Senior Legal Counsel B&W

Please Note: The deadline for applying is 23.59 the day before the job posting end date.

Job Title: Senior Legal Counsel B&W

Location: 100VE

Work-Level: 2C

ABOUT UNILEVER:

Be part of the world’s most successful, purpose-led FMCG business. Work with brands that are well-loved around the world, that improve the lives of our consumers and the communities around us. We promote innovation, big and small, to make our business win and grow; and we believe in business as a force for good. Unleash your curiosity, challenge ideas and disrupt processes; use your energy to make this happen.

ABOUTBEAUTY and WELLBEING

Within Unilever the Beauty and Wellbeing business group is home to our Hair and Skin Care brands, including Dove, TRESemme, Sunsilk and Vaseline. It also comprises our Prestige business, including Kate Sommerville, Dermalogica and Paula’s Choice, as well as our Wellbeing business that includes Liquid IV and OLLY. Through iconic products, cutting-edge science, and purposeful growth, we are creating a new era of beauty and wellbeing which is joyful, inclusive, equitable, and sustainable.

JOB PURPOSE

As a senior legal counsel in the central Beauty and Wellbeing legal team you will support global brand teams with innovation and landing marketing activations as well as work on strategic governance and other projects for the business in a cross functional/cross market context.

RESPONSIBILITIES

• Hands on legal Business Partner to global brand teams for Innovation/Marketing activations. 

• ​​Together with the General Counsel Marketing for Beauty and Wellbeing, manage and mitigate risks regarding all legal matters that arise in the central marketing activities in Beauty and Wellbeing by providing creative but legally compliant risk mitigation solutions that deliver a competitive advantage to the Beauty and Wellbeing business. 

• Together with the General Counsel Marketing for Beauty and Wellbeing, provide legal advice and commercial risk analysis to the Central Marketing and Regulatory teams on legality and support for product claims and marketing materials (including competitive challenges and interactions with regulators) in line with all relevant local legal and regulatory laws and guidelines governing the products/communications including asset development and product launches.  

• Provide legal advice on advertisement campaigns, social media campaigns (including engagement of influencers), AI opportunities and other special projects. 

• Draft and negotiate agreements for  (for example sponsorship agreements, licensing and long-term marketing partnerships with third parties)

• Provide legal training on key topics (for example AI, sustainability legislation, changes to consumer and advertising laws and regulations) to business and legal colleagues. 

• In a cross functional team, oversee and input into global use of relevant legal tech tools for the Beauty and Wellbeing Legal Teams that affect Marketing  and embrace and leverage AI tools to drive efficiency. 

• Closely collaborate with expert lawyers from Unilever’s central legal team for topics such as Intellectual Property, Business Integrity, Competition Law, Data Protection and Litigation as well as colleagues in local legal teams
• Assist in coordinating strategy, activities and communications between the central Beauty and Wellbeing legal team and other legal colleagues including those in local Business Units

• This role reports to the Beauty and Wellbeing Group General Counsel (based in the US). 

ALL ABOUT YOU

• Must have excellent practical legal skills and be able to be pragmatic and quickly and agilely prioritise competing demands whilst leveraging internal expertise from colleagues within the broader Unilever legal team.  

• Must be able to quickly assimilate information, scoping out legal risks and provide pragmatic, commercial advice to the business, with a solution orientated approach and can do attitude

• Must be able to coordinate and work in great collaboration   with  business partners, such as brand (marketing), R&D, Finance and Regulatory Affairs as well as from colleagues in local Legal Teams. 

• Excellent communication skills both written and oral: ability to communicate with business partners in clear, audience-appropriate and engaging language 
• Team player who is willing to throw themselves into a busy environment with a smile, who is open to learn and bring others on the journey.

Experience& Qualifications

• Qualified lawyer with post-qualification experience in general marketing/commercial/compliance law as well as sound experience in contract review, drafting and negotiation.  Experience in dealing with English or US governed law contracts an advantage.

• Experience working cross-functionally with multiple stakeholders. 
• Experience of working for a large multinational and/or in a B2C business and/or FMCG business is desirable but not a prerequisite

Skills

• Legal expertise – broad based legal generalist skills with emphasis on marketing law and contractual experience. 

• Excellent English language written and oral skills and attention to detail are required.  
• Curiosity, willingness to learn and to work on a broad range of matters
• Problem solving - ability to analyse & propose legally and commercially viable and creative solutions. 
• Business acumen – strategic understanding, application and execution. 

• Stakeholder management - influence key stakeholders and act as an agent for change.  

• Collaboration – working successfully with other lawyers and cross-functional teams.  

• Risk management – demonstrates a successful combination of rigour and pragmatism. 

• Project management - excellent organization, execution, and project management skills.  

Key UL Behaviours

• PASSION FOR HIGH PERFORMANCE: Takes personal responsibility and accountability for execution and results. Has an owner’s mindset, using data and insight to make decisions. 

• PERSONAL MASTERY: Sets high standards for themselves. Actively builds own wellbeing and resilience. 

• CONSUMER LOVE: Whatever their role, always looks for better ways to serve consumers. Invests time inside and outside to understand the needs of consumers. 

• PURPOSE & SERVICE: Has humility, understanding that leadership is service to others, inside and outside Unilever. 

• AGILITY: Explores the world around them, continually learning and developing their skills.

What we offer

Whilst the role is advertised on a full-time basis, we would be happy to discuss possible flexible working options and what this may look like for you. We strive to achieve a family-friendly and inclusive workplace and to, above all, create possibilities for all. 

Diversity at Unilever is about inclusion, embracing differences, creating possibilities and growing together for better business performance. We embrace diversity in our workforce. This means giving full and fair consideration to all applicants and continuing development of all employees regardless of age, disability, gender reassignment, race, religion or belief, sex, sexual orientation, marriage and civil partnership, and pregnancy and maternity. We are also more than happy to provide reasonable adjustments during our application and interview process to enable you to be present your best self. To find out more, including about our Employee Resource Groups, please click here Equity, Diversity & Inclusion (unilever.com).

Location

In June 2020 we announced our plan to consolidate a number of Unilever’s offices across the South East of England into a new Unilever campus in Kingston-upon-Thames in or around early 2025. However, on the 08 August 2024 we announced to our existing staff our proposal to retain our central Head Office in London, 100 Victoria Embankment (“100VE”) until our lease expires in 2027. As a result of this new proposal, we will be consulting with our existing staff, and new joiners who join during this period of consultation at 100VE, on the proposal made in August 2024. During consultation we will clarify the future location of each team and function. This means your role will either be based in 100VE until 2027 or in Kingston-Upon-Thames from early 2025. As we are yet to commence consultation on the proposal you agree, until such a time when consultation has concluded, your normal place of work as set out in the enclosed Statement of Terms & Conditions will be 100VE. You agree that on the conclusion of the consultation your place of work will be 100VE or 100VE until early 2025 and then Kingston-upon-Thames ("the locations") and you will be notified of which of the locations will be your place of work after that consultation ends.