In-House Lawyer (Advancement)

Job summary

Are you a qualified lawyer with knowledge of charity and trust law? Are you keen to collaborate with fundraisers and donors to help secure philanthropic income supporting the next generation of students, vital, ground-breaking research and state-of-the-art facilities? Please come and join us.

The Advancement Division at Imperial College London is seeking an in-house lawyer. The Division is responsible for securing philanthropic support for the College, through building and managing strong, mutually beneficial relationships with alumni and friends.

Working with around 80 colleagues within the Division, the In-house Lawyer (Advancement) will provide pragmatic legal advice and support to the Division in securing a range of philanthropic income:-

• Charity and trust law;
• Data protection law; and
• General commercial contract law.

The lawyer will help to ensure compliance with law and guidance relevant to the Division’s activities, as well as providing guidance on other contractual matters within the Division.

In circumstances where a matter requires specialist advice, the lawyer may be required to provide instructions to the College’s external solicitors.

This is an exciting opportunity for a lawyer with an interest in the higher education or charity sector to help the College continue its mission with the support of philanthropic giving.

Duties and responsibilities

• You will provide authoritative legal advice to members of the Advancement Division in relation to philanthropic donations to the College, trust and charity law issues, general commercial matters and specific projects.
• You will advise on data protection law, including GDPR, PECR, and relevant ICO guidance.
• You will advise on issues related to the Equality Act 2010 and College policy in relation to the same.
• You will draft gift documentation, as well as responding to and negotiating donor-generated gift documentation, and will assist with negotiations in light of relevant law and College policy.
• You will advise and negotiate in relation to other contractual matters relevant to the Advancement Division, including supplier agreements and data processing agreements.
• You will apply philanthropic guidelines, in particular as they relate to higher education institutions, and support the Gift Accounting team in advising fundraisers and donors on how to ensure that an agreement is philanthropic in nature.
• You will work with the Head of Legal Services (Advancement) in the development, application and review of policies and procedures within Advancement that involve legal considerations.

Essential requirements

• A UK-qualified solicitor or equivalent
• Some post-qualification experience of providing charity and trust law advice and/or general commercial advice at a reputable law firm or in an in-house environment
• Proven ability to provide practical, outcome-focused legal advice and support in a dynamic and evolving legal context
• Ability to draft and negotiate agreements including, among others, gift deeds, supply agreements and declarations of trust
• Excellent knowledge of English contract law
• Specialist knowledge of trust and charity law
• Knowledge of data protection requirements, including in relation to GDPR and PECR, and current ICO guidance
• Strong commercial acumen and a practical approach to problem-solving
• A self-starter, capable of building strong working relationships within the team and at all levels across the College

Further information

Candidates will need to complete an online application to be considered for this role. This is a part-time role, 0.8FTE.

If have any questions or would like to have an informal chat about this role, please contact Liam Macrae, Head of Legal Services (Advancement) l.macrae@imperial.ac.uk

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