Manager, Legal - Funds

Herbert Smith Freehills Kramer LLP; Belfast City District; On-site; GBP 90,000 - 120,000; Full time

Job summary

Herbert Smith Freehills Kramer LLP in Belfast seeks a Manager, Legal - Funds with strong corporate/commercial background and a drive to develop expertise in investment funds. You will lead fee-earning projects, supervise a team, and help implement quality processes across the funds practice.

You will work closely with partners, manage internal resources, and liaise with external clients and counterparties to deliver high-quality legal services and market-leading solutions.

Qualifications

• Iterecognises the need to deliver excellent legal service while adapting to investment funds work.
• 5+ years PQE in funds or commercial practice; exceptional candidates with less may be considered.
• Experience supervising a funds or commercial law team and working with investment fund clients.

Responsibilities

• Escalate project-specific issues to Senior Manager/Head of Funds.
• Supervise solicitors, trainees and analysts on fee-earning projects.
• Maintain up-to-date knowledge of relevant law for the local office and act as expert.
• Support drafting, updating and revising internal processes for funds practice.
• Assist with pitches and marketing cost models when required.
• Project-manage the local office team on individual matters and liaise with internal clients.

Skills

Project management

Team supervision

Quality processes

Client liaison

Legal service delivery

Education

Qualified solicitor or barrister in England and Wales or Northern Ireland

Job description

Manager, Legal - Funds, in a team which specialises in providing legal services to investment funds clients - we are seeking an engaged team member with experience/training in a corporate/commercial firm who is willing to adapt and build up their knowledge and experience in this legal area.

Applicants for manager roles in relation to Funds will be expected to be capable of: delivering excellent legal service to our clients; assisting with project management; implementing quality processes; and utilising the latest technology to deliver excellent service to our clients.

Our transactional practice includes but is not limited to, all aspects of due diligence, M&A, capital markets, investment funds, corporate restructurings and regulatory matters. Candidates are likely to have developed strong general corporate/commercial legal practice, with an interest in investment funds work (or an interest in developing their knowledge in this area). Previous experience in investment funds work is highly desirable but not necessary - key criteria includes a willingness to adapt existing experience to a new legal area and an enthusiasm for the role.

Our Funds team provide a wide range of legal services to major asset management clients and the funds managed by them, including review and negotiation of a wide range of distribution-related agreements, implementation of complex restructurings, cross-jurisdictional regulatory projects, investment due diligence and day-to-day operational support. They regularly deal with a broad range of fund structures from retail to private equity and hedge funds. You will be comfortable applying what you know to creative and varied projects and business-as-usual workstreams. This role requires an entrepreneurial mind-set and a flexible and responsive approach. You will conduct fee-earning work directly for clients as well as supervising teams within HSF Kramer's global network.

You will have a deeply client-focused approach and be ready to apply that experience to our transactional practice where we work closely with internal clients (i.e. you will be confident and comfortable liaising with partners around the organisation) and you will often work directly with our external clients and their counterparties too.

Primary Responsibilities

• Escalating project-specific issues appropriately to the relevant Senior Manager/Head of Funds
• Supervising Senior Solicitors, Solicitors, Solicitors, Trainees and Legal Analysts conducting fee earning projects and carrying out "first-level review" on projects where necessary.
• Maintaining up-to-date knowledge of relevant areas of law to the local office's practice generally, and as an "expert" in relation to specialist areas of practice.
• Responsible for supporting, as required by the Senior Manager/ Head of on drafting, updating and revising all of our internal processes relating to our funds practice including making recommendations for improvements in the quality of service delivery.
• Assisting with written material or cost models for pitches and marketing initiatives if required.
• Project managing the local office's team on individual matters, including:
• Dealing with complex issues on individual matters that are escalated by the Senior Solicitors, Solicitors, Trainees and Legal Analysts.
• Primary responsibility for communication with the internal client (partner/managing associate) on individual matters.
• Ensuring that relevant legal issues are fully understood by the local office team working on an individual matter on an on-going basis and raising any training issues with the Head of.
• Managing resources (Senior Solicitors, Solicitors, Trainees and Legal Analysts) on individual matters effectively and in line with agreed timetables on projects.
• Conducting quality control (e.g. to check all fee earning work is being conducted accurately), as directed by the Head of.
• Liaising with teams elsewhere in the firm (e.g. London) as required on fee-earning or other projects.
• Promotes and sells the services of the Digital Legal Delivery service offering to internal clients, including by the delivery of consistently high-quality work and a positive approach to building internal relationships.
• Line management responsibility for Senior Solicitors, Solicitors, Trainees and Legal Analysts (including full-time permanent, flexible Respond or fixed term contract team members) as direct reports.

The responsibilities outlined above cannot totally encompass or define all tasks that may be required of the post-holder. The outline of responsibilities given above may, therefore, vary from time to time without materially changing either the character or level of responsibility or grade.

Qualifications, Skills and Experience

• Qualified solicitor or barrister in England and Wales or Northern Ireland, but Republic of Ireland or other common law jurisdictions will be considered. (If not qualified in England and Wales then willing to complete process to requalify as such, if required.)
• 5+ year's PQE working in a Funds or Commercial practice area, although exceptional candidates with less than 5 years' relevant experience may be considered.
• Proven experience of supervising and supporting a funds or commercial law team.
• Experience in investment funds team or working for investment fund clients.
• Experience gained working at a large private practice law firm.

Note: Applications close at midday 12pm on Friday 30 October 2026