Senior Corporate Counsel – Transactions, M&A, Venture Capital, Joint Ventures

Hellmann Worldwide Logistics

Senior Corporate Counsel at Hellmann supporting cross-border M&A and joint ventures. Leading legal negotiations and advising on corporate governance in a global context.

Posted 5/26/2026full-timeOsnabrück • 🇩🇪 GermanySeniorWebsite

About the role

Key responsibilities & impact

Lead and support cross-border M&A transactions across the full legal lifecycle — target assessment, drafting and negotiation of NDAs and LOIs, legal due diligence, SPA / APA negotiation as well as execution closing and post-merger integration
Structure and negotiate international joint ventures and strategic partnerships, including shareholder agreements, governance frameworks and exit mechanics
Advise on venture capital and corporate venturing activity together with our Venture Networking unit — term sheets, SAFE / convertible instruments, minority investments, follow-on rounds and portfolio governance
Act as a sparring partner for the Management Board, the M&A team and regional leadership on corporate, governance and transactional matters — translating legal complexity into clear commercial recommendations
Manage and instruct external counsel across multiple jurisdictions; coordinate workstreams under deal pressure and keep timelines moving
Support corporate housekeeping for our subsidiary and JV vehicles (resolutions, capital measures, intra-group reorganisations)
Drive selected cross-divisional strategic projects where legal structuring is a key value driver

Requirements

What you’ll need

Prior experience in a leading international or major full-service law firm in M&A, corporate or transactional practice is a must — your first professional seasoning has to come from a top-tier professional environment.
We expect a minimum of 5 years' relevant post-qualification experience overall, with a meaningful share of it on the sell-side or buy-side of real transactions
Demonstrable deal sheet across cross-border M&A, joint ventures and / or venture capital — transactions are in your DNA, not an occasional file
Fully qualified lawyer in a European member state or equivalent international qualification; LL.M. or comparable international exposure an advantage
Comfortable operating across multiple jurisdictions, legal systems and cultures; English at full negotiating fluency, German and / or further languages a strong plus
Strong commercial instinct — you read a term sheet for risk and for value, not just for legal form. Calm under deal pressure, hands-on, organised, and able to drive multiple workstreams in parallel
Pragmatic and solution-oriented — comfortable in direct dialogue with the Management Board, founders, sellers, financial advisors and external counsel
Genuine curiosity and hands-on skillset in legal tech and AI — you actively use modern tools (contract analytics, AI-assisted drafting and review, deal-room and matter-management platforms) to work faster and sharper, and you see emerging technologies as a lever for the legal function rather than a threat
Integrity, discretion and a genuine appetite for the deal — you enjoy being where decisions are made.

Benefits

Comp & perks

Hellmann Spirit: Culture focusing on people and relationships, networking with other students within the company
Work-life integration: Balancing work with your studies through flexible working hours and remote working
Health & wellbeing: Company fitness via Hansefit, mobile massage services, and a varied menu with new dishes every day in our canteen
Professional & personal development: Targeted onboarding, regular feedback and an open culture of learning from mistakes, personal support from the department, digital further education and training opportunities in our “LearningHub”
Modern equipment: Your own laptop, state-of-the-art office equipment

ATS Keywords

✓ Tailor your resume

Applicant Tracking System Keywords

Tip: use these terms in your resume and cover letter to boost ATS matches.

Hard Skills & Tools

M&Acorporate lawtransactional practicelegal due diligencenegotiationdraftingventure capitaljoint venturescorporate governancecross-border transactions

Soft Skills

commercial instinctcalm under pressureorganisedsolution-orientedstrong communicationinterpersonal skillscuriosityhands-on approachability to drive workstreamsintegrity

Certifications

fully qualified lawyerLL.M.