is interested in working with a purpose driven foundation. We are equally interested in senior lawyers coming from strong corporate or FTSE environments who have the breadth to move into this setting.

The details

• Duration: Minimum of three to six months
• Working pattern: Ideally full-time but very open to part time (3-4 days a week)
• Engagement: Open to either FTC or day-rate contractors
• FTC salary: Dependent on experience but very competitive for NFP & Charity
• Location: Essex (Harlow) / hybrid
• Office attendance: Minimum 1 day per week, with 2-3 days preferred but not essential
• Start: ASAP / November

This is a particularly interesting opportunity for a senior, commercially minded lawyer who enjoys breadth, autonomy and working closely with senior stakeholders within a purpose-led organisation undergoing change.

Please note our advertisements use PQE/salary levels purely as a guide. However we are happy to consider applications from all candidates who are able to demonstrate the skills necessary to fulfil the role.

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