Senior Legal Counsel - 4 days per week

Who are we

Founded in 1896, Knight Frank was registered as Knight Frank LLP a Limited Liability Partnership, on 3 November 2003, registered in England & Wales at 55 Baker Street, London, W1U 8AN with the registered number of OC305934. Headquartered in London, UK, Knight Frank is one of the world's leading independent real estate consultancies. We work responsibly in partnership to enhance people's lives and environments in over 50 Markets, 600+ Offices, 20,000+ People, 1 Global Network.

At the heart of all we do are our Clients. A relationship built on trust is vital. As trusted partners in property, we act with integrity and care, understanding our clients’ unique needs and consistently thinking about the bigger picture to provide personalised, clear and considered advice across all areas of property. Through our deep understanding of key markets and sectors - both emerging and established - we are dedicated to meeting and exceeding their property goals.

A true partnership is a balanced one, and our People are passionate about, and committed to, making our business inclusive and diverse. We give every individual the space and opportunity to perform at their best and be recognised for the immense value they bring. We empower everyone to have autonomy in their role and encourage them to use their voice in how we can make a positive impact as a firm and shape the future of real estate, the built environment and the impact on the communities we serve. Our collaborative and engaged teams provide excellent and dedicated client service. In our workplace, opinions are respected, everyone is invited to contribute to the success of our business and innovation, and new ideas are celebrated.

In 2021 we celebrated our 125th anniversary and set out Our Desired Future, cemented in three pillars: People Potential, Client Centricity and always Creating our Future, together. Learn more about what sets us apart here.

About The Role

Knight Frank are looking for a Senior Legal Counsel to join their in-house legal team at our Head Office in Baker Street.

This is a part-time position, working four days per week between Monday and Friday.

Knight Frank’s in-house Legal Team supports all areas of the Knight Frank business including its residential, commercial, international and business services divisions. On a day-to-day basis we advise and partner on a broad range of matters and projects, including drafting and negotiating contracts for services with key suppliers and clients, assisting and leading on the resolution of disputes, supporting with corporate and other strategic projects, data protection, intellectual property and much more.

We are a busy, fast paced team but we can offer you a friendly, entrepreneurial, and supportive environment within which to work. This is a high impact position where you will work with the Head of Legal and other senior leaders to provide legal advice and deliver legal services whilst at the same time helping to shape the future of the legal function.

Key responsibilities:

• You’ll play a key role as a strategic advisor enabling the business to effectively manage risk whilst successfully taking forward its business objectives. Our lawyers support across all areas of the Knight Frank business, meaning your day to day workload will be broad ranging and constantly envolving.
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• You’ll draft and negotiate complex commercial agreements with our key suppliers, clients and partners in business, including framework agreements, call off agreements, standard terms of engagement, NDAs, duty of care deeds and reliance letters.
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• You’ll have the opportunity to work as part of a team when leading on a range of large project based work, including technology projects, as well as other strategic business wide projects.
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• You’ll become a trusted and pragmatic adviser to the business, leading and assisting with the resolution of dispute matters, advising on intellectual property queries, data protection, as well as playing a key role in technological and digital projects.
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• You’ll develop strong and trusted relationships with senior stakeholders. We provide a supportive team environment within which to work, with lots of opportunity to work with and learn from others. Nevertheless, you’ll have autonomy to run independently with your own caseload and lead on your own matters.
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• You’ll support the business in dispute resolution, particularly in relation to debt recovery claims, advising key stakeholders on potential courses of action, settlement and procedure, as well as liasing with external counsel where necessary to escalate claims.
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• Instruct and manage external counsel within agreed policy and budget. You’ll work in close collaboration with our panel law firms for specialist advice (including regulatory, data privacy and intellectual property).
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• Responsible for line managing junior members of the Legal Team.

Professional Experience and Personal Skills Profile:

• You’ll have senior post qualification commercial law experience in an in-house environment, with significant experience of advising on complex commercial agreements and strategic projects, including advising and presenting to senior stakeholders and boards.
• You will have strong written and verbal communication and stakeholder management skills, with the ability to influence senior stakeholders and manage and deliver complex projects.
• You will be comfortable working in a fast paced, dynamic environment where change and transformation are a key theme.
• You’ll need to be personable, collaborative, commercially minded and pragmatic in your approach to solving challenges and in your advice.
• You’ll enjoy being a team player, valuing the individual and working collaboratively. A supportive and friendly team culture should be important to you.
• You will have experience of and enjoy line managing other team members, including day to day supervision of junior members of the team.
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Competitive salary

Please note: this is a Direct Search led by Knight Frank. Applications from recruitment agencies will not be accepted nor will fees be paid for unsolicited CVs, even if provided by PSL agencies.