Telios is an established UK education business entering an exciting period of growth.
Alongside our existing education services, we are developing new areas of provision including international education partnerships, institutional programmes and other education projects.
We are deliberately building a high-calibre fractional leadership and advisory team rather than creating unnecessary permanent overhead.
We are therefore seeking an experienced commercial solicitor to become a trusted legal adviser to the Founder and help us build the legal infrastructure required to grow safely, commercially and internationally.
This is not a full-time position and there is no requirement for fixed weekly hours initially.
We are looking for someone we can call upon when qualified legal judgment is genuinely required.
The Opportunity
The successful candidate will act as a senior commercial legal adviser across Telios' activities.
You will work directly with the Founder and, where appropriate, alongside our Fractional Finance Director, International Programme Director and other senior advisers.
We need somebody capable of looking beyond individual clauses and understanding the wider commercial consequences of the decisions we make.
We particularly value lawyers who can explain complex legal issues clearly, identify the genuinely important risks and propose commercially workable solutions.
This is not a role for someone who simply identifies reasons why something cannot be done.
We want someone who can help us determine how it can be done properly.
Commercial Contracts
A significant part of the role will involve reviewing, drafting and negotiating commercial agreements.
These may include:
- Education service agreements
- Institutional and government-linked contracts
- International programme agreements
- Partnership and collaboration agreements
- Heads of terms
- Memoranda of understanding
- Consultancy agreements
- Contractor agreements
- Tutor agreements
- Client agreements
- Subcontracting agreements
- Referral and introducer agreements
- Supplier agreements
- Non-disclosure agreements
- Intellectual property agreements and licences
You will help Telios establish strong standard contractual positions and reusable templates so that the business does not repeatedly incur substantial legal costs for similar arrangements.
International Education Programmes
Telios is developing education partnerships outside the UK.
You will provide English-law commercial advice and help us identify when specialist local legal advice is required, particularly across countries in East Asia like Malaysia and Japan.
International work may include advising on:
- Contracting structures
- Partner responsibilities
- Payment protections
- Mobilisation payments
- Milestone-based payments
- Governing law
- Jurisdiction
- Dispute resolution
- Termination rights
- Liability limitations
- Indemnities
- Insurance requirements
- Force majeure
- Confidentiality
- Exclusivity
- Non-circumvention
- Intellectual property ownership
- Programme materials and licensing
- Overseas contractors and subcontractors
- International data arrangements
- Due diligence
- Local regulatory requirements
- Appropriate use of overseas legal counsel
We do not expect one UK lawyer to know the law of every international jurisdiction.
We do expect you to recognise where UK advice ends and local specialist advice is required, and to help us brief and manage appropriate overseas counsel.
Education, Recruitment and Workforce Regulation
Telios works with tutors and education professionals and is developing different models of education provision.
Experience in one or more of the following would therefore be particularly useful:
- Recruitment businesses
- Employment agencies
- Employment businesses
- Self-employed contractor arrangements
- Worker and employment status
- Education providers
- Tutoring businesses
- Alternative Provision
- Local authority contracting
- Public-sector procurement
- Safeguarding-related contractual provisions
Where specialist employment or regulatory advice is required, we expect you to recognise this and coordinate appropriate specialist input rather than advise outside your expertise.
Corporate & Commercial Risk
You may advise the Founder on matters including:
- New business structures
- New subsidiaries or trading divisions
- Corporate governance
- Director responsibilities
- Delegated authority
- Commercial risk
- Contract approval processes
- Supplier and partner risk
- Business expansion
- Dispute prevention
- Exit arrangements
- Commercial negotiations
A key part of the role is helping the Founder understand the practical consequences of legal decisions before commitments are made.
Data Protection & Technology
Telios uses technology extensively and is developing increasingly sophisticated digital systems.
You should be comfortable identifying issues involving:
- UK GDPR
- Data protection
- Children's data
- Privacy
- Data processing agreements
- International data transfers
- Technology contracts
- Software suppliers
- CRM systems
- AI-enabled processes
- Information security contractual provisions
You do not need to be a specialist data-protection lawyer provided you can identify when specialist advice is required.
Intellectual Property
Telios is developing educational content, programme structures, processes, systems and intellectual property.
You will help us appropriately protect:
- Educational programmes
- Curriculum materials
- Teaching resources
- Training materials
- Brand assets
- Confidential information
- Software and technology
- Contractor-created materials
- Jointly developed materials
- Licensing arrangements
We are particularly concerned with ensuring that valuable Telios intellectual property is not inadvertently transferred to partners, contractors or international organisations.
Building a Scalable Legal Infrastructure
We do not want to depend indefinitely on lawyers manually reviewing every routine issue.
Over time, the successful candidate will help us develop:
- Standard contract templates
- Contract playbooks
- Standard negotiation positions
- Contract approval thresholds
- Signing authorities
- Legal checklists
- International market-entry checklists
- Contract repositories
- Contract renewal tracking
- Legal risk registers
- Partner due-diligence procedures
- Escalation procedures
The objective is to use qualified legal time where qualified legal judgment genuinely adds value.
Working With AI
Telios intends to use AI appropriately to reduce unnecessary administrative and drafting costs.
AI may assist with:
- First-pass contract summaries
- Contract comparison
- Identifying clauses for review
- Drafting initial documents
- Legal issue lists
- Contract administration
- Legal trackers
- Research support
The Legal Counsel will provide the professional judgment required to determine whether advice, agreements and contractual protections are appropriate.
We are therefore particularly interested in lawyers comfortable working efficiently with modern technology rather than billing extensively for tasks that can sensibly be automated.
Person Specification
We are seeking an experienced commercial solicitor.
Applicants should ideally have:
- Qualification as a solicitor of England & Wales
- Current practising status appropriate to the services being offered
- Approximately 5+ years PQE, although exceptional applicants with different experience will be considered
- Strong commercial contracts experience
- Experience drafting and negotiating substantial agreements
- Experience advising SMEs, entrepreneurs, founders or growing companies
- Ability to work independently
- Strong commercial judgment
- Excellent drafting ability
- Ability to explain legal issues clearly to non-lawyers
- Confidence challenging senior decision-makers where necessary
- A pragmatic and solutions-focused approach
Particularly Valuable Experience
We are especially interested in candidates with experience in several of the following:
- Education
- Tutoring
- Recruitment
- Employment businesses
- Staffing
- Public-sector contracts
- Government-linked programmes
- International commercial agreements
- Cross-border projects
- Data protection
- Intellectual property
- Technology
- Contractor models
- Founder-led SMEs
- Growing businesses
You do not need expertise in every area.
We would prefer an excellent commercial lawyer who understands the limits of their expertise and has access to appropriate specialists when necessary.
Engagement Structure
This is intended to be a genuinely fractional and flexible relationship.
Initially, work will be commissioned as required rather than through guaranteed weekly hours.
For substantial pieces of work, we would normally agree an estimated fee, fixed fee or maximum cost before work begins.
No material work beyond an agreed scope or fee limit should be undertaken without prior approval.
As Telios' international and institutional programmes expand, there may be an opportunity to establish a more regular fractional arrangement.
We are particularly interested in lawyers with existing portfolio or consultancy practices who value a long-term relationship with a growing education business.
Initial Work
Initial assignments may include:
- Reviewing Telios' current legal and contractual structure
- Identifying material legal risks
- Reviewing education-business arrangements
- Reviewing tutor and contractor agreements
- Reviewing international education proposals and heads of terms
- Advising on international contracting structures
- Reviewing IP protections
- Advising on appropriate contract templates
- Helping establish a legal risk and approval framework
Further work will depend on business requirements.
Please briefly describe a situation in which you identified a material commercial/legal risk that a client had not previously recognised, and how you helped resolve it.
Pay: £70.00-£100.00 per hour
Work Location: Remote
