Head of Corporate (Legal) in London

Founded in 1896, 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, and 20,000+ people. 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.

Our Legal Team supports all areas of the Knight Frank business including its residential, commercial, and business services divisions. We enable the Knight Frank business to take forward its commercial objectives whilst effectively managing legal risk in a proportionate way. On a day-to-day basis, Knight Frank's Legal Team advises and partners on a broad range of subjects and projects, including strategic matters, growth and corporate M&A, franchising, regulatory matters, supplier and client contracts, the resolution of disputes, data protection, intellectual property and much more.

We are now seeking to grow our corporate function which will sit within Knight Frank's wider Legal Team. We are looking for a Head of Corporate Legal to oversee a growing team of two (based here in the UK), as well as supporting plans to grow corporate in-house resources in other key global jurisdictions. The Head of Corporate Legal will be responsible for both UK based and global corporate matters (in certain jurisdictions), including M&A, licensing and global regulatory compliance, as well as providing strategic advice to senior leadership.

Your responsibilities will include:

• Providing strong leadership in overseeing, supporting and developing a small team of UK based corporate lawyers.
• Providing expert advice to senior leadership and internal stakeholders on a range of transactions which vary in complexity, including M&A, business restructuring and franchising.
• Managing a busy pipeline of corporate transactions, ensuring these are appropriately resourced.
• Advising on deal structures.
• Drafting and negotiating Heads of Terms.
• Supporting with due diligence exercises.
• Ensuring international pre-contract disclosure and local regulatory requirements are met.
• Actively managing deals and execution.
• Acting as the main point of contact to the business for urgent, complex, corporate matters.
• Partnering with key stakeholders internally to ensure clear visibility of corporate pipeline.
• Proactively identifying, managing and mitigating legal risks associated with transactions.
• Developing and implementing legal procedures and policies to ensure adherence to best practice and compliance with law.
• Responsible for preparation and oversight of legal budgets for corporate matters.
• Helping to manage Knight Frank's panel law firm relationships.
• Embedding a culture of legal engagement and compliance across the business.

Professional experience and personal skills profile:

• You’ll have senior post qualification experience as a corporate lawyer (at least 8-10 years PQE), specialising in M&A and franchising.
• You’ll be a strong negotiator, capable of managing complex transactions.
• You’ll enjoy working in a fast-paced environment, managing a busy workload and working with a variety of teams from across the business.
• You’ll need to be personable, user-friendly in your advice, commercially minded and pragmatic in your approach to solving challenges and problems.
• This role suits someone who is organised, works well under pressure and who is comfortable using their initiative.
• You’ll enjoy being a team player, valuing the individual and working collaboratively.

Competitive salary.