Interim Vice President, Legal

The Company is seeking a VP Legal/Senior Director Legal for a 12-month fixed-term contract, with an immediate start. This senior legal leader will play a pivotal role in the organization, combining strategic legal leadership with a hands-on, commercially focused approach. The successful candidate will be a trusted legal adviser to the Board, investors, and senior leadership team, and will be responsible for a wide range of legal matters, including complex commercial contracts, data, technology, corporate governance, and potential transactional activity. The role also involves providing leadership to a small legal team, developing legal processes, and ensuring continuity during the contract period. The ideal candidate for this role is a qualified lawyer with at least 15 years' of relevant PQE, significant senior in-house experience, and a strong corporate and commercial background. Experience in a scale-up, high-growth, venture-backed, or private equity-backed business is essential, as is a proven track record in negotiating complex commercial contracts and advising on corporate governance, company law, and capital structures. While direct experience in life sciences is not mandatory, a background in regulated and data-rich sectors such as biotechnology, pharmaceuticals, healthcare, AI, or software is advantageous. The candidate should be pragmatic, commercial, and solutions-focused, with the ability to assess risk proportionately and a good understanding of technology, SaaS, licensing, IP, and data protection issues.