Associate

PQE: 6 years +
Term: Permanent
Department: Corporate - Employment Team
Location: London
The firm

Boodle Hatfield has been providing practical advice to businesses and individuals for 300 years. Our clients come from a wide range of sectors, both in the UK and internationally, and include some of the most well-established owner-managed businesses and property companies as well as fast-growing entrepreneurial enterprises and ultra-high net worth families. Our chief priority is helping our clients achieve their commercial objectives, whatever form their business takes.

Our approach is to become the long-term trusted adviser to leading wealth creators and owners as well as their commercial and investment enterprises. Having a holistic view of our clients' structures and affairs means we can leverage this to provide the most appropriate and commercial advice to them. This approach has enabled us, throughout our 300-year history, to help our clients successfully navigate the continually changing and sometimes challenging markets in which they operate.

With a history like ours, we know we are built to last. But this isn’t the time to rest on our laurels but instead a chance to reflect and build on our heritage. We are merely today’s custodians of the Boodle Hatfield name, and we want to create a legacy that our successors will be just as proud of.

To commemorate our 300 year anniversary, last year we rolled out an extensive programme of activities, each of which sowed the seeds for the future success of others – our local neighbourhoods, the wider legal profession, and of course our valued clients and our own team.

Summary of role

Our team has extensive experience advising senior executives, investment professionals and businesses on all aspects of employment law, both contentious and non-contentious, often across European and international jurisdictions.  Our strategic, pragmatic and solutions focused approach enables us to support our clients in complex, high profile, and high stakes employment matters.

We work with clients from range of sectors including financial services, technology, family offices and family businesses, private households and sport.  We regularly represent senior executives, directors, founders, entrepreneurs, investment professionals and athletes. We also provide day-to-day advice to all types of employers, including those without their own specialist HR teams, on a wide spectrum of employment law issues.

The role is to help grow our existing Employment offering which sits within our Corporate department.  The team currently consists of one Partner and one Associate, the individual in this role will work closely with both members of the team together with all practice areas at the firm. 

Skills and experience

Responsibilities

You will have the opportunity to work on a wide range of employment transactions whilst working with a variety of clients, as noted above.  The employment team is lead by a Partner and there is another Associate in the team for which you will have responsibility for supporting and developing.  You will also be expected to help raise the profile of the employment practice and lead on business development initiatives.

You will advise on a mix of contentious and non-contentious employment work at an advanced level and will have direct contact with a variety of clients, as described above.

Particular responsibilities for this role will include but are not limited to:

  • Ownership of own files and caseload.  You will be given responsibility to run matters autonomously, with supervision and guidance as required;
  • Drafting and negotiating documents, including service agreements, settlement agreements and transactional documents;
  • Providing commercial, pragmatic and risk-based employment advice to a range of clients on a wide variety of employment law matters, including working with overseas lawyers and counsel in litigation matters; and
  • Advising on issues including but not limited to:
    • employment contracts, grievances, dismissals, subject access requests, business transfers and outsourcings, employment disputes in the High Court and tribunals, TUPE, redundancy situations and hiring and firing.

Experience and Skills Required

  •  A minimum of 6 years PQE
  • A good team player with a willingness to pick up work and support colleagues during busy periods
  • Extremely competent handling a mix of contentious & non-contentious Employment work
  • Ability to manage multiple files and meet deadlines whilst maintaining exceptional attention to detail
  • Strong communication and interpersonal skills with both team members and clients;
  • Excellent client handling skills
  • Confidence in giving risk based pragmatic advice, listening to clients and having a commercial approach to client service
  • Self-starter with plenty of drive and initiative
  • Willingness to undertake business development
  • Works in a highly organised manner
  • Ability to utilise the appropriate IT systems
  • Excellent academics

Experience must have been gained in a well-respected Employment team

Equal opportunities

Boodle Hatfield is committed to providing equal opportunities in employment through its inclusive and supportive environment. This means that everyone who either applies to or works for the Firm is treated equally, whatever their gender, age, ethnic origin, nationality, marital status, disability, sexual orientation or religious beliefs.  We are fully committed to a working environment in which all people can excel.