Senior Employment Lawyer

SSQ; Slough; On-site; GBP 110,000 - 180,000; Full time

Job summary

SSQ is seeking a Senior Employment Lawyer for our London practice. The role targets lawyers with 6+ PQE who can own significant client relationships and contribute to a high-quality, contentious-focused employment offering.

This is a growth hire with a clear path towards partnership, offering a platform to service premier institutional clients while maintaining sustainable hours and market-leading work-life balance.

Qualifications

• 6+ years' PQE in employment law
• Training within a well-regarded City, international or leading employment practice
• Strong employment litigation experience, ideally representing at least half of current practice
• Experience running Employment Tribunal claims and managing matters independently
• Ability to supervise junior lawyers and manage significant client relationships
• Ambition to progress toward partnership or senior leadership within the medium term

Responsibilities

• Take ownership of significant client relationships and service a pipeline of high-quality work
• Develop genuine contentious expertise and contribute to a sophisticated employment offering
• Help manage and mentor junior lawyers and senior associates
• Aim for partnership or another senior leadership position in the medium term

Skills

PQE 6+ years in Employment Law

Education

UK-qualified lawyer

Job description

Senior Employment Lawyer - London

6+ PQE | Leading Employment Practice |

An opportunity has arisen for an experienced employment lawyer to join a high-performing London employment practice with an impressive institutional client base, a strong contentious offering and a credible pathway towards partnership.

The team has experienced sustained growth and is looking to add senior lawyers who can take ownership of significant client relationships and help service an existing pipeline of high-quality work. This could be particularly attractive to lawyers at leading City or international firms who want to retain top-tier clients and sophisticated employment work while achieving a materially better work-life balance.

The Practice

The London team comprises approximately 40 employment lawyers, including a well-established partner group and a strong senior associate cohort.

The practice acts for major financial institutions, global technology businesses, professional services firms and leading private equity houses. The work is predominantly high-value and complex, with the London practice operating at the premium end of the firm's employment offering.

The approximate work split is:

• 50-60% employment litigation
• 30-40% advisory, including investigations and regulatory matters
• Less than 5% corporate support

Lawyers therefore have the opportunity to develop genuine contentious expertise rather than being heavily reliant on transactional support work.

The Opportunity

The team is particularly interested in hiring at Senior Associate / Legal Director level, with the ability to accommodate candidates from approximately 6 PQE upwards.

This is a growth hire rather than a replacement. The practice has a substantial existing client base and requires additional senior-level capacity to service current and prospective mandates.

For ambitious senior lawyers, there is a realistic medium-term route towards partnership. Importantly, candidates are not expected to arrive with a standalone book of business. There is scope to inherit and develop relationships with existing institutional clients, with senior hires encouraged to build their own profile and fee generation from that platform.

The team has a strong track record of internal progression and senior sponsorship.

Culture & Work-Life Balance

One of the key attractions is the combination of high-quality City employment work with genuinely sustainable hours.

The culture is notably different from the traditional long-hours model associated with many leading City practices.

The practice has successfully attracted lawyers from leading UK and international firms who wanted to maintain the quality of their work while improving their work-life balance.

The Ideal Candidate

You are likely to have:

• 6+ years' PQE in employment law;
• Training and experience within a well-regarded City, international or leading employment practice;
• Strong employment litigation experience, ideally with contentious matters representing at least half of your current practice;
• Experience running Employment Tribunal claims and managing matters with a high degree of independence;
• The confidence to supervise junior lawyers and take responsibility for significant client relationships; and
• Ambition to progress towards partnership or another senior leadership position over the medium term.

This opportunity should particularly suit someone who enjoys contentious employment work but is looking for a platform offering greater autonomy, sustainable working hours and clearer senior progression without sacrificing sophisticated clients or complex mandates.