Legal Manager Legal & Intellectual Property Rights Team Grade: UKRI Pay Band F Salary: £56,745 per annum Contract Type: Permanent Hours: Full-time - 37 hours a week (a small amount of remote working is possible, but this role does require regular onsite attendance) Location: BGS headquarters in Keyworth in Nottingham Closing date: 23rd November 2025 Interview date: 9th December 2025 A great benefits package is offered including an outstanding pension scheme (with an extremely generous employer contribution - on average 27% of your pay), 30 days annual leave plus bank holidays About the role BGS is an innovative and world-renowned geoscientific research centre engaged in many exciting and forward-thinking research collaborations both nationally and internationally. This is a challenging and varied legal role, recently created; and providing the opportunity to develop it, tailored to your experience and skill set. Key responsibilities/duties of this role are: To support an anticipated increase in our commercial research activity by working alongside colleagues from both science and operations to support, negotiate and take the lead on legally binding contracts for BGS commissioned and collaborative research work. To facilitate major national and international geoscientific research and collaboration projects. To make a real difference to the way in which BGS manages the legal, contractual, and operational frameworks supporting its research activities. Included in the role's scope will be to review our internal legal, contractual, and operational frameworks associated with bid, tender, contractual and certain procurement processes; with the confidence, gravitas, and leadership skills to successfully implement any identified opportunities for improvement or greater efficiency. About you Are you a highly skilled and experienced legal and contracts negotiator, expert in providing pragmatic legal advice and legal drafting solutions? You will advise in relation to and then facilitate the undertaking of commercial and collaborative work, contributing to navigating complex bid/tender opportunities and then securing and maintaining contracts/agreements on optimal and legally secure terms. To succeed in this exciting role, you will need to be: An expert trusted legal and contracts resource for BGS. Comfortable with and experienced in leading and handling the provision of legal support, negotiation, and problem-solving skills to large scale national and international research projects, and in relation to commercialisation and 'routes to market' activities. Comfortable with managing your own responsibilities and workload, within an often high-pressured, time-critical legal environment - but at the same time becoming an integral and respected part of the Legal & IPR Team, able to lead, guide and mentor other members of the team as appropriate. Adaptable, flexible and pragmatic, with the ability to think outside of the box when getting complex, sensitive, or non-standard situations 'over the line.' Must be able to demonstrate robust commercial awareness within the context of BGS's primary status as a research institute. A superb communicator! Able to establish relationships both with legal counterparts at the organisations BGS works for/with, as well as with our colleagues in other teams across both operational (e.g. Business Development) and scientific functions. There is a vital need to understand the context of research being undertaken and what a 'good' outcome looks like from that perspective. Travel within the UK, or occasionally overseas, will be required in this role. You will be required to have the appropriate level of security screening/vetting required for the role. UKRI reserves the right to run or re-run security clearance as required during your employment. The following specific essential and desirable skills criteria for this post will be assessed at shortlist (S) stage, interview (I) stage, or both (S&I). Essential Law degree or other degree with relevant legal/commercial contracts experience and qualifications (S) Substantial amount of experience (with demonstrable evidence of successful outcomes) of leading the management of complex legal and contractual processes associated with commercial tender, contract, and research agreement work; to include leading and handling negotiations with customers and/or partners regarding terms and conditions under which contracted or collaborative work is to be undertaken (S&I) Expert knowledge of contract law and practise/management, including all relevant legislation/regulations (S&I) Working unsupervised, but also as a key, senior, member of a wider Legal Team and in compliance with local and corporate policies, processes and frameworks: meticulous attention to detail regarding drafting legal and contractual documentation, working within a high-pressure, routinely time-critical legal/contractual environment, to include effectively communicating to non-legal colleagues (S&I) Approachable, coupled with the experience, authority and determination required to manage difficult conversations and decisions with (senior) colleagues and external parties and then implement flexible, adaptable, and proactive approaches to problem-solving with demonstrable evidence of success (I) Understands and has experience of the needs of a commercial business (unit) as well as the aims and objectives of a public sector/research organisation such as BGS and ability to relate this to your role within the organisation (S&I) You will be committed to a diverse and inclusive approach to work in the geosciences (S&I) Desirable Further relevant legal degree or other qualifications, e.g. commercial law, contract law, intellectual property rights law and Project Management qualifications (S) Experience of working within a UK research institute and/or public sector body (or demonstrable experience of routinely working with/for such organisations), including experience of handling commercialisation activities and 'routes to market', including fee-bearing / royalty based licensing (S&I) In-depth understanding of specific legislation/regulations of relevance to scientific research community and public sector, e.g. Freedom of Information Act/Environmental Information Regulations; Data Protection legislation; Intellectual Property Rights (S&I) About us The British Geological Survey (BGS) is an applied geoscience research centre that belongs to UK Research and Innovation (UKRI) and is affiliated to the Natural Environment Research Council (NERC). It is a world leading geological survey whose core mission is to advise government of science related to the subsurface and to undertake applied research to solve earth and environmental issues, both in the UK and globally. It is funded directly by UKRI, as well as through research grants and private sector contracts. Our Core Values and commitment to promoting equality and diversity across our organisation underpin the continuous drive to improve our scientific and organisational efficiency. As such, we aim to have a workforce with employees from all backgrounds with people who are passionate about earth science and who share our dedication to work for the good of the environment and the benefit of society. BGS became a signatory of the Technician Commitment in July 2022. How to apply Applicants are required to include a CV and covering letter outlining their suitability for the role. We would stress the importance of this paperwork in our selection process. A well thought through application providing evidence and examples of how you meet the advertised essential and desirable criteria for the post will be considered far more favourably than a generic covering letter and CV. If you experience any issues applying for this role, please contact Recruitment@ukri.org. The closing date for receipt of applications is 23rd November 2025. Interviews will be held on 9th December in Nottingham. UKRI - UK Research and Innovation UKRI is an organisation that brings together the seven disciplinary research councils, Research England and Innovate UK. Together, we build an independent organisation with a strong voice and vision ensuring the UK maintains its world-leading position in research and innovation. Supporting some of the world's most exciting and challenging research projects, we develop and operate some of the most remarkable scientific facilities in the world. We are pushing the frontiers of human knowledge through fundamental research and delivering benefits for UK society and the economy through world-class research, skills and business-led innovation. More information can be found at www.ukri.org. Choosing to come to work at UKRI means that you will have access to a whole host of benefits from a defined benefit pension scheme, excellent holiday entitlement, access to employee shopping/travel discounts and salary sacrifice cycle to work scheme. For more details, visit benefits of working for UKRI. How we support EDI in the workforce At UKRI, we believe that everyone has a right to be treated with dignity and respect, and to be provided with equal opportunities to thrive and succeed in an environment that enables them to do so. We also value diversity of thought and experience within inclusive groups, organisations and the wider community. For further information, please visit 'How we support EDI in the workforce'. Disability Confident Employer As users of the disability confident scheme, we guarantee to interview all applicants with a disability who opt into the disability confident scheme and meet the minimum criteria for the role. We will ensure that individuals with disabilities are provided reasonable accommodation to participate in the job application or interview process, to perform essential job functions, and to receive other benefits and privileges of employment. Please contact us to request accommodation. How to apply Online applications only preferred for this role. Please submit a CV and covering letter which clearly outlines how you fulfil the criteria specified along with your motivation for UKRI and the role. Ensure that the job reference number is included in the filename description of each document uploaded. Note that failure to address the above criteria or submit an application without a covering letter may result in the application not being considered. Assessment will only be based upon the content of your submitted covering letter and CV and not the 'experience' section of the application. UKRI seeks to ensure it creates and maintains a system of openness, fairness and inclusion - a collaborative, trusted environment, which is attractive to and accessible to everyone who is interested in developing their career with us. The role holder will be required to have the appropriate level of security screening/vetting required for the role. UKRI reserves the right to run or re-run security clearance as required during the course of employment. The British Geological Survey (BGS) is an applied geoscience research centre of UK Research and Innovation (UKRI) and is affiliated to the Natural Environment Research Council (NERC). It is a world leading geological survey that provides a core science mission to advise government of science related to the subsurface and its interfaces and also undertakes applied research for solutions to earth and environmental processes, both in the UK and globally. It is funded directly by UKRI as well as through research grants and via private sector contracts. BGS has an annual budget of approximately £60 million and employs 650 people. It has two main sites, a head office in Keyworth near Nottingham and the Lyell Centre, which is a joint collaboration with Heriot Watt University in Edinburgh. BGS works with more than 150 private sector organisations as well as having close links with 40 universities and sponsors approximately 100 PhD students each year. We strive to promote equality and diversity across our organisation in order to continuously improve our scientific and organisational efficiency. As such, we aim to have a workforce with employees from all backgrounds with people who are passionate about earth science and who share our dedication to work for the good of the environment and the benefit of society.