Commercial Counsel in London

Montagu Evans is a UK property consultancy that helps clients unlock value from complexity, because that’s where the most meaningful opportunities live. Our purpose is to bring clarity, creativity, and conviction to the complex. We are experts who collaborate to create value, not just preserve it and our team is built for impact, not oversight. We specialise in high-value, complex assets across the property lifecycle, where political, technical or commercial challenges demand a joined-up approach.

We are seeking a pragmatic and solution orientated commercial counsel to join the Risk & Compliance team at Montagu Evans. As the firm’s first internal legal role, the commercial counsel will provide practical legal and contractual support on live matters, bids, appointments and client terms, while also helping to embed a more consistent approach to contractual and legal risk across the business. The role will help build a scalable internal legal capability: creating clear routes for legal review, improving contract guardrails and playbooks, strengthening contractual standards and bringing legal insight earlier into client pursuits, bids and negotiations.

The role will sit within Business Services and work closely with fee-earners, the Head of Risk, the bid team, IT and external counsel to improve how the firm reviews, negotiates and manages legal and contractual risk.

Reporting to the Head of Risk, the Commercial Counsel will provide practical, commercially focused legal support on the firm’s agreements with clients, whether on Montagu Evans standard terms or client-side terms. The role will establish a clear legal triage model, review and sign-off guardrails, and standard positions so that contractual matters are handled at the right level based on value, risk, complexity and strategic importance. Where specialist advice is required, the role will act as the conduit between fee-earners and external counsel, managing those relationships and ensuring external legal spend is targeted, proportionate and fit for purpose.

The role will work closely with the bid team, providing legal and contractual input on tenders, panels, frameworks and call-off arrangements. It will also help shape the firm’s approach to data privacy, technology, AI and data processing by formulating and embedding appropriate practices, controls and contractual safeguards.

This is a hands-on advisory role requiring sound legal judgement, credibility with fee-earners and the ability to translate legal risk into pragmatic commercial guidance, advising fee-earners on when to accept proportionate risk, when to negotiate and when to elevate for additional consideration.

• Establish legal review processes and controls, including thresholds for value, risk, liability, insurance, data, subcontracting, public sector terms and sign-off;
• Embed the use of AI, automation and legal technology to improve contract review, legal workflows, knowledge sharing and reporting;
• Improve contract management practices, reviewing internally where appropriate and reducing avoidable reliance on external counsel;
• Manage external counsel, determining when specialist advice is needed and ensuring support is proportionate, responsive and good value;
• Educate fee-earners on key contractual safeguards, including liability, scope.