Lead Associate Lawyer

Financial Conduct Authority; City of Edinburgh; Hybrid; GBP 68,000 - 104,000; Full time

Job summary

The Financial Conduct Authority is seeking a Lead Associate Lawyer to join their Legal Division. This role focuses on advising on regulatory requirements and ensuring compliance within financial markets in Edinburgh. Ideal candidates are seasoned legal professionals with strong analytical and communication skills, ready to tackle complex legal matters in a dynamic regulatory environment.

Benefits

25 days holiday plus bank holidays

Hybrid working (up to 60% at home)

Private healthcare with Bupa

Non-contributory pension of at least 8% of basic salary

Life assurance of eight times your basic salary

Income protection

Flexible benefits scheme

Qualifications

• Applicants must be a qualified lawyer (solicitor, barrister or Chartered Legal Executive or overseas equivalents).
• Experience in financial services law, particularly EMIR and MiFID/MiFIR issues.

Responsibilities

• Advise on application and effect of regulatory requirements.
• Devise creative solutions for compliance challenges.
• Contribute to policy development by drafting rules and guidance.

Skills

Analytical skills

Problem-solving

Communication skills

Education

Qualified lawyer (7 years PQE)

Job description

Job Title - Lead Associate Lawyer

Division - Legal

Salary - National (Edinburgh and Leeds) ranging from £68,900 to £103,200 and London £75,700 to 113,500 per annum (Salary offered will be based on skills and experience)

About the FCA

The FCA regulates the conduct of 42,000 firms in the UK to ensure our financial markets are honest, fair and competitive. Follow this link to find out more About the FCA .

We are looking for a talented lawyer who is willing to learn quickly, engage openly and rise to the challenge of working in an organisation that makes a difference to the lives of the millions of people who use financial services.

The role is in the Trading and Securitisation team of the Markets department which sits within the Regulatory and Corporate Legal Directorate of the Legal Division.

The team advises on trading venues (recognised investment exchanges, MTFs and OTFs), securitisation, MiFID/MiFIR wholesale issues, commodity derivatives, emissions trading, OTC derivatives (EMIR), cryptoasset trading platforms, securities financing transactions and regulated covered bonds. It also advises on international matters such as free trade agreements, equivalence and deference, and information-sharing with international partners in a supervisory context.

What will you be doing?

• Advise on the application and effect of regulatory requirements and powers to ensure firms comply with all applicable rules, legislation and law

• Devise and implement creative and pragmatic solutions

• Be fully involved in the FCA’s policy development including drafting rules and guidance in the FCA Handbook

• Have a high level of ownership and responsibility for your actions

What will you get from the role?

• Work at the forefront of financial regulation and consumer protection on a range of matters including those complex and often high-profile legal issues

• Acquire broader experience of financial services regulation, of how a regulator works and of how law and regulation is made

• Develop problem-solving and project management skills

• Work in a diverse, inclusive and supportive environment

• Interact with colleagues across the FCA and with government departments and other organisations engaged in financial services such as the Bank of England and HM Treasury on exciting and pioneering projects

Which skills are required?

We are a Disability Confident Employer; therefore, disabled people or individuals with long-term conditions who best meet the minimum criteria for a role will go through to the next stage of the recruitment process. (To learn more about the Disability Confident Scheme Click Here ).

Minimum

• Applicants must be a qualified lawyer (solicitor, barrister or Chartered Legal Executive or overseas equivalents): generally a person who is at least 7 years PQE (in house, public sector or private practice)

Essential

• Strong analytical skills and the ability to deliver good and clear analysis of issues

• Ability to learn about new or novel legal issues quickly and with enthusiasm, with the necessary oversight and support of colleagues

• Ability to create solutions and deliver pragmatic outcome-focused advice

• Ability to advise in a confident and reasoned manner, and to challenge appropriately

• Ability to build and sustain positive relationships and good communication skills

• Financial services law, in particular, knowledge and experience of EMIR and of MiFID/MiFIR wholesale issues

Our Values & Diversity

We are proud to be an inclusive employer and our ambition is to cultivate a culture for all employees that respects their individual strengths, views, and experiences. We believe that our differences and similarities enable us to be a better organisation – one that makes better decisions, drives innovation, and delivers better regulation.

Within the workplace you will have access to various employee resource groups which aim to promote and achieve a healthy work / life balance and support our diversity ambitions.

Did you know? 50% of our Executive Committee were the first in their family to attend university.

Benefits of working at the FCA

• 25 days holiday per year plus bank holidays

• Hybrid working (work from home up to 60% of your time)

• Private healthcare with Bupa

• A non-contributory Pension of at least 8% of basic salary each month (there are several contribution levels that increase depending on your age – up to 12% a month once you reach age 35)

• Life assurance of eight times your basic salary

• Income protection

We also have a competitive flexible benefits scheme which gives you the opportunity to create a personalised benefits package, tailored to suit your lifestyle.

We welcome applications from candidates who are looking for flexible arrangements.

Many of our staff work flexibly including working part-time, staggered hours, and job shares. We can’t promise to give you exactly what you want but we can explore what might work best for both sides.

Follow this link to see what life is like at the FCA - Life at the FCA

Application Support

We are dedicated to removing barriers and ensuring our application process is accessible to everyone. We offer a range of adjustments to make your application experience as comfortable and straightforward as possible.

If you have an accessibility need, disability, or condition requiring changes to the recruitment process, please contact your recruiter using the details below and they will be happy to discuss this further with you.

Useful Information and Timeline

• This role is graded as Lead Associate - Practising Legal

• One or more fixed term contract opportunities may also be available

• Advert Closing Date: 8th June

• CV Review: from 9th June

• First Round: Case Study Assessments: from w/c 23th June

• Second Round: Competency Based Interviews: from w/c 7th July

Please note that a cover letter is not required as part of the application process (it will not be considered if you send one in).

Ensure that your CV clearly outlines your experience and ability to meet the criteria for the role as described above. The CV must be a maximum of three A4 pages and should be submitted as a single document for upload to the FCA Careers Portal.

Your Recruiter will discuss the process in detail with you during screening for the role, therefore, please make them aware if you are going to be unavailable for any date during this time.

Got a question?

If you are interested in learning more about the role, please contact Raimonda Stankute at [e-mail]

Applications must be submitted through our online portal. Applications sent via email will not be accepted.

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