Employment Lawyer

WFS Patron; Greater London; On-site; GBP 57,000 - 73,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

26 days holiday

Hybrid working

Contributory pension

Cycle to work

Staff discounts

Free gym access

Free counselling

Job summary

London Fire Brigade is seeking an experienced Employment Lawyer to join the General Counsel's Department. You will advise on a wide range of employment law matters, including pensions, and manage a heavy workload in a public-sector environment.

The role requires a qualified solicitor, barrister with litigation rights, or a Chartered Legal Executive with rights, with a minimum of four years PQE. In-house experience is valued; strong drafting and advocacy skills are essential.

Qualifications

• Minimum of 4 years post-qualification experience in employment law or related areas.
• Qualified solicitor or barrister with litigation authority or a CILEx route with rights.
• In-house/public sector experience is desirable but not essential.

Responsibilities

• Provide high-quality employment law advice to internal clients.
• Manage a heavy case-load independently and meet tight deadlines.
• Liaise with multiple stakeholders and teams within a public-sector setting.

Skills

Employment law

Pensions experience

Public sector experience

Litigation rights

In-house experience

Education

Qualified solicitor

Barrister with litigation certificate

Chartered Legal Executive with rights

Job description

Post: Employment Lawyer

Grade: FRS F

Salary range: £56,071 – £72,807 per annum

Contract type: Fixed Term (12 months)

Working pattern: Full-time

Application closing date: 4 PM on Friday 23 October 2026

London Fire Brigade (LFB) is London’s fire and rescue service – one of the largest firefighting and rescue organisations in the world. We are here to make London a safer city. Employing over 5000 people across our operational team (our firefighters), control (our call handlers who answer 999 calls), fire safety and our non‑operational team (our team who work behind the scenes to support our front‑line services, which includes Fleet, IT, HR, Finance, Procurement, Communications team and many more).

An opportunity has arisen at the London Fire Brigade to join General Counsel’s Department as an employment lawyer. General Counsel’s Department consists of circa. 30 staff providing cost effective legal advice and representation to the Brigade on a wide range of practice areas including employment law, pensions, fire prosecutions, personal injury, property, contracts and procurement. It also provides advice on the decision‑making processes and the powers and duties of the London Fire Commissioner (LFC). Each area of work has a Team Manager, a group of lawyers, paralegals and business support officers to assist with day‑to‑day work.

We are a small team who supports the LFC and in this key role, you will need to have the ability to organise and manage a complex and heavy case‑load independently, analyse information critically, provide effective written and oral advice, work with a variety of colleagues and other stakeholders in a publicly accountable environment. It is important that you have the aptitude, ambition and potential to thrive in this environment.

We are looking for an experienced specialist employment lawyer with a “can‑do” attitude, preferably with some pensions experience who enjoys a fast‑paced environment and working as part of a team. In‑house experience in a public sector setting is desirable, but not essential. You will be a qualified solicitor, barrister (with litigation authorisation) or Chartered Legal Executive Lawyer in England and or has qualified through the CILEx route, with litigation practice rights. Being highly organised, used to working electronically with minimum supervision and the ability to meet tight deadlines are crucial for this role. You should also bring sound judgement and analytical skills. We would welcome applications from suitably qualified and experienced candidates.

Further information about the main duties and responsibilities of the role are detailed in the job description. If you are unable to see the job description, salary range or the full advert, please visit our jobs pages athttps://jobs-london-fire-gov-uk.jobsmarket.site/pages/en-gb/jobsto access the full advert.

We value the diversity of our employees and aim to recruit a workforce which reflects our diverse communities across London. The London Fire Commissioner is an Equal Opportunities Employer and we positively welcome applications from all suitably qualified individuals, irrespective of people’s age, disability, gender, race or ethnicity, religion or belief, sexual orientation, or other personal circumstances. We have guidance in place to ensure that all applicants are treated fairly and consistently at every stage of the recruitment process, including the consideration of reasonable adjustments for people who have a disability.

Anyone who has contact with children, young people or adults at risk will be subject to an enhanced DBS check as part of our commitment to safeguarding.

Eligibility

Applicants must be either a qualified solicitor or barrister with a litigation certificate or a Legal Executive with litigation rights, with a minimum of 4 years post qualification experience in those areas of law covered by the job description.

Benefits of working for the London Fire Brigade

• 26 days’ holiday plus bank holidays
• Additional leave between Christmas Day and New Year
• Family (including maternity) leave and emergency support leave
• Hybrid working is available, subject to business need.
• Free access to the Brigade gym
• Use of the Brigade’s Medical Adviser/physios/fitness advisers
• Free counselling
• Season ticket loan
• Join social networks including our Equality Support Groups
• Contributory pension scheme
• Cycle to work scheme
• Staff discount scheme including access to Blue Light Card retail and hospitality discounts
• Opportunity to access affordable accommodation

Criminal records check

In line with the Basic Personnel Security Standard (BPSS) employment checks will be completed by successful candidates, which will include a Standard criminal records check. Successful candidate will be required to declare any convictions for offences and any offer of employment is subject to the LFC receiving a criminal records disclosure which it considers satisfactory.