Legal Counsel - Corporate, Commercial and Compliance

Legal Counsel - Corporate, Commercial and Compliance

Be part of something big

We are Pernod Ricard, a leading company in the global spirits industry. We own 16 of the world’s top 100 Spirits Brands and hold one of the most prestigious and comprehensive brand portfolios in the industry with 240 premium brands available in over 160 countries, including: The Glenlivet, Ballantine’s, Chivas Regal, Royal Salute, Aberlour, Scapa, Absolut, Kahlua, Malibu, Perrier Jouet, Mumm, Martell, Olmeca Altos and many others. Chivas Brothers is focused on the manufacturing, development and growth of Scotch whisky brands globally.  

Here in the UK

In the UK, Pernod Ricard is made up of 4 businesses:

• Chivas Brothers, the largest brand company in the Group, responsible for the production and management of our award-winning Scotch whisky portfolio.
• Pernod Ricard Global Travel Retail, the global HQ and EMEA home of the group’s duty free, air travel and cruises business.
• Pernod Ricard UK, focused on the UK market, it sells and distributes all Pernod Ricard products from whisk(e)y, rum, cognac, tequila, to gin, vodka and champagne.
• The Absolut Group, the brand owner of our global white spirits portfolio, whose Gin brand unit and Business Acceleration team sit in London.

We are an organisation of 2,000 employees in the UK, with offices in London and Glasgow and various distilleries and production sites across the UK from Plymouth to Speyside.

Your new team

This position sits in our Chivas Brothers business, reporting to the Head of Legal and UK Corporate and Compliance.

Your unique contribution

You will have the following areas of responsibility:

• Preparation and overseeing of corporate documentation in relation to intragroup transactions including restructures, dividend transactions, intragroup asset transfers and share sales, intragroup loan reorganisations in accordance with project plans;
• Organising and running, from a legal perspective, internal corporate transactions;
• Organising and documenting board meetings;
• Attending to all corporate secretarial matters with support of the group’s company secretarial service;
• Working on and ensuring principles of corporate governance are supported;
• Supporting, delivering and working on materials, training, advice and implementation in relation to compliance programmes including Anti-Bribery, Modern Slavery, Data Protection laws, Competition laws, supplier due diligence, conflicts of interest, gifts & hospitality, whistleblowing and the Pernod Ricard Code of Conduct;
• Maintaining Chivas Brothers’ data protection programme with ongoing review and identification of possible compliance gaps and implementing remedial action;
• General contract and commercial work on an ad hoc basis, including some intellectual property work and matters relating to customs and trade;
• Providing commercially focussed legal advice and support to internal clients and stakeholders across a range of functions, including tax, finance, production, customer service and HR;
• Managing and producing relevant legal documentation for the exportation of our products, including apostilling and notarising;
• Working on litigation and disputes as and when the need arises.

Who you’ll be working with

Internally,  you’ll work with the Head of Legal, the wider legal team and with tax, finance, customer service and other departments in serving the needs of the Chivas Brothers business across corporate, commercial and compliance matters. You will also work with the global legal teams on global initiatives as they relate to Chivas Brothers.

Externally, you will be in contact with suppliers, customers and professional advisory firms and other relevant and suppliers.

Your blend of talent

This position could be right for you if you have:

• 2+ years’ post qualifying experience in private practice or in-house with experience of corporate, corporate finance, commercial contracts, IP/IT, projects, or litigation.
• The confidence, general knowledge and curiosity to advise in multiple practice areas across varied areas of the business.
• Experience of operating in a fast-paced environment, turning round the drafting and reviewing of commercial documents in good time and the ability to take ownership and prioritise work with a high degree of independence.
• An understanding of consumer focussed businesses, especially in the FMCG, spirits markets or for a luxury brand company, or experience of manufacturing businesses generally.
• The ability to make decisions and to work independently, with support from Head of Legal and from the wider UK legal team as needed.
• Excellent commercial awareness and understanding of the needs of the business.
• Excellent written and oral communication skills and interpersonal skills; required to communicate with different teams based all over the world and instruct external counsel.
• Strong organisational skills with particular attention to detail and following up.
• Flexible, pro-active and collaborative approach as is essential.

Our mix of benefits

For your health, we offer private medical insurance and critical illness cover.

Our lifestyle benefits include a generous employee pension, share incentive plan and more.

You can access lots of gifts & discounts, including credit each year to spend on our brands in our staff shop.

We take our conviviality seriously: we have weekly events in our very own office bar, and resources to help you focus on your wellbeing.

Conviviality: the Pernod Ricard Way

We have our own way of doing things. We call it conviviality! It’s our way of being, and something unique you feel and experience when working for Pernod Ricard.

We’re committed to conviviality, and with this, you’ll be Proud to Belong to our Pernod Ricard family. You’ll be Empowered to Perform, supported to succeed, and acknowledged for the value you bring.

We combine all this with our Commitment to Care: we are unlocking the magic of human connection to transform our industry and make a positive impact on the world though our strong focus on sustainability and responsibility.

We’re committed to diversity and inclusion

People are at the heart of everything we do at Pernod Ricard and are the foundation of our collective spirit as ‘Créateurs de Convivialité’.

We promote diversity and inclusion throughout our business and supply chain. In our teams, we proactively foster a diverse work force and an inclusive culture – an environment where we can truly be ourselves. 

We will assess your application for this role based on your skills, experiences and achievements, not your gender, age, ethnic or educational background or any other such factors. Please feel free to leave these off your CV and application form if you so wish.

Similarly, if you would like to discuss opportunities for flexible working or require accommodations or support to complete our application process, please let us know.

Responsible drinking

As ‘Créateurs de convivialité’, we want to turn social interactions into genuine and friendly experiences of sharing and wellbeing.

In our culture, we want to create diverse teams in which our differences contribute to our success. Therefore, all are welcome at Pernod Ricard, regardless of your religious beliefs or personal choices on the consumption of alcohol.

In our business, we work together with industry members, civil society, governments, local authorities and UN bodies to promote responsible drinking. 

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