Senior Legal Counsel EMEA

Senior in-house legal business partner supporting the EMEA leadership team - 10+ years PQE

1. POSITION SUMMARY
Under the direction of the Legal Director, International Markets, the Senior Legal Counsel, EMEA is responsible for leading day-to-day legal support for the EMEA region of Owens & Minor International and providing strategic, commercial and practical legal advice to the EMEA leadership team.

This is a senior, hands-on in-house role. The successful candidate will embed themselves in the business, build strong relationships with Sales, Marketing, HR, Quality, Regulatory and senior leadership, identify issues and opportunities early, and take ownership of moving matters forward.
The role acts as a senior legal adviser and commercial partner to the EMEA leadership team, supporting commercial execution, operational decision-making, risk management and regional governance. It also provides support on selected International Markets matters outside EMEA where appropriate.

The role will also contribute to improving how Legal supports the business by simplifying recurring work, reducing unnecessary friction and introducing practical templates, playbooks, self-service tools and clearer decision pathways so Legal can respond faster and devote more time to higher-value commercial and strategic matters.

2. JOB FUNCTIONS
Act as a trusted legal business partner to the EMEA leadership team and key commercial stakeholders, contributing to regional strategy, commercial planning, operational decision-making and risk management.
Work proactively with Sales and other business teams to understand commercial objectives, identify issues and opportunities early, and help transactions and strategic initiatives progress.
Lead day-to-day regional legal support, including prioritising legal work, managing legal risk, coordinating with Legal, Compliance and other functions, and overseeing external counsel.
Lead the review, drafting and negotiation of commercial contracts, including customer, distributor, supplier and other strategic agreements.
Support RFPs, tenders and strategic customer opportunities, including customer paper, procurement requirements, deviations, approvals and negotiation strategy.
Provide practical legal support to QARA on regulatory, quality and compliance matters, including product-related risk, customer and regulator communications, recalls, field actions and claims substantiation.
Advise on product, regulatory, sustainability and marketing claims, including promotional materials, tender responses, customer communications, website content, ESG claims and substantiation requirements.
Provide legal advice on ESG matters, including sustainability governance, responsible supply chain, human rights, greenwashing, ESG reporting and related European regulatory developments.
Advise HR and business leaders on employment law and workforce matters, including employee relations, restructures, investigations, terminations, consultation requirements and employment disputes.
Support litigation, disputes, investigations and other contentious matters, including management of external counsel.
Provide practical legal advice on corporate, commercial and operational matters, escalating specialist or material issues where appropriate.
Identify recurring legal and governance issues and develop practical improvements to templates, playbooks, processes, training and business self-service.
Challenge unnecessary legal process and look for simpler, faster and more scalable ways for Legal to support the business without compromising material risk management.
Work collaboratively with other members of the Legal team across Europe, Asia-Pacific, Latin America and the US, and influence global stakeholders where EMEA outcomes depend on action outside the region.
Revise and update corporate governance policies and procedures as appropriate to help ensure the business operates in compliance with applicable laws, rules and regulations.
Provide practical support and guidance to other members of the Legal team and contribute to knowledge-sharing and capability development.

3. KEY RELATIONSHIPS
EMEA Regional Vice President / General Manager
EMEA Leadership Team
VP, International Markets
Legal Director, International Markets
General Counsel and global Legal colleagues
Director, ESG & Sustainability
Legal Counsel (Dublin)
Sales, Marketing, HR, Quality, Regulatory, Compliance and Finance stakeholders

4. EDUCATION & EXPERIENCE REQUIRED
Law degree and entitlement to practise in at least one relevant European jurisdiction.
At least 10 years' post-qualification legal experience, together with substantial recent in-house experience supporting commercial teams directly and advising senior leadership.
Candidates with significantly greater experience who remain enthusiastic about a hands-on regional ro