Legal Manager

Grade: UKRI - Band F

Salary: £58, 589 per annum

Contract Type: Permanent

Hours: Full-time - 37 hours a week (a small amount of remote working is possible, but this role does require regular onsite attendance)

Location: BGS headquarters in Keyworth in Nottingham

Closing date: 23rd November 2025

Interview date: 9th December 2025

A great benefits package is offered including an outstanding pension scheme 30 days annual leave plus bank holidays

About you

Are you a highly skilled and experienced legal and contracts negotiator, expert in providing pragmatic legal advice and legal drafting solutions? You will advise in relation to and then facilitate the undertaking of commercial and collaborative work, contributing to navigating complex bid/tender opportunities and then securing and maintaining contracts/agreements on optimal and legally secure terms.

Travel within the UK, or occasionally overseas, will be required in this role.

The following specific essential and desirable skills criteria for this post will be assessed at shortlist (S) stage, interview (I) stage, or both (S&I).

Essential

• Law degree or other degree with relevant legal/commercial contracts experience and qualifications (S)
• Substantial amount of experience (with demonstrable evidence of successful outcomes) of leading the management of complex legal and contractual processes associated with commercial tender, contract, and research agreement work; to include leading and handling negotiations with customers and/or partners regarding terms and conditions under which contracted or collaborative work is to be undertaken (S&I)
• Expert knowledge of contract law and practise/management, including all relevant legislation/regulations (S&I)
• Working unsupervised, but also as a key, senior, member of a wider Legal Team and in compliance with local and corporate policies, processes and frameworks: meticulous attention to detail regarding drafting legal and contractual documentation, working within a high-pressure, routinely time-critical legal/contractual environment, to include effectively communicating to non-legal colleagues (S&I)
• Approachable, coupled with the experience, authority and determination required to manage difficult conversations and decisions with (senior) colleagues and external parties and then implement flexible, adaptable, and proactive approaches to problem-solving with demonstrable evidence of success (I)
• Understands and has experience of the needs of a commercial business (unit) as well as the aims and objectives of a public sector/research organisation such as BGS and ability to relate this to your role within the organisation (S&I)
• You will be committed to a diverse and inclusive approach to work in the geosciences (S&I)

Desirable

• Further relevant legal degree or other qualifications, e.g. commercial law, contract law, intellectual property rights law and Project Management qualifications (S)
• Experience of working within a UK research institute and/or public sector body (or demonstrable experience of routinely working with/for such organisations), including experience of handling commercialisation activities and 'routes to market', including fee-bearing / royalty based licensing (S&I)
• In-depth understanding of specific legislation/regulations of relevance to scientific research community and public sector, e.g. Freedom of Information Act/Environmental Information Regulations; Data Protection legislation; Intellectual Property Rights (S&I)

The closing date is 23rd November 2025. Interviews will be held on Tuesday 9 December in Nottingham.