Head of Legal

2H, Acteon's Engineering consultancy, turns offshore engineering challenges into your competitive advantage. Combining unrivalled domain knowledge with leading-edge technology, our agile consultancy enhances project-critical decisions, optimises economic viability, and minimises risk throughout the energy project lifecycle.

With continued growth within large EPC platform projects (typically $100M+) we are looking for a Head of Legal who will be responsible for legal, contractual and compliance support across ASE's international engineering operations.The role requires a commercially astute in-house lawyer able to advise on complex engineering services, consultancy appointments, professional liability, intellectual property, limitation of liability, project delivery risk, disputes, corporate governance, and compliance matters.

The Head of Legal will work closely with the ASE leadership team, project directors, commercial teams, engineering teams, finance, tax, insurance, compliance, and Group Legal to ensure that legal risk is identified, managed, and appropriately balanced against commercial opportunity. The role will report to the EVP, ASE, with a functional reporting line into the General Counsel of Acteon Group.

Main Responsibilities

Legal Advice and Support

• Provide accurate, relevant, and timely legal advice on a wide range of legal, contractual and compliance matters in support of ASE.
• Advise on tenders, contracts, consultancy appointments, engineering services agreements, framework agreements, master services agreements, purchase orders, NDAs, teaming arrangements, collaboration agreements, and subcontractor arrangements.
• Draft, review, and negotiate commercial contracts using ASE templates and, where appropriate, industry standard forms, including LOGIC, BIMCO, FIDIC, IMCA, supplier terms and client standard terms.
• Advise on key engineering consultancy risks, including scope definition, fitness for purpose obligations, professional standard of care, reliance provisions, deliverables, design responsibility, delay, liquidated damages, consequential loss, indemnities, caps on liability, insurance alignment, and termination rights.

Engineering Consultancy Risk and Professional Liability

• Advise the business on managing professional liability risk arising from engineering analysis, design, assurance, modelling, integrity assessments, decommissioning advice, and technical recommendations.
• Work with project and commercial teams to ensure that contracts properly reflect the nature and limits of ASE's services, including assumptions, exclusions, client dependencies, and reliance limitations.
• Support the development and use of appropriate standard terms for engineering consultancy services.
• Liaise with the Group insurance function to ensure that contractual liabilities are aligned with available professional indemnity, general liability, and other applicable insurance arrangements.
• Assist the business in managing potential claims, notifications and circumstances that may give rise to insurance or dispute issues.

Compliance and Regulatory Matters

• With the support of Group Compliance, promote compliance with applicable laws, regulations, sanctions, export controls, anti-bribery and corruption requirements, competition law, data protection, trade controls, and relevant industry standards.
• Act as a compliance champion within ASE, promoting a culture of integrity, ethical conduct, and legal awareness.
• Serve as a key liaison point between ASE and the Group Compliance function.

Intellectual Property, Data and Digital Tools

• Advise on the ownership, licensing, protection, and commercialisation of intellectual property arising from ASE's engineering services, software tools, methodologies, reports, models, calculations, designs, and technical know-how.
• Ensure that contracts adequately protect ASE's proprietary information, confidential information, technical data, and pre-existing intellectual property.
• Advise on client rights to use deliverables, third-party reliance, restrictions on onward disclosure, data ownership, and use of project data.
• Support legal review of software, digital tools, monitoring solutions, analytics products, and technology-enabled engineering services.
• Work with relevant stakeholders on AI governance, data protection, cyber, confidentiality and information security issues

Dispute Resolution and Claims Management

• Provide legal advice and support in respect of claims, disputes, warranty issues, professional liability allegations, payment disputes, and project delivery issues arising within ASE.
• Manage disputes, including litigation, arbitration, adjudication, mediation, and negotiated settlements, with support from Group Legal and external counsel as appropriate.
• Work closely with project teams to preserve evidence, manage correspondence, protect privilege, and develop effective dispute strategies.
• Support post-project reviews and lessons learned to reduce recurrence of legal and contractual risk.

Risk Management

• Identify, assess, and mitigate legal and contractual risks associated with ASE's projects, operations, and strategic plans.
• Provide pragmatic, business-focused advice that enables informed risk-based decision-making.
• Support the development of risk registers, approval papers, and escalation processes for material legal or contractual risks.
• Advise on risk allocation in tenders and contracts, including areas requiring senior management, Group Legal, tax, insurance, or other specialist input.
• Promote legal and risk management best practice throughout ASE.

Corporate Governance

• Where required by the Group Company Secretariat team, support corporate governance activities, including board meetings, statutory filings, internal approvals, and corporate housekeeping.
• Ensure adherence to Acteon corporate policies, delegated authorities, and governance procedures.
• Support legal entity, branch, and jurisdictional matters relevant to ASE's international operations.

Team Management

• Manage any direct reports and ensure that legal, contracts, and compliance resources supporting ASE are effectively deployed.
• Provide clear direction, coaching and development to members of the legal or contracts team supporting the business.
• Contribute to the wider Acteon Group Legal function, including knowledge sharing, common standards, template development, and continuous improvement.

Training and Development

• Provide training to ASE staff on legal, contractual and compliance matters, including contract risk, limitation of liability, intellectual property, professional liability, privilege, claims management and compliance obligations.
• Stay up to date with legal developments relevant to engineering consultancy, offshore energy, professional services, supply chain, procurement, and international contracting.

Stakeholders and Reporting

• Liaise with ASE business leaders, project directors, commercial teams, engineering teams, and support functions.
• Report and update the ASE leadership team, Group Legal and other relevant stakeholders on key legal issues, material risks, disputes, claims, compliance matters and improvement areas.
• Communicate clearly with non-legal stakeholders, translating complex legal issues into practical commercial guidance.
• Manage certain third parties, including external counsel, experts, and auditors, in line with Acteon legal services procurement processes

Qualifications & Requirements

• Qualified solicitor with a current practising certificate in England, Scotland, the US, or another common law jurisdiction.
• Minimum of 5 years' PQE gained in-house or in private practice.
• Strong knowledge of contract law, commercial law, and regulatory compliance.
• Experience drafting, reviewing, and negotiating commercial contracts.
• Experience in EPC contract negotiations with external and internal stakeholders
• Experience managing disputes and working with external legal counsel.
• Excellent negotiation, drafting, and communication skills.
• Ability to engage credibly with senior management, commercial teams, project teams, and technical specialists.
• Strong attention to detail and ability to prioritise competing demands.
• Experience in engineering consultancy, offshore energy, renewables, oil and gas, marine infrastructure, subsea engineering, or professional services preferred.

2H offers a vibrant and stimulating work environment with an emphasis on team culture. We believe in developing our team with interesting, diverse, and challenging projects to enhance skill sets and an enable long-term career opportunities.

• Highly competitive salary
• Payment of professional membership fees relevant to the role
• Life Assurance
• Company Pension Scheme
• Private medical insurance
• Quarterly team building events
• Electric Vehicle Scheme and more
• We enjoy an agile work environment with hybrid working to allow a good work-life balance.