Legal Counsel (maternity cover)

Legal Counsel (maternity cover)

Sheffield South Yorkshire United Kingdom

Salary: Competitive

Hours: 30 per week (4 days) flexible on days. Full-time will be considered.
Contract type: 12 months fixed term from October 2025 (maternity cover)
Reporting to: Director of Legal and Business Affairs

We are seeking a proactive Legal Counsel to provide maternity cover for our legal counsel. The successful candidate will support the Legal and Business Affairs team in managing a variety of legal support requests from across the business. Day to day workload will include supporting with various commercial agreements intellectual property management approving marketing copy supplier onboarding low level dispute resolution and providing general first line support on legal enquiries.

This role would suit a generalist commercial lawyer looking to build on existing in-house experience or broaden their private practice skills set by joining a fast-growing business. You will be dealing with a variety of legal topics and your day-to-day workload will require contract drafting skills stakeholder engagement and the ability to manage and prioritise an ever-changing workload with discretion and precision.


Key responsibilities:

• Draft review negotiate and amend commercial agreements with client partners and suppliers.
• Prepare and revise special conditions draft bespoke agreements and respond to counterparties legal comments.
• Liaise with internal stakeholders to draft and negotiate agreements and ensure alignment with business objectives.

• Provide guidance and support the Customer Support team in the handling of consumer complaints.
• Supporting the various internal departments with ad-hoc enquiries for example marketing employment litigation consumer commercial and intellectual property related matters.

• Supporting the Data Protection officer where required.
• Support the senior compliance counsel on regulatory matters including ICO IPO and advertising standards referrals.
• Manage energy billing disputes and pre-litigation correspondence with external legal teams.
• Advise on supplier and partner agreements.

• Set up new suppliers and process invoices via SAGE.
• Coordinate with Finance and external vendors to validate and resolve billing issues.

• Manage the Groups trademark portfolio.
• Administer trademark watching services (e.g. Corsearch) and ensure brand protection.
• Liaise with marketing and legal teams to monitor third-party trademark applications.

• Provide legal input on procurement questionnaires and onboarding documentation.
• Review develop draft and update internal precedent agreements including T&Cs and NDAs.

Skills and experience:

• Qualified solicitor or legal executive with commercial law experience preferably with some in-house experience but this is not essential.

• Ideally 1 to 4 years experience but all levels considered.

• Ideally some familiarity with the ASA CAP and BCAP Code.

• Strong drafting and negotiation skills.

• Some experience in low level dispute resolution (pre-action negotiations only) and regulatory compliance.

• Familiarity with IP protection and trademark monitoring.

• Proficiency and interest in legal document management.

• Strong analytical and problem-solving abilities.

• Excellent communication and stakeholder management skills.

About us:

At UniHomes we are transforming the student rental experience across the UK. As the leading platform for student accommodation advertising and utility management we provide a streamlined solution that simplifies the process of securing all-inclusive housing.

Our innovative technology and services are designed to support students letting agents and operators by offering a single comprehensive platform that facilitates every stage of the rental journey. Since our inception in 2015 we have expanded our operations to over 60 cities partnered with more than 1000 letting agents and operators and secured investment from Macquarie Capital and LDC.

Our achievements have been recognised through awards such as EY Entrepreneur of the Year Deloitte UK Technology Fast 50 The Negotiator Awards and Great Place to Work certification. Operating from our Sheffield City Centre headquarters our team of over 140 professionals is growing rapidly as we continue to develop industry-leading technology and enter new markets.

This is an exciting time to join UniHomes. We are looking for talented individuals who are eager to contribute to our mission and be part of a dynamic forward-thinking organisation that is shaping the future of student renting.

We are a team driven and united by our core values:

• Lead the Way
• In it Together
• Customers Matter
• Keep it Simple
• Rise Above Challenges
• Make it Happen

What do you get when you work here

With people and culture at the heart of our organisation we are continually enhancing our employee offer and culture. We are incredibly proud to have been officially certified as a Great Place to Work (GPTW) and an accredited Living Wage employer - all our employees earn a fair living wage above the government minimum wage.

Working in our stunning new office at New Era Square in the centre of Sheffield you will get complimentary breakfast hot & cold drinks snacks pool table holidays length of service days voluntary day enhanced pension scheme pension salary sacrifice scheme healthcare scheme Employee Assistant Programme sick pay enhanced maternity & paternity pay career progression a commitment to personal and professional development employee of the month award refer a friend scheme staff discounts mental health and financial support and company social events.

At UniHomes we are committed to fostering an inclusive and diverse workplace where everyone can thrive and which values individuals for their unique perspectives. We welcome candidates from all backgrounds regardless of age disability gender reassignment marriage and civil partnership pregnancy and maternity race religion or belief sex or sexual orientation.

Please let us know if you require any reasonable adjustments to make the recruitment process more accessible to you.

Applicants must already have the permanent and unrestricted right to work in the UK. Unfortunately we are unable to offer visa sponsorship as we do not hold a sponsor licence.

We want to hear your unique voice in your application. We love AI but relying on it solely to write your cover letter and answer the application questions is a missed opportunity to showcase the originality and personality that will make you stand out. Show us the real you.

We do not accept CV submissions from recruitment agencies. Direct applications from individual candidates are encouraged. Thank you for your understanding.