Senior Lawyer - Employment and Litigation

Liverpool City Council; Liverpool; On-site; GBP 60,000 - 90,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

31 days holiday

Flexibility First – agile working

Local Government Pension Scheme

Training opportunities

Employee assistance programme

Cycle to Work

Salary sacrifice car lease

Family friendly leave

Discounted gym memberships

Employee volunteering scheme

Medicash

Job summary

Liverpool City Council is seeking a Senior Lawyer to manage a full caseload in Employment and Civil Litigation. You will lead the Adult Social Care and Litigation team, provide proactive legal advice to the council, and support the Monitoring Officer in upholding Nolan Principles.

The role requires expert employment law knowledge, experience in government law, and the ability to supervise Trainee Solicitors. Fixed-term maternity cover for 12 months; hybrid working options may apply.

Qualifications

• Expert knowledge of employment law and related public sector law.
• Experience leading Lawyers in Employment and Civil Litigation.
• Ability to provide proactive, solution-focused advice to the Council.
• Understanding of information governance and public law challenges.

Responsibilities

• Lead and develop the Adult Social Care and Litigation team.
• Manage a caseload of complex employment and litigation work.
• Advise Cabinet, Council and committees on legal matters.
• Externally commission legal work with value for money and quality.
• Support Monitoring Officer and promote Nolan Principles.

Skills

Employment law knowledge

Public sector law

Civil litigation

Team leadership

Advice & consultancy

Information governance

Education

Qualified solicitor

Job description

Senior Lawyer - Employment and Litigation

A bit about us

A bit about us:Liverpool is home to vibrant, energetic, and engaged communities, people who take real ownership of their local area and are passionate about making our city a better place.

We've got ambitious targets to meet and we need people who are driven, dynamic and ready to deliver the very best for our communities.

Public service is more important than ever, and this role represents a real opportunity to make a difference to our communities by transforming the way we work and placing our residents at the heart of everything we do.

Working at Liverpool City Council provides an opportunity to contribute to your community and make a positive impact on the lives of residents.

Our values shape how we work to deliver public services, and how we communicate with the residents we serve. We care about the best outcomes for local people, through our public services.

We are proud of our world-famous thriving city with its rich culture, as well as affordable housing, good schools, beautiful green spaces - there's really something for everyone!

The role

As a Senior Lawyer at Liverpool City Council, you will manage a full caseload of complex and often sensitive legal matters within one or more specialisms of the team. This role will specialise in Employment and LitigationThe Adult Social Care and Litigation team cover the areas of Adult Social Care, Housing, Education, Employment, and Litigation. Expert knowledge and understanding of the law relating to employment is essential, and knowledge and understanding of one or more of the other areas of law covered by the team, in particular, civil litigation, is desirableYou will have personal responsibility for a caseload of complex and non-complex legal work, and act as a subject matter expert, with appropriate support and supervision, from a Head of LawYou will lead and develop a team of Lawyers, who have conduct of matters relating to Employment and Civil Litigation, and other areas of law where requiredThe post holder will help supervise and contribute to the development of Trainee SolicitorsThe role reports to Head of Law for the Adult Social Care and Litigation team.As a Senior Lawyer, you will provide proactive, and solution focussed advice that supports the delivery of the Council’s priorities and policies.Senior Lawyers will advise on legal matters relevant to public and local government law including on executive and committee decision-making, information governance and public law challengesYou may advise members and formal decision-making bodies including Cabinet, Council, committees and overview and scrutiny in respect of the team’s specialism and as required by the Director and / or their Deputy DirectorThe Director of City Law & Governance will expect you to support them in their role as Monitoring Officer and promote the Nolan Principles, escalating matters as appropriateThe post holder will externally commission legal work for the Council where required, ensuring value for money and high-quality advice and representation is receivedAs a Senior Lawyer, you will play an active role in ensuring the team, service and the wider Council is aware of current and proposed law and practice affecting the CouncilYou may participate in the delivery of projects and programmes in Legal Services and/or corporatelyAs a Senior Lawyer, your Head of Law with the development of legal procedures and policiesThis post is fixed term for 12 months to provide maternity leave cover.

Benefits and Perks

• At least 31 days holiday, plus bank holidays, rising to 35 after 5 years' service (pro rata if part time) - option to purchase further days
• Agile working (role dependent) - a "Flexibility First" approach to agile working, where flexibility is the norm rather than the exception
• Part of the Local Government Pension Scheme - option to join the AVC Scheme
• Progression - opportunities and training through a wide range of high quality learning
• Health and Wellbeing - offer including Employee Assistance Programme
• Cycle to Work and Travel Pass Schemes
• Drive Time - a salary sacrifice car lease scheme
• Family friendly policies with enhanced leave
• Discounted Gym Memberships
• Employee Volunteering Scheme
• Medicash

Equal Opportunities

Liverpool City Council is committed to fostering a workforce representative of the communities we serve. As an Equal Opportunities Employer, we believe in appointing candidates based on their skills, experience, qualifications, and abilities. To support this commitment, we guarantee an interview to candidates from under-represented groups who meet the minimum essential criteria for the role. If you require any reasonable adjustments in line with the Equality Act 2010, such as an application form in a different format or additional time to complete your application, please contact us at [e-mail].

Eligibility to work in the UK will be verified in the final stages of the selection process. All candidates must either already have a right to work in the UK before commencing employment or meet the Home Office criteria for Visa sponsorship. Candidates who require sponsorship should evaluate the Home Office eligibility criteria for a Skilled Worker visa before applying.

This is not legal advice, and we advise you to seek your own independent legal advice tailored to your own personal circumstances.