Lead Legal Counsel

Lead Legal Counsel

Pancras Square

Are you ready to apply sharp legal judgment to help bring life-changing medicines to patients across the UK and Ireland? This role places you at the center of pivotal decisions that shape how we engage with healthcare partners, navigate complex regulations, and enable compliant, fast execution across the business.

You will work closely with senior commercial leaders and cross-functional teams, translating complex legal frameworks into clear, pragmatic guidance that accelerates impact while safeguarding trust. How would you balance bold commercial goals with rigorous compliance to unlock faster patient access?

Accountabilities:

• - Client leadership and strategic service delivery: Serve as first line counsel to RDU UK & Ireland business, supporting negotiation and legal strategy for high complexity matters and providing decisive, pragmatic guidance and sign off to enable timely, compliant execution.

• Risk identification, escalation, and governance: Proactively define and manage the risk posture across ABPI/promotional, procurement/competition, privacy/data and market access, ensuring timely escalation, robust governance, and audit ready documentation.

• External collaboration and stakeholder leadership (incl. NHS) and resource management: Support cross functional legal workstreams and relationships with NHS and healthcare partners to deliver compliant joint working/data sharing arrangements while optimising internal and external legal resources and spend.

• Capability building, policy/process improvement, and enterprise contribution: Build legal and business capability through coaching and training, lead updates to templates/playbooks and process improvements, and translate regulatory changes into practical guidance while supporting enterprise and global Legal priorities.

Essential Skills/Experience:

• Client leadership and strategic service delivery: Experience serving as first line counsel to UK & Ireland business units, supporting negotiation and legal strategy for high complexity matters and providing decisive, pragmatic guidance and sign off to enable timely, compliant execution.

• Risk identification, escalation, and governance: Demonstrated ability to proactively define and manage the risk posture across ABPI/promotional, procurement/competition, privacy/data and market access, ensuring timely escalation, robust governance, and audit ready documentation.

Desirable Skills/Experience:

• External collaboration and stakeholder leadership (incl. NHS) and resource management: Experience supporting cross functional legal workstreams and relationships with NHS and healthcare partners to deliver compliant joint working/data sharing arrangements while optimising internal and external legal resources and spend.

• Capability building, policy/process improvement, and enterprise contribution: Experience building legal and business capability through coaching and training, leading updates to templates/playbooks and process improvements, and translating regulatory changes into practical guidance while supporting enterprise and global Legal priorities.

When we put unexpected teams in the same room, we unleash bold thinking with the power to inspire life-changing medicines. In-person working gives us the platform we need to connect, work at pace and challenge
perceptions. That's why we work, on average, a minimum of three days per week from the office. But that doesn't mean we're not flexible. We balance the expectation of being in the office while respecting individual  flexibility. Join us in our unique and ambitious world.

Why AstraZeneca:
Join a high-performing, globally connected team that powers the business behind science, turning complex challenges into practical results that benefit patients. You will sit shoulder-to-shoulder with commercial leaders, clinicians, technologists, and data experts, applying your legal expertise to modern ways of working that use digital tools and evidence-driven decisions. We champion curiosity and courage as much as precision, valuing kindness alongside ambition, so you can stretch your capabilities, influence enterprise-wide change, and see the tangible impact of your counsel on how we partner with health systems and deliver for patients.

Date Posted

02-Apr-2026

Closing Date

15-Apr-2026

Our mission is to build an inclusive and equitable environment. We want people to feel they belong at AstraZeneca and Alexion, starting with our recruitment process. We welcome and consider applications from all qualified candidates, regardless of characteristics. We offer reasonable adjustments/accommodations to help all candidates to perform at their best. If you have a need for any adjustments/accommodations, please complete the section in the application form.