EMEA Commercial Legal Counsel - Frankfurt

Permanent role; based in Germany (Frankfurt); 10+ years PQE
Competitive market salary and benefits package reflecting qualifications and experience

The Role

This is an exciting opportunity for an experienced commercial Legal Counsel to join the ERM Legal Group.

This new role will provide legal, contracts and governance support to ERM’s operations in the EMEA region helping ERM Legal Group to achieve its overall mission of reducing ERM’s risk profile, improving decision-making and enhancing client relations. The role will cover a wide range of legal and compliance issues, covering countries located in the EMEA region with an emphasis on Germany.  

This is a fast paced, commercially focused and highly collaborative environment, working with ERM business units, clients, service providers and external legal counsel in EMEA. You will act as a trusted legal adviser to colleagues throughout the business units at various levels of seniority. You will report to the Regional Managing Counsel for EMEA, based in London.

Responsibilities:

With your expertise and knowledge, you will provide legal support and advice to the ERM business in various countries located in the EMEA region with an emphasis on Germany.

• Reviewing and drafting a wide range of agreements, including consultancy service contracts, appointment contracts, master services agreements, subcontracts, reliance letters, confidentiality agreements, and secondment agreements, ensuring prompt and efficient turnaround.
• Ensuring compliance with ERM's corporate governance, policies, and procedures.
• Providing risk management advice to ERM staff at all levels of the business.
• Offering support on litigation matters as needed.
• Assisting with the integration of newly acquired businesses.
• Collaborating with the EMEA Legal Team on special projects and initiatives.
• Managing external counsel and coordinating their work as necessary.
• Working closely with HR to brief new joiners on legal requirements and risks associated with drafting proposals and contracts.
• Providing practical, hands-on legal advice to business partners on a variety of commercial, legal, regulatory, and compliance matters.
• Supporting other business enablement functions to ensure smooth operations.
• Regularly reporting to the EMEA Regional Counsel on key developments and material issues.

This role includes a significant component of contract reviews, drafting and advice as part of an in-house team in a business facing role, providing an end-to-end service with a wide variety of work and responsibilities.

Within a busy team and mutually supportive environment, you will enjoy high value work across the business.

What you’ll need:

• Native German speaker and German-qualified lawyer with at least 10 years of post-qualification experience (PQE), ideally including some in-house experience with an international company.
• Excellent verbal and written communication skills in English.
• Cross-jurisdictional experience and a strong understanding of commercial, contract, and risk management issues, including compliance and regulatory aspects relevant to international companies and global business.
• In-depth knowledge of contract law, distribution law, competition law, and corporate/commercial law.
• Proven ability to work effectively in cross-functional and international teams.
• Capable of working collaboratively within a team and independently when needed.
• Proactive with the ability to take the lead when necessary.
• Creative and pragmatic approach to problem-solving.
• Professional, calm under pressure, well-organized, proactive, quick to grasp new concepts, and able to meet challenging deadlines.
• Experienced in conducting training sessions and providing legal guidance to internal stakeholders, promoting awareness of legal risks and best practices.
• Ability to present legal guidance and advice clearly and concisely, tailoring content and style to suit the audience, whether one-on-one or in a group setting.
• Strong relationship-building skills, with the ability to foster trust with senior management and partners across the EMEA region.

This job is a good fit for you if:

• You are an excellent communicator with proven technical and organisational skills, with the ability to be open and candid whilst demonstrating respect for others and cultivating a culture of inclusion and trust.
• You are accustomed to working under pressure to meet challenging deadlines and be able to thrive in a fast-paced, complex and rapidly changing environment, adapting to different business needs (operational, transactional and structural) in the context of a large global group.
• You will have an eye for detail and be meticulous in your work, but be willing to work as part of a team engaging with and supporting colleagues to create well-considered and pragmatic, risk-based approaches to problems and enhanced team contribution.
• You display sound thoughtful business judgement and thinking, with a balanced commitment to process and continuous improvement and a demonstrated ability to earn the confidence of senior executives as a trusted advisor.
• You have the ability to build strong and lasting relationships with internal clients, offer pragmatic and sensible advice and show a genuine commitment to their business needs.
• Dedicated and enthusiastic, you will have the ability to work efficiently with a commitment to good outcomes for ERM and willingness to get involved wherever there is a need.

About ERM

As the world’s largest specialist sustainability consultancy, ERM partners with clients to operationalize sustainability at pace and scale, deploying a unique combination of strategic transformation and technical delivery capabilities. This approach helps clients to accelerate the integration of sustainability at every level of their business.

With more than 50 years of experience, ERM’s diverse team of 8000+ experts in 40 countries and territories helps clients create innovative solutions to their sustainability challenges, unlocking commercial opportunities that meet the needs of today while preserving opportunity for future generations.