The Role
This is an excellent opportunity for a senior associate to join a team which is recognised as one of the leading competition law teams in the UK, and one that gives pragmatic, commercial advice in a business-friendly way.
We can offer a broad breadth of work and the successful candidate will be involved in and have a focus on merger control work, but there are also opportunities to be involved in compliance and market investigation work. This role would suit someone who, in addition to the technical skills, has the ability to drive the business forward and develop strong client relationships.
The London team are an integrated part of the Firm's Global Antitrust & Competition group which is located across 54 offices and is the second largest in the world. It ranks among "The Global Elite," a listing of the world's top competition practices by Global Competition Review.
Responsibilities include:
- Advising clients on a wide range of matters, with a particular focus on merger control work and investigations but with the opportunity to be involved in more general compliance / behavioural and market investigations work. Associates work in a collegiate environment for a range of partners and can expect a good variety of work.
- Developing relationships with clients including gaining a good knowledge of the client's businesses, economic drivers, market and sector requirements in order to ensure advice is relevant and commercial.
- Regular and direct contact with clients, with a culture based on associates being given the level of responsibility they are ready for, rather than a PQE based method of work allocation.
- Engaging in business development activities and being active in the promotion of the Firm and seeking opportunities for new work.
- Working as part of a team including assisting with the supervision of more junior lawyers' work, and taking an active part in sharing knowledge and experience with the team.
There are regular opportunities for secondments with clients. Posting to other offices under the firm's associate transfer programme is also a possibility.
The Team
We are one of the few premium teams to provide day-to-day advice on the full spectrum of competition law. Our experience encompasses cartel investigations, including extensive dawn raid capabilities; merger control; state aid; public procurement work and regulatory work and competition litigation.
Our global team helps navigate shifting antitrust and competition policies worldwide with precision and ease. We have the systems and standards — as well as more than 300 antitrust lawyers and professionals — to carry out the most complex, cross-border compliance strategies. We were the first law firm to coordinate multijurisdictional merger filings successfully and have since facilitated some of the largest global mergers.
We are also regarded as a leading trade team in London by virtue of our unrivalled experience in advising on international trade issues, including export controls and sanctions rules, customs rules, WTO rules, free trade agreements and trade remedies. We have an extremely broad client base and our ability to provide advice of the highest quality reflects a close working relationship with our colleagues globally.
Key Skills and Experience Required
The successful candidate will be able to demonstrate all or the majority of the following:
- Current experience in the Competition department of a leading firm
- First rate technical skills needed to support the client work of the department
- Commerciality and demonstrable business development experience
- Excellent written communication and drafting skills
- Initiative and proactivity
- Maturity and gravitas
- Strong service orientation - a "client first" culture
- Ability to develop strong relationships with clients and to take responsibility for this relationship
- High work standards
- Flexible work practices
- Outstanding communication skills and the ability to adapt style as required
- Ability to work well in both a team and individually
- A keenness to learn
- Respects and enjoys the diversity of cultural, social and academic backgrounds found in the Firm
Why Join Us?
Baker McKenzie is a truly global law firm. Founded in 1949, we advise many of the world's most dynamic and successful business organisations through our 13,200 people in 78 offices in 46 countries. Yet big does not mean impersonal. We work hard to ensure that everyone knows their role and has the support they need to perform it to the highest standard. Our culture encourages this - how we work, think and behave in a collaborative and fulfilling way.
In London you will be part of a 950 person office, which is also our largest office globally. Originally opened in 1961, Baker McKenzie London is well established in the UK as a leading international law firm and is regularly involved in some of the country's most high-profile legal matters. We can offer you the work, pride and experience of being part of a leading law firm but in a local office environment that is hardworking, friendly and supportive.
The strength of the firm and our culture is evidenced by a number of recent awards, including:
- Thomson Reuters (formerly Acritas' Sharplegal) Global Elite Law Firm Brand Index, 2010- 2022 - ranked 1st
- The Times Top 100 Graduate Employers 2021-2022: currently ranked 52nd
- Refinitiv (formerly Thomson Reuters) ranked the Firm No. 1 for cross-border deals for the last 15 years. More than 70% of our deals are cross-border.
- Law360 ranked the Firm as one of the 400 Largest US Law Firms in in its annual survey in 2022.
- Identified as one of the Hall of Fame for best law firms for women by Working Mother magazine, 2011-2021.
- Received a Gold Award on Stonewall's 2022 Global Workplace Equality Index of Top Global Employers for LGBTQ+ people
- Ranked as one of the Top 10 Employers in the 2022 Social Mobility Employer Index.
- Received Double Certification for earning top marks in the 2022 Corporate Equality Index and Equidad MX of the Human Rights Campaign Foundation.
- Winner of the Europe Mentorship Programme - International Firm award in the Euromoney Women in Business Law Europe Awards 2021
- In 2022, we won Career Development International Firm, Diverse Women Lawyers International Firm, Work-Life Balance International Firm, Innovative International Firm of the Year and Women in Business International law firm (WIBL Asia).
- Baker McKenzie has been awarded "Women in Business Law Firm of the Year" and "Career Development Firm of the Year" at the inaugural Euromoney Women in Business Law Global Awards 2022.
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To Apply
At Baker McKenzie we welcome direct applications.
Please click on the Apply icon to start the online application process for this role. We will then be in touch with you once we have reviewed your application. If you are unable to apply online, please contact the Recruitment Team on either 020 7919 1000 or Recruitment.London@bakermckenzie.com
For more information about this position or to discuss any adjustments you may require during the process please contact in confidence, David Roberts, Recruitment Manager, on 020 7052 5752 or david.roberts@bakermckenzie.com
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NO AGENCIES PLEASE
Please note Baker McKenzie does not accept unsolicited CVs. Please click here for details of our Agency Policy and commitment to sourcing directly.
Commitment to Inclusion, Diversity & Equity
As the first truly global law firm, diversity and inclusion are foundational to our culture and strategic vision. We are a Firm of individuals from across the globe with different backgrounds, ideas, and points of view who collegially work together to solve complex problems and design practical solutions for our clients. Our multiple perspectives come from many sources, including the diverse ethnicity, culture, gender, nationality, age, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity and expression, disability, parental status, education, social background and life experience of our people.
Our global strategy is focused on our people, our culture, our clients and the communities where we operate. In 2019 we enacted ambitious new targets related to gender, racial and ethnic diversity at the Firm. These targets are viewed as a floor, not a ceiling, to advancing underrepresented groups, and they are backed by a variety of strategic initiatives aimed at achieving our goals. Our strategic vision is supported in London by six active employee led networks which champion diversity, lead on a number of internal campaigns and deliver a range of activity to celebrate differences in identity, inclusion, and key dates throughout the year including: LGBT+ History Month, International Women's Day, International Trans Day of Visibility, Mental Health Awareness Week, Pride, Black History Month, Social Mobility Week, International Day of Disabled Persons and many more!
Baker McKenzie London has been accredited by Disability Confident, joining over 18,000 organisations that have signed up to help change behaviours and cultures in businesses, networks and communities and reap the benefits of inclusive recruitment practices.