Job Overview

Job Description

Regional Legal Leadership and Business Support

• Serve as the senior Legal and Compliance representative for the UK and EMEA region, providing practical, timely, and business-oriented advice to regional, commercial, operational, and functional leaders.
• Advise on legal issues affecting business strategy, customer relationships, commercial execution, regulatory compliance, market access, operations, and enterprise risk.
• Partner closely with global Legal and Compliance leaders to ensure alignment with Company standards, policies, risk tolerances, and strategic priorities.
• Monitor legal, regulatory, enforcement, industry, and market developments across the UK and EMEA and translate emerging requirements into practical guidance for the business.

Job Description (cont.)

Commercial Contracting and Strategic Business Matters

• Lead or oversee regional commercial legal support, including customer agreements, requests for proposals, contract interpretation, negotiation strategy, escalation management, template use, and alignment with global contracting standards.
• Provide legal support for complex commercial initiatives, strategic collaborations, customer programs, supply arrangements, procurement-adjacent matters, and other regional business priorities.
• Support M&A diligence, integration, divestitures, partnerships, and other strategic transactions affecting the UK and EMEA region, coordinating with global subject matter experts as needed.
• Help business stakeholders achieve commercial objectives while appropriately managing legal, compliance, operational, financial, and reputational risk.

Compliance, Ethics, and Risk Management

• Partner with the global Compliance function to implement, reinforce, and continuously improve Charles River’s ethics and compliance program across the UK and EMEA.
• Provide guidance on anti-bribery and anti-corruption, third-party risk management, government interactions, conflicts of interest, competition law, trade compliance, privacy, investigations, training, monitoring, and other business-integrity matters.
• Support regional compliance risk assessments, mitigation plans, controls, remediation, and reporting in coordination with global Legal, Compliance, Internal Audit, Finance, Human Resources, Quality, Regulatory Affairs, and business stakeholders.
• Promote a culture of integrity, accountability, responsible escalation, and ethical decision-making across the region.

Team Leadership and Cross-Functional Partnership

• Manage, develop, mentor, and provide practical leadership to legal professionals supporting the UK and EMEA region, including direct and indirect reports as assigned.
• Build strong working relationships across Legal, Compliance, commercial, operational, finance, procurement, HR, quality, regulatory, privacy, trade compliance, and other functional teams.
• Promote consistency, efficiency, accountability, and collaboration in legal and compliance service delivery across the region, while preserving appropriate flexibility for local legal and business requirements.
• Manage regional outside counsel and external advisors with a focus on quality, responsiveness, business practicality, cost discipline, and alignment with Company objectives.

Job Qualifications

• UK qualified lawyer in good standing, with authorization to practice law in the United Kingdom.
• At least 12 years of progressive legal experience, including meaningful experience practicing at law firms and in-house with multinational companies.
• Substantial commercial legal experience, including complex contracting, customer-facing business support, negotiation strategy, risk allocation, and support for commercial and operational leadership. 
• Strong compliance experience, including anti-bribery and anti-corruption, third-party risk, investigations, training, monitoring, policy implementation, and business ethics in a multinational environment.
• Experience supporting government-facing matters, distributor and third-party relationships, regulatory inspections, import/export matters, data protection, privacy, employment, disputes, and internal investigations.
• Demonstrated experience managing, developing, and mentoring lawyers or other legal professionals.
• Strong understanding of legal and regulatory issues affecting multinational life sciences, pharmaceutical services, biotechnology, CRO/CDMO, research services, manufacturing, or other highly regulated global businesses.
• Excellent drafting, negotiation, analytical, issue-spotting, and problem-solving skills, with the ability to provide clear, practical, and business-oriented legal advice.
• Demonstrated ability to work effectively in a matrixed global organization and influence stakeholders across functions, geographies, cultures, and levels of seniority.
• High integrity, sound judgment, discretion, executive presence, and ability to manage sensitive matters independently while escalating appropriately.

Preferred Qualifications

• Prior experience serving as a regional or country legal lead for the UK, Europe, or broader EMEA region within a U.S.-listed or other global multinational company.
• Experience in life sciences, pharmaceutical services, biotechnology, CRO/CDMO, research services, laboratory services, healthcare, manufacturing, or another regulated global business.
• Experience supporting government-facing matters, distributor and third-party relationships, regulatory inspections, import/export matters, data protection, privacy, employment, disputes, and internal investigations.
• Experience improving legal and compliance processes, templates, playbooks, training, intake models, contract management practices, and scalable service delivery in a regional or global legal function.

Professional Attributes

• Trusted advisor with excellent judgment, integrity, discretion, and credibility with senior leaders.
• Pragmatic, proactive, and solutions-oriented lawyer who understands business objectives and provides clear, actionable guidance.
• Strong commercial acumen and ability to balance legal requirements, regulatory expectations, operational realities, compliance obligations, and business priorities.
• Collaborative, low-ego partner who builds trust across global, regional, and local teams.
• Clear and concise communicator who can distill complex legal and compliance issues for business and functional stakeholders.
• Comfortable operating in a fast-paced, global, highly regulated environment with ambiguity, competing priorities, and sensitive matters.
• Committed to Charles River’s mission, values, ethical standards, and reputation for scientific and operational excellence.

Workplace Requirements

The role operates in a general office or remote work environment. Occasional domestic and international travel may be required to support regional business needs, leadership meetings, investigations, transactions, and other Company priorities.

Compensation Data

The hiring range for this position in the United Kingdom is 120,000/yr - 165,000/yr GBP. Please note that salaries vary within the range based on factors including, but not limited to, experience, skills, education, certifications, location and any collective agreements, if applicable. Remote candidates located outside the United Kingdom should be aware that the relevant pay range varies based on country and location.