Interim Legal Counsel (12-Month FTC) - London / Hybrid

Job Description

Job Advert: Interim Legal Counsel (12-Month FTC) – London / Hybrid

Location: London, Hybrid (minimum 2 days/week in the office)

Contract Type: Full-Time, 12-Month Fixed Term

Salary: £90,000–£100,000 per annum

Department: Legal – Commercial & Technology

About the Organisation

Our client is a leading global organisation in the research, publishing, and education space, with over 175 years of experience in delivering trusted knowledge to professionals, educators, and institutions worldwide. With a strong international presence and a forward-thinking approach, the organisation supports innovation and discovery at scale.

You’ll be joining a dynamic, well-respected legal team working on meaningful projects that make a global impact.

The Opportunity

An exciting opportunity for a qualified solicitor or barrister to step into a 12-month interim legal counsel role, supporting high-value technology, procurement, and commercial activities.

This position offers broad international exposure, complex contract negotiation, and the opportunity to play a key role in a collaborative legal team at the heart of the organisation’s operations.

Key Responsibilities

• Act as lead legal advisor to the Global Procurement team, handling contracts related to IT, pre-press, warehousing, logistics, and indirect spend.
• Support the Global Technology team with technology-focused commercial legal advice, especially in areas such as SaaS, software licensing, and cloud agreements.
• Review, draft, and negotiate a wide range of commercial and intellectual property agreements.
• Provide ad hoc legal support to international teams across Europe, Asia, Africa, and the Americas.
• Identify legal risks and offer pragmatic, commercially sound solutions across areas such as consumer law, copyright, and data hosting.
• Drive improvements to legal operations, processes, and documentation (e.g. standard terms, templates).
• Manage legal projects with cross-functional teams and mentor junior team members.

Essential

• UK-qualified solicitor or barrister with an active practising certificate
• 5+ years’ post-qualification experience with a strong commercial/IT legal background
• In-house experience (including secondments)
• Strong contract negotiation and drafting skills
• Comfortable working independently and managing senior stakeholders
• High level of commercial awareness and strategic thinking

• Knowledge of IP, copyright, and licensing law
• Interest or experience in publishing, education, or media sectors
• Experience working across multiple jurisdictions