Employment Lawyer
14 days ago
City of London
Employment Lawyer - International Firm London A leading international law firm is seeking to appoint an experienced Employment Senior Associate (circa 4–6+ PQE) into its highly regarded London Employment practice, with a clear focus on complex, high-value employer-side contentious work. This is a key strategic hire designed to support continued growth in a busy, high-performing team, with additional senior capacity required to manage a strong and consistent pipeline of sensitive, high-stakes employment matters for global clients. The London employment team is a large, established practice of around 40 lawyers, operating as part of a broader national and international platform. The focus of this hire is firmly on employer-side contentious employment work, with a particular emphasis on high-value tribunal litigation and advisory matters for sophisticated global clients. The practice advises some of the world’s most recognisable organisations across financial services, technology, healthcare, insurance, and professional services, regularly working on matters with significant reputational, regulatory, and strategic implications. Typical clients include major multinational corporations and financial institutions operating at the top end of the market. The role is heavily weighted towards contentious employment matters, including: • Complex, multi-day employment tribunal litigation, • High-value disputes involving discrimination, whistleblowing, and unfair dismissal, • Strategically sensitive cases with reputational and regulatory exposure, • Large-scale internal and external workplace investigations, • Senior-level employment advisory work, often involving board-level decision-making, • Regulatory and financial services employment issues This is a role for lawyers who are confident operating in high-pressure, high-stakes litigation environments, including: • Running or co-running multi-day tribunal hearings, • Managing complex case strategy, pleadings, disclosure, and witness evidence, • Advising senior HR, legal, and executive stakeholders on live risk and litigation strategy, • Handling sensitive investigations involving senior employees or regulated individuals, • Coordinating with counsel and external advisors on strategic litigation positioning, • Supervising junior associates and paralegals on live matters, • Navigating matters with significant reputational sensitivity and confidentiality considerations The practice is known for combining technical excellence with commercial pragmatism, ensuring that legal advice is closely aligned with client risk, brand, and operational priorities. Candidate Profile The firm is seeking high-calibre candidates who can demonstrate: • Ideally 5+ years PQE (flexibility for exceptional 4 PQE candidates with strong tribunal experience), • Significant experience in employment tribunal litigation (essential), • Proven ability to run complex, multi-day tribunal cases independently, • Strong exposure to discrimination, whistleblowing, and unfair dismissal claims, • Experience in employer-side employment law within a sophisticated practice environment, • Strong academic background and high intellectual capability, • Excellent drafting, analytical, and advocacy skills, • Experience managing or supervising junior team members (highly desirable), • Strong client-facing skills with the ability to engage at senior executive and board level, • Resilience and the ability to manage multiple high-pressure matters simultaneously Platform & Environment • Highly collaborative, low-ego culture with strong emphasis on teamwork, • Many team members come from leading City and Magic Circle backgrounds, • Strong long-term client relationships and high retention, • Exposure to global, household-name clients across multiple sectors, • A genuinely supportive environment focused on technical excellence and professional development, • Flat structure encouraging open communication and knowledge sharing 💰 Compensation & Structure • Salary range: £135,000 – £165,000, • Competitive bonus structure including:, • Sliding scale linked to chargeable hours, • Discretionary performance-based bonus element, • Additional firm performance uplift where applicable, • Realistic billing expectations with approximately 1,440–1,500 target hours (senior level), • Hybrid working model with 3 days in office (Wednesday mandatory) This is an excellent opportunity for an experienced employment litigator seeking to step into a high-profile, complex, and intellectually demanding practice with strong client exposure and long-term progression potential. For a confidential discussion, please feel free to get in touch directly.