Paralegal – Employment Law

John Lewis Partnership; Greater London; Hybrid; GBP 37,000 - 45,000; Full time

Job summary

A leading retail employer in the UK seeks a Paralegal within the Employment Legal Team to manage employment litigation and provide legal support. This hybrid role includes working with different teams, advising on ACAS conciliations, and ensuring compliance with legal processes. Candidates should possess a legal qualification and strong skills in stakeholder management and communication, thriving in a fast-paced environment. The position offers a competitive salary ranging from £37,700 to £45,000, depending on experience.

Benefits

Hybrid working

Flexible hours

Employee ownership benefits

Qualifications

• Experience in a legal team, ideally over a year.
• Understanding of UK Employment legislation and procedures.
• Ability to explain legal concepts in simple terms.
• Strong attention to detail in managing legal documents.

Responsibilities

• Manage employment litigation processes across the UK.
• Oversee Acas Early Conciliation cases.
• Act as primary contact for internal stakeholders.
• Draft settlement agreements and manage related processes.
• Maintain accurate litigation trackers.

Skills

Legal knowledge

Stakeholder management

Organizational skills

Communication skills

Education

UK Law degree or equivalent

Tools

Legal software

Job description

About the role

Reporting into a Senior Lawyer within the Employment Legal Team the John Lewis Partnership is looking for a Paralegal, Employment, to join the team. You will work with all trading divisions of the John Lewis Partnership which consists of Group, in relation to a wide range of matters. This is a fast paced role in a busy in-house legal team. Part of the role will require you to manage the Partnership's employment litigation and pre-litigation matters working alongside an experienced senior paralegal. This will include instructing and managing the relationship with the Partnership's retained panel law firm, liaising with the People team and witnesses to support the provision of information from the business to the law firm, advising on settlement strategy, reviewing and occasionally drafting defence and witness statements and ensuring all Court and Tribunal deadlines are met. You will act as the primary point of contact for the business for queries and advice on ACAS conciliations and employee litigation. You will also provide general paralegal support for the Employment Legal Team on a wide range of general Employment Law matters. This is a demanding role which requires previous experience of working in a legal team, resulting in a clear understanding of employment legal concepts and employment litigation, confidence in handling legal documents, an understanding of legal terminology, and a sophisticated understanding of a legal team's purpose and function. Organisational skills, and a self starting mentality are paramount as the candidate needs to be able to work proactively, independently and prioritise and manage a variable and busy workload. Dealing with stakeholders of a varying level, you will need to be highly proficient in building strong relationships and managing stakeholders effectively. Relationships across the legal team are also paramount, with a strong relationship needed with other members of the team. The Partnership is a unique business and it is essential that you have an interest in and the ability to advise within the context of its Constitution and democratic structure.

At a glance

• Hybrid Working – Our team is based in Central London – we embrace hybrid working – we are office based together at least once a week and, as a business with locations across the UK, there will also be requirements to travel to locations (including Tribunals) outside of London as well.
• Expected Salary – £37,700 - £45,000 (depending upon experience)
• Contract type – Permanent

Key Responsibilities

• Litigation Management: Work with the Senior Paralegal in managing the end-to-end employment litigation process across the UK and Channel Islands, including instructing panel firms, overseeing disclosure, and reviewing monthly invoices.
• Acas Early Conciliation: As part of the paralegal team, oversee all Acas Early Conciliation cases, ensuring proactive handling of potential claims before they reach the tribunal stage.
• Stakeholder Business Partnering: As part of the paralegal team, act as the primary point of contact for internal witnesses and other departments (such as the people team and Data Privacy team), managing expectations and providing strategic recommendations on settlement approaches.
• Settlement Administration: Execute and administer COT3 and Settlement Agreements, which includes drafting documents, conducting negotiations, managing DocuSign processes, and ensuring strict adherence to payment and reaffirmation timelines.
• Operational Support: Manage the Employment Legal team inbox and maintain accurate trackers for litigation, projects, and TUPE-related employee liability information to ensure smooth departmental operations.
• Continuous Improvement: Identify "lessons learned" from litigation outcomes to provide feedback and training to the Employee Relations (ER) team, while regularly updating legal templates and precedents to reflect best practice.

Essential Skills you'll need

• Previous experience of working in a legal team (ideally not less than one year's experience). In-house experience in Retail or employee heavy companies is.
• Experience of managing all phases of the UK employment litigation system, including ACAS conciliation. Strong knowledge and understanding of the law and relevant court procedures relating to employment litigation. A strong understanding of UK Employment legislation is desirable.
• A clear understanding of general legal concepts and managing employment law matters, for example advice on disciplinary and grievance matters or Equality Act issues.
• UK Law degree / CILEX / Post Graduate Diploma in Law or equivalent UK legal qualification.
• Ability to influence stakeholders and have strong interpersonal skills allowing you to work well in a fast paced environment.
• Being highly organised, with excellent time management skills and the ability to prioritise effectively and manage deadlines.
• Strong attention to detail and able to understand and manage complex legal documents accurately.
• Excellent communicator who is able to explain legal concepts in simple and relatable terms to business colleagues. Able to carry out legal research and problem solve to find solutions.
• Ability to work independently but also as part of a team, to be efficient, develop processes and opportunities for continuous improvement.
• Strong administration and IT skills, to be able to support effective process and record keeping to include an interest and aptitude in the appropriate use of AI and other legal technology to support efficient ways of working.

Additional Information

• The application form consists of a CV upload, followed by application questions. Please visit https://www.jlpjobs.com/how-to-apply/journey/ to understand more about application and hiring process.

• Once you've submitted an application the next steps of the process, if successful, will include a formal interview.
• We will commence screening and interviews potentially from w/c 12th January 2026.

About The Partnership

We're the largest employee owned business in the UK and home of our cherished brands, John Lewis and Waitrose. We're not just employees, we're Partners, driven by our purpose to build a happier world. As we look to our future, there's never been a more exciting time to join us.

We're ruthlessly focused on being brilliant at retail. We continue to innovate, adapt and diversify. Never Knowingly Undersold on price, quality and service in John Lewis and passionately serving food-lovers in Waitrose.

As Partners we all share the responsibility of ownership and in its rewards. We use our voices to contribute to our success, working together through the good and challenging times, holding true to our behaviours and treating everyone with kindness and respect.

We all own making the Partnership somewhere we belong. Embracing our differences and creating an environment where we're free to be ourselves and can THRIVE. Growing ourselves individually, and as a collective.

As Partners, we make all the difference. And, we all own it.

Important points to note:

It's important to note that some of our roles are subject to pre-employment vetting (which may include DBS checks for successful candidates). If required, you'll be informed and provided with information about vetting during the recruitment process and we encourage you to complete any vetting documents quickly to avoid delays. Any DBS checks required will be carried out by a third‑party registered body and financial probity checks may also be required for some of our roles.

We occasionally close vacancies early in the event we receive a high volume of applications, and therefore, we recommend you apply early. If you require a reasonable adjustment due to a disability which means you may need longer to complete your application please contact us as soon as possible.

We want all of our Partners to have a good work‑life balance and we support flexible working. This might mean flexible or compressed hours, job sharing or shorter hour contracts, where possible. Please discuss this further with the hiring manager during your interview.