Deputy Director, Legal Services in London

UCL has over 50,000 students and 16,000 staff, a turnover of £1.9bn and is one of the world’s top 10 universities. We have a significant property portfolio consisting of more than 200 properties that we own or lease and we are involved in a number of substantial development and construction projects. Our Legal Services Department, which is part of the Office of the General Counsel, is responsible for providing advice on a wide range of legal matters across the University’s 14 faculties and extensive professional services departments.

We’re looking for an experienced commercial lawyer to play a key role within Legal Services, which is experiencing increasing demand and complexity. This is an exciting, high-profile job which offers the opportunity to engage directly with UCL’s most senior stakeholders and committees, and contribute to major strategic initiatives.

This senior position involves supporting a broad range of UCL’s activities, with a focus on general commercial contracts, outsourcing, IT, IP, strategic partnerships, research and governance matters, alongside managing a team of lawyers. As a member of the Legal Services leadership team, you will contribute to the strategic direction and management of the department, delivering high-quality legal support across complex, high-value matters and advising on issues of institutional importance.

The job is integral to ensuring legal risks are effectively managed and aligned with UCL’s strategic objectives, while enhancing the profile and reputation of Legal Services as a trusted, proactive partner.

To succeed in this role, you will be a qualified solicitor or barrister with significant post-qualification experience and a strong track record of advising on complex legal matters within a large and/or complex organisation. You will bring strong experience in general commercial legal work, including drafting and negotiating complex agreements and providing pragmatic, solutions-focused advice. Experience in one or more of the following areas would be advantageous: outsourcing, research and collaboration agreements, intellectual property, life sciences, IT/IP or corporate/structural matters.

You will also demonstrate significant experience of leading complex legal projects and delivering outcomes across cross-disciplinary initiatives, working effectively with both legal and non-legal stakeholders. Alongside this, you will have a proven ability to build and manage strong stakeholder relationships, enabling you to influence and advise senior colleagues and support the delivery of organisational priorities. You will have prior experience managing and developing teams of qualified lawyers, and the confidence and credibility to operate at a senior level.

As well as the exciting opportunities this role presents, we also offer some great benefits:

• 41 Days holiday (27 days annual leave, 8 bank holidays and 6 closure days)
• Additional 5 days’ annual leave purchase scheme
• Defined benefit career average revalued earnings pension scheme (CARE)
• Cycle to work scheme and season ticket loan
• Relocation scheme for certain posts
• Enhanced maternity, paternity and adoption pay
• Employee assistance programme: Staff Support Service

Our commitment to Equality, Diversity and Inclusion: As London’s Global University, we know diversity fosters creativity and innovation, and we want our community to represent the diversity of the world’s talent. We are committed to equality of opportunity, to being fair and inclusive, and to being a place where we all belong. We therefore particularly encourage applications from candidates who are likely to be underrepresented in UCL’s workforce. These include people from Black, Asian and ethnic minority backgrounds; disabled people; LGBTQI+ people; and for our Grade 9 and 10 roles, women.