Senior Associate - Commercial

The Office

Established in 1984 and located in the heart of the City our Exeter office has evolved into a full-service law firm and the first point of call for many corporate and individual clients in the South West and beyond.

Our Exeter office is home to a team of 146 staff, led by 22 partners. Our locally based lawyers have a deep understanding of what matters to clients in the South West. In turn, our clients choose us for our high levels of service and expertise, and also for the value for money we can offer by utilising our regional teams.

The Opportunity

We have an exciting opportunity for a Senior Associate to join our team here in Exeter. This is a rare opportunity for someone to come in and build the Commercial offering in Exeter with the full support of a large national Commercial team based in all our other UK offices. You will be joining an already outstanding national Commercial team of 20 including 6 partners and working with them to grow the department further. You will have the best possible know-how, training and technical support at your fingertips and in addition to growing the South West Commercial team, the opportunity to get involved in top-quality work with top quality national and international clients.

This is a move that would suit an entrepreneurial lawyer looking for that next exciting step in their career to build a South West Commercial practice and develop, grow and mould a team around them. You will be part of the Exeter Corporate and Commercial department and be supported on the ground in Exeter by our established team of six people who will actively work with you and support you to develop new business.

Working as part of a high-performing national Commercial team, you will advise clients (a number of which are household names) operating in a variety of sectors on a diverse range of commercial matters. The team is supported by specialists in our other departments across the firm, including competition, tax, employment and intellectual property.

The role will include a range of key activities to include providing a first-class service to clients, proactive marketing/profile raising, exceptional client and team/office management. Specifically:

• Drafting, negotiating and advising on a wide range of commercial agreements, including supply agreements, Ts&Cs, distribution agreements, franchise agreements, collaboration / partnership agreements, joint venture agreements and outsourcing arrangements.
• Advising on ad hoc day-to-day commercial queries from our varied client base;
• Supporting General Counsel on business critical projects;
• An understanding of GDPR helpful but not essential;
• Initiating, building and maintaining effective client relationships;
• Ensuring files are managed in compliance with Lexcel procedures;
• Promotions, and co-managing quarterly check-ins; attending periodic meetings of the International Corporate and Partner Groups to discuss strategy, marketing and coordinating inter-office team support.
• Pro-active participation in department and firm-wide marketing initiatives.

What you will need

The firm has a Career Development Framework which sets out the competencies we expect of those at these grades. For this role we require:

• Qualified solicitor or equivalent with 6 years' PQE in advising on commercial matters;
• Excellent technical skills and innovative approach to their application;
• Proven ability to take on responsibility, manage and progress matters independently where appropriate;
• Strong client focus and service delivery;
• Drive and enthusiasm;
• Commercial awareness;
• Aptitude for and proven business development experience;
• Substantial client management experience;
• Ability to work to deadlines;
• Methodical, disciplined and organised;
• Team player;
• Excellent communication skills with a collaborative approach;
• Ability to manage files independently;
• Credibility and profile; 
• Experience gained for a leading/notable international/UK Commercial practice