Head of Legal
13 hours ago
Ellesmere Port
Ellesmere Port, United Kingdom | Posted on 28/10/2026 The Head of Legal will be Beaufort’slead legal advisor, providing commercially focused, pragmatic legal supportacross the Group. Working closely with the ExecutiveLeadership Team and senior leaders across the business, the role will provideadvice across commercial contracting, corporate governance, risk, compliance,disputes and strategic business matters. The Head of Legal will establishappropriate legal frameworks and governance while ensuring that legal supportremains proportionate, responsive and aligned with the commercial needs of agrowing international organisation. A key element of the role will besupporting Beaufort’s growth and value creation agenda, including acquisitions,investments and other corporate transactions, from early-stage evaluation anddue diligence through transaction execution and post-deal integration. As the senior legal professionalwithin Beaufort, the role will also manage relationships with external legaladvisers globally, ensuring the business accesses specialist expertise whenrequired while maintaining strong oversight of legal risk, quality and cost. Legal Leadership & Business Partnering • Act as the lead legal advisor to Beaufort, providingtrusted, commercially focused counsel to the CEO/CFO, Executive Leadership Teamand wider business., • Provide pragmatic advice that balances legal risk,commercial opportunity and the operational realities of the business., • Translate complex legal matters into clear options andrecommendations that enable effective executive decision-making., • Build strong relationships across the organisation andestablish Legal as an enabling, solutions-oriented business partner., • Identify emerging legal and regulatory risks and ensureappropriate mitigation and escalation., • Develop the legal capability and infrastructure requiredto support Beaufort as the Group grows in scale, complexity and geographicreach. Commercial & Contractual • Lead or advise on the negotiation and management ofmaterial commercial agreements, including customer, supplier, strategicpartner, distribution, consultancy, confidentiality and other businesscontracts, leases and intellectual property agreements., • Provide legal support on significant customer andsupplier negotiations, including contractual risk allocation, liability,indemnities, warranties and intellectual property., • Establish appropriate contracting standards, templatesand approval principles across the Group., • Support commercial teams in resolving contractual issuesand disputes pragmatically and at the earliest appropriate stage., • Ensure significant contractual commitments areappropriately reviewed and understood before execution. M&A and Corporate Development • Provide legal leadership and support for acquisitions,disposals, investments, joint ventures and other strategic transactions., • Partner with the CEO, CFO, senior leadership,shareholders and external advisers during transaction processes., • Coordinate and/or undertake legal due diligence,identifying material legal risks and ensuring these are appropriately reflectedin transaction decision-making., • Support the preparation, review and negotiation oftransaction documentation alongside external legal advisers., • Advise on confidentiality agreements, heads of terms,exclusivity arrangements and other preliminary transaction documentation., • Support the transaction process from initial evaluationthrough diligence, signing and completion., • Work with functional and business leaders to ensure legaland regulatory matters identified through diligence are translated into clearpost-acquisition integration actions., • Support the development of a repeatable legal diligenceand integration framework as Beaufort's M&A activity develops. Corporate Governance • Advise the business on corporate governance matters andsupport the maintenance of appropriate Group governance and company secretarialmatters., • Support corporate restructuring, entity management andother corporate activities., • Provide legal input into Board and shareholder matterswhere required., • Support the maintenance and protection of appropriatedelegated authorities, approvals and governance frameworks., • Work closely with Finance, People and other Groupfunctions on matters requiring cross-functional governance. Risk, Compliance & Regulatory • Maintain oversight of significant legal and regulatoryrisks affecting the Group., • Advise on relevant compliance requirements arising fromBeaufort's international operations and customer base., • Support appropriate policies, controls and awarenessrelating to areas such as anti-bribery and corruption, competition law,sanctions and export controls, data privacy and other applicable regulatoryrequirements, working with specialist advisers or internal owners whereappropriate., • Support investigations or regulatory matters where legalinput is required., • Ensure appropriate escalation of significant legal orcompliance risks to executive leadership., • Advise on material contractual disputes, claims andpotential litigation., • Develop commercially appropriate dispute-resolutionstrategies., • Manage external counsel on litigation or specialistmatters where appropriate., • Balance protection of Beaufort's legal position withcommercial, financial and reputational considerations. External Counsel & Legal Spend • Own and coordinate Beaufort's relationships with externallaw firms and specialist legal advisers., • Determine when matters should be managed internally andwhen specialist external advice is required., • Ensure external legal advice is appropriately scoped andcommercially managed., • Maintain oversight of external legal spend and drivevalue from the Group's legal advisor relationships. Knowledge, Skills and Experience • Qualified solicitor/legal counsel with appropriateprofessional standing in the UK or another relevant jurisdiction., • Significant post-qualification experience gained within astrong commercial environment, ideally combining private practice and in-houseexperience., • Broad commercial and corporate legal experience with theability to operate as the principal legal adviser within an organisation., • Strong experience drafting and negotiating complexcommercial contracts., • Experience supporting M&A transactions, includinglegal due diligence, transaction documentation and working with externalcorporate/M&A advisers., • Strong understanding of corporate governance andcommercial risk management., • Experience working with senior executives and providingclear advice on complex or sensitive matters., • Experience managing external counsel and legalexpenditure., • Experience managing people., • Comfortable operating across international jurisdictionsand knowing when local specialist advice is required., • Experience within defence, aerospace, manufacturing,engineering or another highly regulated international industry., • Experience working within a private equity-backedbusiness or similarly fast-paced, value-creation-focused environment., • Experience supporting buy-and-build or acquisitive growthstrategies., • Exposure to post-acquisition integration., • Knowledge of regulatory matters relevant to internationaldefence and aerospace businesses., • Previous experience establishing or developing anin-house legal capability within a growing organisation. Personal Attributes The successful candidate will be: • Commercially minded: able to distinguish betweentheoretical legal risk and risk that genuinely matters to the business., • Pragmatic: focused on finding workable solutions ratherthan simply identifying problems., • Credible: comfortable advising and, where necessary,constructively challenging senior executives., • Hands-on: willing to personally manage detailed legalwork as well as advise strategically., • Independent: capable of operating effectively as theorganisation's senior internal legal professional., • Decisive: able to provide clear recommendations despiteincomplete information or competing priorities., • Collaborative: able to build trust across functions,geographies and cultures., • Commercially curious: interested in understanding theeconomics and strategic rationale behind business decisions rather than viewingissues solely through a legal lens., • Comfortable with pace and complexity: able to support agrowing international organisation where priorities can change quickly. Success Measures • Success in the role will be demonstrated through:, • High-quality, timely legal advice that enables ratherthan unnecessarily constrains commercial decision-making., • Effective management of material contractual and legalrisk., • Strong support for strategic transactions and successfulexecution of M&A activity., • Early identification and resolution of material legalrisks during acquisition due diligence., • Effective translation of transaction diligence findingsinto post-deal integration activity., • Improved consistency and discipline in contracting andlegal governance across the Group., • Strong relationships and credibility with executive andoperational leadership., • Effective management of external advisers and legalexpenditure., • 33days holiday (including public holidays), • Additionalday off for your birthday, • Hybridworking policy, • Cycleto Work Scheme, • LifeAssurance up to 4x salary #J-18808-Ljbffr