Legal Counsel CEMEA

With 300 airports in around 50 countries and a global workforce of 60.000 employees Swissport is the world’s largest provider of ground handling, cargo, and other aviation related services.

We are now looking for a Legal Counsel who will be based in our offices in Madrid to cover the CEMEA region. If you want to be part of an international, ambitious, and challenging environment at the biggest ground handling organization of the world, please have a look at the job profile below and apply when you are interested.

You as our Legal counsel CEMEA

The legal counsel will be a key contributor to the group’s global legal team, primarily serving as a business partner to our business colleagues in legal, compliance, transactional, and corporate matters for the CEMEA region. Reporting to the Head of Legal CEMEA you are responsible for a wide variety of matters, including negotiating and drafting commercial agreements, corporate governance, overseeing litigation and claims ranging in complexity and common in the ground and cargo handling industry, ensuring compliance with applicable laws and regulations, and providing legal advice and counsel to the regional executive team.

Tasks & Responsibilities

• Work closely and collaboratively with Swissport’s business executive and global legal team on strategic, governance, risk, legal, and compliance matters.
• Provide legal support to business and finance colleagues in contract negotiations, and with respect to corporate, commercial, and compliance issues.
• Draft, review and negotiate a broad range of contracts, leases, licenses, trademarks, confidentiality agreements, and other legal documents.
• Manage the corporate governance of all regional subsidiaries within legal counsel’s regional responsibility.
• Monitor the Company’s business activities and assess legal and compliance risks that may impact the Company’s business and reputation.
• Manage and oversee litigation and/or administrative proceedings and manage outside counsel, with the aim to minimize the cost of such proceedings vis-à-vis settlement value and potential recovery.
• Assist the business in overseeing clients' legal compliance with antitrust laws, antibribery and corruption laws, equal opportunity regulations, and similar regulatory requirements.
• Deliver training to the business.
• Support the HR team on matters related to employment law.
• Advise on complex legal matters and projects as may be assigned from time to time.
• Support in M&A projects.

Qualifications and Competencies

• European or international qualified lawyer.
• Proficiency in English with the ability to read, write and negotiate legal documents in English is a must; good command of other European languages is a plus, in particular German, French or Dutch.
• 8+ years’ in-house and law firm commercial and corporate legal experience preferably in the aviation and/or the freight transport industry.
• Strong business acumen with a demonstrated ability to partner with regional leadership teams.
• Significant experience with commercial and corporate transactions, contract negotiations, corporate governance, compliance, HR issues, overseeing litigation and disputes, and managing outside counsel. Experience in M&A is a plus.
• Experience working with a global company on cross-border matters.
• A proven team player with the ability to build consensus with diverse stakeholders and third parties and form strong, collaborative working relationships with internal clients.
• A problem solver, a creative thinker, and a facilitator, who is comfortable in front of customers, suppliers, peers, and senior management in both leading and supporting roles.
• A self-starter with the ability to manage a significant number of projects simultaneously and to thrive in a dynamic and fast-paced environment while always maintaining the highest level of integrity.

This job description indicates the general nature and level of work expected of the incumbent.It is not designed to cover or contain a comprehensive listing of activities, duties or responsibilities required of the incumbent. Incumbent may be required to perform other related duties.

Your next step

When you are looking for this key position as a Legal Counsel CEMEA at a growing and changing international group that is headquartered in Zurich, we invite you to apply. When you do, please send your resume in English via the Apply button.

Because we get many applicants for our jobs it’s impossible to contact everybody personally. If you therefore do not hear from us, we have chosen for another candidate at this moment.

I do invite you already to keep following Swissport (and me) because new opportunities may arise in our transformation process.

Hope to hear from you soon!

Equal Employment Opportunity Statement

Swissport as an equal opportunity employer bases its hiring decisions on the business need and the best qualified candidates available and does not discriminate in its employment decisions based on any protected category.

Candidates who are offered employment may be subject to a criminal record and other background checks as permitted or required by company policy or applicable law.