Job Description

Salary

38,000 - 50,000 per annum, subject to experience

Contractual hours

37.5

Basis

Full Time

Date posted

10/07/2025

Job reference

REQ000154



The Port's Legal Counsel is a newly created role with a core purpose of managing all legal aspects of the enterprise. The Legal Counsel will support the Chief Financial Officer ("CFO") to provide day to day legal support and counsel to the business, often via third party legal advisors, and take an active role in ensuring the Port maintains high standards of corporate governance.



Due to the relative size of the organisation, it is a hands-on role and must be able to make things happen personally as well as managing third-party legal advisors to deliver required advice on time and within budget.

PRINCIPAL RESPONSIBILITIES

We are seeking a Legal Counsel to support the business across all legal matters. This is an exciting in-house legal role offering wide-ranging experience across commercial, regulatory, and corporate matters. The ideal candidate will be a UK qualified solicitor with experience in dealing with commercial disputes, employment law, and commercial contracts.



You will report to the Chief Financial Officer and will be responsible for handling reactive legal tasks across various teams, reviewing a broad range of commercial contracts and commercial agreements, and ensuring compliance with company policies and procedures.



You will be responsible for providing day-to-day legal advice on a range of legal matters to the business and work in conjunction with operational colleagues to ensure compliance with applicable laws and regulations. You will work closely to support stakeholders, senior management and board members, offering pragmatic legal advice that supports the business' growth and strategy.



Whilst our preference is to maximise in-house support and minimising external expenditure, there will be times when third-party support is required, and you will provide instructions and manage the relationships with external legal firms and specialist counsel to ensure that the business obtains high quality and timely advice in a cost-effective manner.

Responsibilities

Draft, review, and negotiate various contracts including supplier agreements, NDAs, MOU's, etc Provide legal guidance and deal with ad hoc new enquiries across departments including marketing, IT, finance, and operational departments Monitor and mitigate legal risks, help manage complaints, claims and potential disputes Ensure that the businesses' operations comply with applicable laws and regulations Liaise with external counsel on specialist legal issues Assist in drafting and reviewing internal policies and procedures to ensure legal compliance Advise on governance matters including the roles and responsibilities of members and officers of the business Supporting in the delivery of training and internal guidance to staff on legal issues and compliance requirements Creating, implementing, and updating contract templates for ongoing business use Supporting and driving improvement in legal processes and systems to ensure efficiency To develop and maintain an electronic repository for legal contracts and agreements using the appropriate software tools

EXPERIENCE AND QUALIFICATIONS

Education

Law degree (or GDL equivalent) is required LPC or SQE1 or SQE 2 qualification Completion of Training Contract or 2 years qualifying work experience that has been approved by the SRA Current UK practising certificate

Experience

Ideally, an understanding of the legal framework that applies to Trust Ports Experience in advising public or quasi-public bodies is desirable Ability to manage multiple priorities and work well under pressure Strong business acumen with the ability to balance legal risk and commercial priorities A proactive approach with the confidence to work independently * Commitment to continuous learning and professional development