Senior Legal Counsel in Manchester

Company Description: You'll play a key role in shaping the legal function within O2 Daisy. Reporting to the General Counsel, you'll provide commercially focused, proactive, and high‐quality legal advice across a broad range of B2B matters. You'll partner closely with senior leaders across the business, helping deliver strategic projects, negotiate major contracts, and guide the business through complex legal and commercial challenges. This is a hands‐on, visible role in a fast‐paced, high‐growth environment — ideal for a commercially minded lawyer who thrives on variety and influence.

Job Details:

• Location: Office Based – Nelson, Cheadle, or Sheffield
• Salary: Negotiable, dependent on experience
• Hours: Monday to Friday, 8:30/9:00 AM – 5:00/5:30 PM (37.5 hours per week)

Key Responsibilities:

• Lead on a wide range of commercial legal matters, including drafting and negotiating complex B2B customer and supplier contracts (with strong expertise in data protection and TUPE).
• Draft, maintain and benchmark customer‐facing product and service terms and conditions.
• Advise on disputes and settlement agreements.
• Support corporate, intragroup and shareholder‐related matters.
• Proactively support contract management, including renewals, key milestones and connected commercial opportunities.
• Build strong, trusted relationships with senior stakeholders, acting as a credible advisor and strategic sounding board.
• Work autonomously with appropriate judgement on escalation, keeping the General Counsel informed of material issues, risks and progress.
• Identify commercial opportunities and protect the business against legal and regulatory risk.
• Contribute across the wider legal team as required, sharing knowledge and supporting departmental initiatives.
• Stay current on legal and market developments, developing specialist expertise and driving continuous improvement in legal standards and practices.

Qualifications:

• Qualified solicitor or barrister (England and Wales) with substantial post‐qualification experience working in‐house in commercial and B2B legal work, within IT/telecoms.
• Outstanding drafting and negotiation skills, with proven experience leading and accomplishing complex, high‐value commercial contracts.
• Strong business insight, able to balance legal risk with commercial objectives and deliver pragmatic, solutions‐focused advice.
• Proven ability to manage multiple complex matters simultaneously in a fast‐paced, high‐pressure environment with minimal supervision.
• Excellent collaboration management and communication skills, with the confidence to influence and challenge senior leaders effectively.

The Other Stuff We're Looking For:

• Familiarity with legal operations and process improvement, including automation or system implementation to make the process of contracting as efficient as possible.
• Demonstrated ability to contribute strategically to business decision‐making, not just legal execution.
• Working knowledge of data protection, TUPE, and regulatory frameworks relevant to telecoms or IT services.
• Experience in corporate/intragroup transactions and dispute resolution.

Benefits:

• 25 days holiday + bank holidays, with an extra day for each year of service (up to 30 days).
• An extra day off on your birthday or if you're getting married.
• £500 referral bonus – bring great people, get rewarded!
• Exclusive Virgin Media and O2 staff discounts.
• Professional development – training and support to help you grow.
• Eye care vouchers and discounted Medicash membership for healthcare savings.
• Sim deals for you and your family/friends.
• Exclusive discounts and savings at over 1,200 retailers.