Associate – Employment (Senior Level)

Bird & Bird LLP; London; On-site; GBP 60,000 - 90,000; Full time

Job summary

A leading international law firm is seeking a senior level Associate to join their award-winning Employment team in London. The role involves high-profile employment litigation and strategic advisory work, offering exceptional exposure to market-leading clients and the opportunity to develop a strong professional reputation. This position is ideal for candidates coming from an international law firm with a proven track record in sophisticated employment matters.

Qualifications

• Experience handling complex employment matters in a comparable environment.
• Familiarity with restrictive covenants and employee competition issues.
• Desire to work for an international firm.

Responsibilities

• Manage sophisticated Employment Tribunal and High Court litigation.
• Provide strategic advice on critical employment issues.
• Coordinate complex cross-border projects and large-scale restructurings.

Skills

Negotiation skills

Technical legal knowledge

Client handling skills

Legal drafting skills

Education

Excellent academic achievement

Solid legal training in a City firm

Job description

We are seeking an experienced senior level Associate to join ouraward-winning Employment team in London. This is a rare opportunity towork directly with all 6 Partners in the London group on high-profile,intellectually stimulating matters spanning employment litigation andstrategic advisory work. The role offers exceptional exposure tomarket-leading clients and career-enhancing work across the full rangeof Bird & Bird's sectors, that will significantly advance yourprofessional development.

The team

Our market-leading Employment team advises prestigious clients acrossboth private and public sectors on their most complex and sensitiveemployment matters. We deliver strategic counsel on business-criticalissues including: high-value cross-border projects; executive-levelappointments and separations; high stakes and precedent-settinglitigation in the Employment Tribunals and High Court; complexworkforce restructuring; transformative outsourcing arrangements;innovative benefits and incentives programs; trade secret protection;and equality and diversity initiatives. Our London team comprises 6highly-regarded Partners supported by 14 exceptional lawyers includinga professional support lawyer, sitting within an internationalemployment group of over 150 lawyers spanning EMEA and APAC.

What you'll do

In this role, you will work alongside our Partners on high-profileemployment matters. You will handle sophisticated Employment Tribunaland High Court litigation, provide strategic advice onbusiness-critical employment issues, and take a leading role incoordinating complex cross-border projects including large-scalerestructurings and multinational compliance initiatives. Whilst fullsupport and supervision is provided, senior lawyers are given theindependence to manage their own caseload and this position offersexceptional client exposure, with opportunities to build and nurturekey client relationships.The ideal candidate brings experience from aninternational law firm with a track record of excellence onsophisticated employment matters for clients operating at thecutting-edge of their industries. We value lawyers who deliverpragmatic, commercially astute advice that aligns with our clients'strategic objectives. You will have significant autonomy to shape yourpractice and will benefit from our established client base whilehaving abundant opportunities to drive business developmentinitiatives and build your own professional reputation in the market.

Your Profile & Expertise

• Excellent academic achievement.
• Solid legal training in a City firm environment.
• Experience of handling complex employment matters gained within acomparable environment and at an appropriate level. Experience ofrestrictive covenant injunctions and a range of employee competitionand business protection issues would be helpful.
• Experience of general employment advisory work, employmentlitigation and transactional matters.
• A desire to be working for a truly international firm.
• A clear understanding of the operation and structure of acommercial law firm.

What Sets Our Top Performers Apart

• Flexibility, supporting cases across a broad range of Employment issues.
• The ability to manage aspects of complex matters and clients, withproven negotiation skills.
• Excellent technical legal knowledge and drafting skills.
• The ability to provide clear, precise, practical advice.
• The ability to use initiative and a confidence built upon solidsuccess and achievements.
• The ability to liaise effectively with other fee earners fromwithin the group, but also to liaise and coordinate with fee earnersfrom other relevant disciplines and jurisdictions as required.
• Delegation and supervisory skills.
• Being keen to work in a challenging, team-based environment.
• The willingness and ability to support business developmentactivity, creating and maintaining strong client relationships andidentifying new business opportunities with new and existing clients.
• A commitment to regularly updating their own technical expertiseand to achieve continuous improvement and development.
• The ability to contribute to the general upkeep and development ofthe group (whether that be training, precedents, or know-how generally).
• Excellent communication and client handling skills.

While the key responsibilities are outlined above, this role offersscope for growth and development based on your interests andstrengths. Our collaborative culture means you will have opportunitiesto contribute across the firm's international platform. We operatewith flexibility around our core hours of 9:30am- 5:30pm toaccommodate client needs and your personal circumstances.