Senior Legal Counsel

Location: London, UK. This role does not offer relocation or visa support so please only apply if you have the right to work in the UK and the office location is convenient for you.

Come and join our team of dedicated and passionate lawyers, united by a shared commitment to achieve impactful outcomes together! You will provide strategic counsel and be a trusted business partner to colleagues within the Novartis UK organisation, working closely with key decision makers across the business. Working where data and digital meet medicines to serve patients, you will co‑create solutions that deepen our bold partnerships with the NHS to benefit patients. You will proactively manage the legal and regulatory risk landscape, and continuously monitor, interpret, and anticipate developments in key areas of legal risk in order to enable sound strategic decision making, support compliant and sustainable business growth, and protect and enhance the company’s reputation.

Key Responsibilities

• Actively participating in relevant therapy area leadership team discussions and decision making.
• Negotiating commercial agreements and other commercial arrangements in respect of Novartis’ products with Novartis customers across the UK.
• Negotiating and settling joint working agreements and collaborative working agreements between Novartis and the NHS.
• Collaborating with colleagues in the Medical and Ethics, Risk and Compliance (ERC) teams, to guide the UK business teams to complete their activities in a manner which complies with the ABPI Code and internal governance requirements.
• Leading on disputes, litigation and/or investigations, including managing the work of outside counsel and other legal experts.
• Working closely with the wider legal team to develop, train and implement policies, procedures, and guidelines for the UK organisation.
• Providing legal support to other Novartis UK‑wide initiatives.
• Contributing to the leadership and development of associates in the UK legal team by making a significant contribution to team strategy, and supervising members of the legal team as required.
• Role modelling the Novartis values and behaviours visibly and consistently.

Essential Requirements

• Law degree and qualified to practice in the UK.
• Significant post‑qualification experience of working in‑house within pharmaceutical industry or significant experience of advising on commercial pharmaceutical legal issues.
• Deep understanding of ABPI Code requirements.
• Capacity to quickly analyse complex legal issues and confidence to push forward within ambiguous and rapidly changing frameworks.
• A commitment to high performance, integrity and to maintaining an outward‑facing mentality.
• A passion to seek and receive feedback from colleagues and peers and a willingness to drive courage in those you work with.
• Ability to operate effectively under time and business pressures and to manage competing stakeholders paired with sound experience in handling a high volume of activity involving managing multiple, often technically complex, projects simultaneously.
• Demonstrable willingness to understand and work within the rapidly changing dynamics of the pharmaceutical industry.

Commitment to Diversity & Inclusion

Novartis is committed to building an outstanding, inclusive work environment and diverse teams representative of the patients and communities we serve.

You’ll receive:

• Competitive salary
• Short‑term incentive bonus
• Pension scheme
• Share purchase scheme
• Health insurance
• 25 days annual leave
• Flexible working arrangements
• Subsidised dining facilities
• Employee recognition scheme
• Learning and development opportunities