A leading UK food and drink manufacturing business is seeking an experienced Legal Counsel to join its growing legal function.

This is an exciting opportunity for a commercially minded lawyer to take on a high-impact role at the heart of a fast-paced, consumer-led organisation.

Working closely with senior stakeholders across the business, you will act as a trusted legal partner, providing pragmatic, solutions-focused advice that supports commercial growth, protects the business, and enables confident decision-making.

This role will suit someone who enjoys variety, autonomy and influence, and who is confident operating in a dynamic environment where priorities can shift quickly. You will be embedded across key commercial teams, helping to shape strategy and support the delivery of new initiatives, contracts and business-critical projects.

Key Responsibilities

In this role, you will:

• Act as a trusted legal advisor to senior stakeholders across the business.

• Support commercial teams with clear, practical advice on legal and regulatory matters.

• Draft, negotiate and review a broad range of commercial agreements, including sales, procurement, distribution, media, digital and professional services contracts.

• Help improve contracting processes, templates and ways of working.

• Identify and manage legal, regulatory and compliance risks across the business.

• Support areas such as data privacy, competition law, ESG, anti-bribery and cyber security.

• Manage disputes, litigation and settlement discussions where required.

• Work with external legal advisers effectively, including those based outside the UK.

Skills & Experience

We are looking for a qualified lawyer with:

• Around 8 years’ PQE, ideally more.

• Strong commercial contracts experience.

• In-house experience within FMCG, food, beverage or manufacturing.

• Exposure to a large FMCG business or training gained in a major law firm.

• A commercially astute, proactive and solutions-focused approach.

• Strong stakeholder management and influencing skills.

• The ability to explain complex legal issues in a clear, business-friendly way.

You will be someone who anticipates issues before they arise, builds strong working relationships, and is comfortable balancing legal risk with commercial opportunity.

This is a chance to join a business with a strong growth agenda and a collaborative culture.

The role offers the opportunity to make a real impact, work closely with senior decision-makers, and contribute to a business that values innovation, continuous improvement and pragmatic legal support.

The package includes a competitive salary plus benefits, with hybrid working as part of the offer.

How To Apply

If you are an experienced Legal Counsel with a background in food, drink, FMCG or manufacturing, and you are looking for a role where you can genuinely influence a business, we would love to hear from you.

Please get in touch for more information on this fantastic opportunity or apply with your CV today.