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Legal Contracts Officer

Employer
Plymouth Marine Laboratory
Location
Plymouth, Devon
Salary
£40 – 45,000
Closing date
22 Oct 2021

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Practice area
Company and commercial
Contract type
Permanent
Hours
Full time
PQE
1 year, 2 years, 3 years, 4 years, 5 years, 6 years
Position
Solicitor
Sector
In-house

Plymouth Marine Laboratory (PML) is an internationally renowned research organisation delivering high quality, impactful science that supports our vision for a healthy and sustainable ocean. We deliver award-winning science, from the poles to the tropics, and from lakes to the open ocean. In 2020 we launched our new PML Strategy (2020-2025) setting out our mission to enhance our position as a world leader in the field of marine science, whilst focusing on our vision of a healthy and sustainable ocean. 

We have an exciting opportunity for an individual with expertise in contract law to provide legal advice and expertise in the review, drafting and negotiation of a wide range of contracts and agreements between either PML or PML Applications Ltd and stakeholders.

Duties will include:

  • Review, draft and negotiate a range of research contracts covering the full spectrum of research related activities, including UK Research & Innovation councils’ contracts, EU contracts, charitable foundation contracts, consortium and collaboration agreements, doctoral training partnership agreements and studentship agreements.
  • Review, draft and negotiate a range of commercial contracts and agreements, including with clients and industrial partners.
  • Review, draft and negotiate sub-contract and consultancy agreements, non-disclosure and confidentiality agreements, material transfer agreements, leases and other miscellaneous agreements as the need arises.
  • Provide pragmatic and clear advice on the implications of contractual terms to PML researchers and PML Applications business development managers, using a working knowledge of contract issues, such as liabilities, indemnities, confidentiality, intellectual property, data protection and other related issues.
  • Ensure that contractual terms are clear and appropriate, and that risk is identified and appropriately assessed within each contract, whilst meeting the needs of PML as a charity, and PML Applications Ltd as a commercial entity, respectively.
  • Interact and communicate effectively with external clients and collaborators, and internally with the contract research, business or operational leads.
  • Work closely with the Company Secretary to manage and administer a varied legal workload, and with Financial Services to ensure an effective and efficient service to stakeholders internally and externally.
  • Keep abreast of developments within the legal contractual field.
  • Demonstrate PML’s core values.
  • Accept legal responsibility for own safety and that of others as appropriate

A confident self-starter, you will have demonstrable experience of contract negotiation, drafting and issues, ideally as they apply in the context of a research organisation, as well as commercial contract experience.

You will have degree level in law or equivalent significant legal experience working in a comparable role with a sound knowledge of contract legislation, including intellectual property, GDPR, liabilities and indemnities.

Highly developed written and oral communication skills are essential, along with the ability to identify, distil and convey key points of a contract in a succinct manner. 

You should be proficient with general IT, including  Microsoft Excel, Microsoft Office 365 and confidence with business systems. 

You will have excellent people skills with the ability to develop effective working relationships with a range of colleagues and stakeholders, be a good problem solver and negotiator and possess a high degree of professionalism, business understanding, integrity and credibility.

* Opportunities for part-time working may be considered and discussed at interview.

PML has recently attained Athena SWAN Bronze level accreditation and is committed to promoting a diverse and inclusive culture where we can all succeed based on our merit. To support staff from all backgrounds, we offer a range of family friendly and inclusive employment policies.

PML operates a hybrid working policy whereby employees are able to split their working arrangements between PML’s Plymouth offices and home-based working in line with business and role requirements, with employees spending proportionally more of their working time in PML offices than working at home (e.g. 3 days per week in the office and 2 at home).PML offers a variety of employee benefits.

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