Legal Counsel (Property)

The Opportunity

William Grant & Sons is a sixth-generation independent family-owned distiller headquartered in the United Kingdom and founded by William Grant in 1887. The Company distills, bottles, and distributes some of the world’s leading brands of Scotch whisky and other spirits. The Company’s global icons include the world’s most-awarded single malt Scotch whisky Glenfiddich®, The Balvenie® range of handcrafted single malts, Monkey Shoulder® blended malt Scotch and super-premium Hendrick’s® Gin. Other spirits in the portfolio include Grant’s® and The Famous Grouse® blended Scotch whiskies, Tullamore D.E.W.® Irish whiskey, Sailor Jerry® spiced rum, Drambuie whisky liqueur, Milagro® tequila, Reyka® vodka, Discarded Spirits Co.® and ultra-premium Silent Pool Gin®.

Within the Group, the Operations Business Unit is responsible for distilling and bottling all these superb brands to the highest standards of quality and productivity. It operates distilleries and packaging establishments in the United Kingdom, Ireland, USA and Mexico. William Grant & Sons also has a very ambitious CSR agenda which involves carbon reduction measures and exploring renewable energy sources.

This role provides a unique opportunity to collaborate with senior leadership, key stakeholders, and external legal counsel to effectively manage the WG&S property portfolio and support the organisation in advancing its CSR and broader business initiatives. Additionally, the position requires you to provide comprehensive commercial support to WG&S’ Central Services teams—primarily HR and Finance - and contributes to compliance training efforts across different functions. It is a truly global role as you will work across numerous jurisdictions.

This opportunity exists because our current Counsel is taking a short-term secondment within WG&S to develop their career in another legal role – perhaps this is the opportunity for you to do the same? To try your hand at something new and challenging for 7 months?!

What you will be doing

You will provide front-line legal support to the Operations Business Unit and Central Services, mainly on property work, CSR projects, and commercial agreements. You will act as one of the key trusted advisors to the Operations Business Unit, developing innovative and effective ways of working and supporting the Company’s legal compliance agenda across the operational teams.

This means one day you might be standing in a field in Girvan negotiating a land deal with a local farmer; next, reviewing a commercial lease in a highly sought urban area; then deliver a data protection compliance training program tailored to HR teams; or study new UK legislation on grid connections. In a fast-paced dynamic business, pretty much any and every type of legal work is in scope. You won’t be on your own though. There is an internal legal team you can lean on to support you and you’ll instruct and work with external counsel too.

Our Ideal Candidate

You were probably one of the top performers in every place you’ve studied and worked. You’re curious, inquisitive, ambitious and you like a challenge. You’re a self-starter. Confident, but not arrogant. You don’t have all the answers, but are savvy and know who to go to and how to find them. You’re a clean, concise communicator. You have energy and want to have fun at work. You have a number of years practising law under your belt now, some of it preferably in real estate, and your technical skills have been honed a bit. You want to focus on how you become a better in-house lawyer, more commercial, and a better business partner. If any or all of this sounds like you and you’re looking for an opportunity (at least for 7 months) to broaden your skills and try your hand at something new, then we’re keen to hear from you!