Senior Legal and Compliance Counsel for the OIL! Group

Senior Legal and Compliance Counsel for the OIL! Group

 

Location: Office based role in Hambrug

 

The Prax group is a British multinational independent oil refining, storage, distribution and sales conglomerate dealing in crude oil, petroleum products and bio-fuels, headquartered in London. Its assets span the oil supply chain, from production assets (we recently acquired an oil well in the North Sea) through refining (we own the Lindsey Oil refinery in England), transportation (we own pipelines, road tankers and ocean-going bunker vessels) and storage (we have storage facilities in the UK, Belgium and the USA) to retail (we own petrol filling stations in the UK).

 

The Prax group has recently agreed to buy OIL! Tankstellen GmbH, a German company which owns a network of filling stations with forecourt businesses (food, car wash, ect.), mainly in Germany (234 stations) but also in neighbouring countries (Austria, Switzerland and Denmark). It is headquartered in Hamburg. The Prax group is also bidding for other related assets in Germany.

 

We are now seeking to recruit a commercially focussed lawyer to join our small in-house legal team.

 

The position is based in Hamburg, reporting to the CEO of OIL!, with an indirect reporting line to the Principal Legal Counsel (who is based in London).

 

The role will focus on providing professional, timely, cost-effective, and practical legal and compliance advice and support to all activities of the OIL! group and potentially to further acquisitions which the Prax group makes in Germany. The work is varied and fast-paced. The candidate would be required to keep up-to-date on changes in the law and help the business manage legal risk and remain compliant. The main areas of focus include:

 

Legal

Contractual matters - drafting and negotiating a range of agreements with suppliers, freight hauliers, banks, payment providers and others including those with convenience stores, agency agreements car wash providers and fuel card providers.

Property matters – for example leases of filling stations

Employment matters

Other matters - as with any business, there is a wide range of subjects on which the business needs legal advice and assistance, in particular regarding regulatory changes.

 

Compliance

The job would involve providing advice and training on a full range of compliance matters, including personal data protection, sanctions compliance and anti-bribery (including gifts and entertainment), whistleblowing and on Know Your Customer checks.

Additionally, the position would advise on sustainability reporting requirements and those arising from OIL!’s status as a KRITIS company.

 

Company secretarial

The position encompasses assistance with corporate housekeeping, including with Board meetings and filing.

 

The successful candidate will be able to work in a fast-paced and growing business, which demands that the individual be flexible, willing to learn, and capable of taking on new challenges. The individual will also be able to handle a range of client demands, mixing project work and day to day transactions and queries. A suitable candidate will possess the following qualities:

 

• A law degree or equivalent and professional legal qualification (in Germany)
• Proven track record as a company and commercial lawyer, including drafting and negotiating commercial and agency agreements
• Strong experience in property matters
• Ideally, experience in employment law and compliance (including data protection)
• Ability to provide concise, accurate and up to date legal advice in a commercial environment and to distil complex legal concepts into pragmatic and user-friendly advice
• Strong oral and written communication and drafting skills
• Confident and credible with strong interpersonal, influencing and negotiation skills
• The ability to work under pressure
• The ability to work resourcefully, both individually and as part of a team, with both internal and external stakeholders from diverse cultural backgrounds