Job Detail

Today Lonza is a global leader in life sciences. We are more than 15,000 employees in more than 100 locations around the world. While we work in science, there’s no magic formula to how we do it. Our greatest scientific solution is talented people working together, devising ideas that help businesses to help people. In exchange, we let our people own their careers. Their ideas, big and small, genuinely improve the world. And that’s the kind of work we want to be part of.

Lonza is seeking a commercial attorney to temporarily join the Lonza Legal team at its Headquarters in Basel, Switzerland. This position will provide legal support on a broad range of legal matters across all of Lonza’s Pharma, Biotech and Nutrition (LPBN) businesses as well as procurement, including commercial contracting, general corporate and transactional matters. This is a temporary assignment (60-80%) until the end of the year.

Key responsibilities:

• Provide legal support on a broad range of legal matters across all of LPBN’s businesses, procurement and corporate functions, including commercial contracting, general corporate and transactional matters


• Negotiate commercial contracts, including customer and supplier agreements


• Occasionally provide support in employment law matters and/or compliance


• Support quality and operations matters and strategic marketing projects as needed


• Handle commercial disputes and support litigation, as needed


• Demonstrate strategic value and competence in applying legal skills to daily in-house corporate, business, compliance, litigation, and other matters


• Supervise outside counsel and related budgets, as needed


• Identify areas of company risk and make proposals for and lead implementation of mitigation strategies


• Position would have responsibility for a diverse range of commercial, legal and compliance matters


• Willingness to travel, as needed

Key requirements:

• Master of Law (or lic. iur.) from a Swiss university and admission to the Swiss bar, ideally with a postgraduate qualification (e.g., LL.M.)


• Solid post-graduate legal experience in-house or in a Swiss or international law firm with experience in the chemical industry, life sciences and/or manufacturing industry


• Strong background in employment law, incl. international/cross-border employment law experience


• Ability to operate in a fast-paced, small legal department and to prioritize responsibilities, to work efficiently, to manage and to handle many agreements, projects, disputes and complex issues


• Engages  collaboratively  and  communicates  clearly  with  business  management  and  customers; understands business objectives and applies legal analysis to business demand and priorities


• Provides solution-oriented, practical guidance in working with business management


• Ability to manage and conclude many diverse matters in a timely manner; willingness to take on new and unfamiliar matters


• Excellent inter-personal skills, multi-cultural awareness as well as independence and resilience


• Works well in a cross-border setting with colleagues from multiple jurisdictions


• Excellent command of English and German both spoken and written is essential, other languages a plus

People come to Lonza for the challenge and creativity of solving complex problems and developing new ideas in life sciences. In return, we offer the satisfaction that comes with improving lives all around the world. The satisfaction that comes with making a meaningful difference.

Reference: R29900