Legal Counsel (Banking) - #2086270

Up to £105,000 plus excellent bonus and benefits

Are you a qualified solicitor looking to broaden your remit beyond pure legal advisory work within a close-knit, high-profile team? Due to exciting growth, we are recruiting on behalf of an established Edinburgh-based bank looking for a Legal Counsel to join their Legal & Corporate Affairs team. This is an excellent opportunity for a commercially minded lawyer to take on a genuinely varied brief – combining hands-on legal work with company secretarial and wider governance responsibilities, deputising for the Chief Legal & Corporate Affairs Officer, and influencing stakeholders at all levels across the Bank.

Responsibilities for the successful Legal Counsel to include:

• In this role, you will provide high-quality, commercially focused legal and governance advice across a broad range of matters, helping the Bank meet its legal and governance obligations while supporting the delivery of its strategic objectives within the agreed risk appetite.
• Legal & Governance Advice: Provide pragmatic and commercial legal and governance advice within a UK private banking context, acting as a key day-to-day legal contact for the business.
• Drafting & Negotiation: Draft, review and negotiate a wide range of documentation, including client and product documentation and commercial/supplier contracts.
• Strategic & Project Support: Support the delivery of strategic initiatives, change projects and new product development, balancing legal and regulatory risk with commercial objectives.
• Risk & Compliance: Identify, assess and manage legal and regulatory risks, contributing to the development of frameworks, policies and processes.
• Company Secretarial: Act as Secretary for Management and Board-level Committees, including preparing and collating papers, minuting meetings, and advising stakeholders on governance pathways and decision-making.
• Shareholder Matters: Act as a key point of contact for shareholder matters, including responding to queries.
• Horizon Scanning: Undertake legal and governance horizon scanning, providing insight and reporting on relevant developments.
• External Counsel: Manage external legal counsel, ensuring effective outcomes and robust cost control.
• Trusted Adviser & Continuous Improvement: Build strong relationships across the business, translate complex issues into clear, actionable guidance, and contribute to the development of the legal function, including improving templates and processes and supporting the adoption of technology, such as AI, to enhance the team's delivery, efficiency and insight.
• Deputising: Support and deputise for the Chief Legal & Corporate Affairs Officer as required.

Requirements for the successful Legal Counsel to include:

• We are seeking a technically strong, commercially astute lawyer who can operate autonomously within a small team while building trusted relationships at every level.
• Qualification & Experience: Qualified solicitor (Scotland or England & Wales) with significant post-qualification experience (typically 6+ years), gained in private practice and/or in-house.
• Technical Expertise: Strong technical grounding in commercial contracts and both personal and corporate law, with a sound understanding of the legal and regulatory framework applicable to private banking.
• Governance: Experience of, or a genuine willingness to learn and devote a material portion of the role to, company secretarial and corporate governance, including supporting the Board and committees.
• Communication & Gravitas: The communication skills and gravitas to interact with and influence at Board and executive level, presenting complex legal issues clearly and persuasively.
• Drafting & Analysis: Excellent drafting and negotiation skills, with strong analytical and problem-solving capability and the ability to proactively assess and mitigate legal risk.

This vacancy is being advertised by Montpellier Resourcing Associates Limited. The services advertised by Montpellier Resourcing Associates Limited are those of an Employment Agency.