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Permanent: Part time 21 hours per week
Location: Edinburgh/Hybrid
Salary: £49,500 - £64,500 (depending on experience)
A close team with big influence
Who we are:
We’re ICAS – a global professional membership organisation and business network for Chartered Accountants. We’re an educator, regulator, examiner, and a professional awarding body. Our smart and talented team comes from all walks of life. With a relaxed dynamic and a collaborative spirit, we take care of each other while supporting a vibrant, global membership.
We’re proud of the difference we can make to a profession that’s transforming to meet the urgent environmental and social challenges of our changing world and committed to improving the quality of our education, assessment, and student experience.
What’s the job?
This is an exciting opportunity for a solicitor who is looking to make a meaningful impact in a dynamic, professional environment.
We are looking for a Legal Counsel to provide expert legal and compliance advice and support across ICAS. This newly created role will play a vital part in contract negotiation, data protection, corporate regulatory compliance, and corporate governance.
The role has two key aspects:
1. Providing legal advice and assistance across ICAS, ensuring legal risks are managed effectively.
2. Coordinating and overseeing compliance functions, including serving as the Data Protection Officer (DPO) and Anti-Bribery and Corruption (ABC) Officer.
Reporting to the ICAS Secretary, you will play a crucial role in safeguarding ICAS’ legal interests, advising stakeholders, and ensuring compliance with key regulations.
Whilst there are other qualified solicitors within ICAS and an external legal support, you will serve as the primary legal advisor. You will independently handle legal and compliance matters, making key decisions with little supervision, working with internal and external stakeholders to raise awareness, ensuring colleagues receive regular and appropriate training and encouraging colleagues to seek your advice and assistance as and when required.
You will be involved in drafting, negotiating, revising, and monitoring legal agreements, including commercial contracts and partnership agreements - including technology related matters such as SaaS agreements, service level agreements (SLA), software licensing agreements, and overall IT Procurement.
You will also contribute and where appropriate lead the development and implementation of strategic and policy initiatives, pursing continuous improvement across ICAS’ legal and compliance processes.
From an external perspective you will be the key contact with other professional accountancy bodies, oversight regulators, and government agencies in respect of legal and compliance, including attendance at meetings and membership of forum groups.
Who do we need?
As a newly created role, we need someone with a proactive approach to legal and compliance matters, ensuring ICAS meets all necessary obligations and best practices.
We are looking for a qualified solicitor with demonstrable post-qualification experience and a current unrestricted practising certificate from either the Law Society of Scotland or the Law Society of England & Wales. You should have proven expertise in UK data protection, anti-bribery laws, and commercial contract management. Experience working in-house or within a professional body is highly desirable as is a background of technology transactions and AI-related driven technologies.
It goes without saying that communication and collaboration are hugely important in this role as there is an expectation that your advice will be relied and acted upon by ICAS colleagues and stakeholders who may not have the relevant legal knowledge or experience to question the advice.
Key skills include:
• Exceptional written and verbal communication, with the ability to provide clear and concise legal advice to a variety of colleagues in a way that is accessible and understandable.
• Strong problem-solving mindset, proactive in improving processes.
• Excellent organisational skills, with attention to detail and the ability to manage multiple priorities, working to tight deadlines
• Autonomous working ability, making key legal decisions with minimal supervision.
• Technically up to date with relevant legal and compliance matters, including proficiency in MS Office (Excel & Word) and ideally, Microsoft Dynamics.
Where is the job?
The job is based at our Head Office in CA House, Haymarket, Edinburgh. WE currently operate a 40% in office hybrid working pattern. All colleagues are expected to adhere to this minimum.
What you get?
As well as ICAS being a great place to work, with great people and an open and accessible executive team, we also offer a competitive salary, and generous staff flex benefits package which includes:
Private medical insurance, 35 days annual leave with option to purchase additional holiday, pension (9% employer contribution), your birthday day off, life assurance, health care and screening, dental care, technology, and cycle to work scheme, purchase discount vouchers/gym membership and an annual individual learning allowance to spend on personal development.
ICAS places equality, diversity, and inclusion at the heart of all that we do. With our partner organisations, we are committed to building a diverse membership and workforce that is beneficial for all, and that enables our communities to learn, grow and advance together.
How to apply
Please click here to apply by completing the short online details and attaching your CV.
Closing Date: 5th March.
Please note we are not an institute that can provide sponsorship, therefore a valid right to work in the UK is required for this role.
