Senior Associate - Employment

Role overview

A respected regional law firm in the Southwest is looking for a Senior Associate to join its growing Employment team. The appointment is a key strategic hire aimed at expanding the firm’s employment law presence across the region, with real influence over how the practice develops and a clear route for career progression.

The position can be based in either of the firm’s Southwest offices and includes hybrid working. The workload is designed to be sustainable, with an expected billable commitment of about 5 hours per day. This gives room to provide high-quality advice, strengthen client relationships, and support a healthy work-life balance.

The opportunity

In this role, you will take a leading position in building the firm’s local employment law profile. You will handle both contentious and non-contentious matters, contribute to business development, and help shape the future direction of the practice as it grows.

This opportunity is well suited to an experienced Senior Associate or Director who brings a commercial mindset, initiative, and an entrepreneurial approach. Having a client following would be helpful, though it is not essential. A supported path toward Partnership is available for candidates seeking advancement.

Key responsibilities

• Manage your own matters to a high standard, keeping delivery efficient and commercially effective.
• Build strong, trusted relationships with clients and referrers while consistently meeting or exceeding service expectations.
• Set clear scopes of work, fee structures, and service levels.
• Provide practical, commercially minded employment law advice with good awareness of the wider sector.
• Contribute to the team’s business plan and show measurable progress from business development activity.
• Grow your network of clients, intermediaries, and referrers.
• Support senior colleagues in pursuing and converting new business.
• Develop internal connections that help increase cross-referrals across the firm.
• Supervise, mentor, and delegate work to junior lawyers and team members.
• Work with departmental KPIs and performance targets in mind.
• Stay current with legal and market developments and bring ideas into team planning.
• Take responsibility for parts of the team’s growth and development strategy.

About you

You should have 4–7+ years of PQE in employment law and bring a clear idea for how you would develop the firm’s presence in the Southwest market. Experience in Employment Tribunal litigation is useful but not required.

The role calls for excellent client handling skills, a strong commitment to service quality, and a proven ability to generate new work through business development. Experience supervising or mentoring junior lawyers is also important.

We are looking for someone who is commercially minded, collaborative, and motivated by the chance to help build a growing team.

What’s on offer

• Competitive salary, reviewed regularly.
• Hybrid working arrangement.
• Generous holiday allowance with the option to buy or sell leave.
• Healthcare cover.
• Pension provision.
• Life assurance.
• Income protection.
• Enhanced family leave.
• Bonus scheme.
• Cycle to work and season ticket loan benefits.
• Access to mentoring, leadership development programmes, and ongoing professional growth.

Additional information

The firm is recognised for its supportive environment, high-quality work, and focus on helping people develop. You will join a collaborative team with the freedom to build your practice and the support needed to progress your career.

Applications are welcomed from candidates of all backgrounds. The employer is committed to inclusive hiring and encourages people to apply regardless of disability, neurodiversity, long-term health conditions, career breaks, or non-traditional career paths. Reasonable adjustments can be provided during the application or interview process to help ensure a fair and comfortable experience.

Please note that visa sponsorship is not available for this role. Applicants must already have the right to work in the United Kingdom.

Working arrangement

The position is based onsite in Bristol with hybrid flexibility across the Southwest office locations.