Lawyer in Cardiff

Basis: Permanent, Full time 36 hours per week

Location: Belfast, Cardiff, Edinburgh, or London (Hybrid – min. 2 days in office) or homeworking (UK). London-based employees receive an additional £3,217 London weighting. A £312 tax-free working from home allowance is also payable annually.

About the Electoral Commission

The Electoral Commission is the UK’s independent body overseeing elections and regulating political finance. Everything we do is about ensuring trust, participation, and integrity in the democratic process. As we enter a bold new chapter under our five-year Corporate Plan, we are increasing our workforce and transforming how we plan and deliver core services. This post plays a central role in that journey.

About the role

We are currently seeking a number of full time, or equivalent, lawyers to join the Commission’s Legal Team. As a UK-wide organisation, we welcome applications from lawyers qualified in any of the jurisdictions in the UK (England & Wales, Scotland, and Northern Ireland) to join our Legal Team. For this recruitment round we are particularly keen to encourage applications from lawyers based in Scotland, but applications from across the UK will be equally considered and the ultimate appointments will be based on merit.

As a statutory body, the Commission relies on its Legal Team for high quality legal advice to advance its objectives and ensure it exercises its functions lawfully. You will provide high quality legal advice and assistance to the Commission including:

• advising on electoral law including during major political events such as UK Parliamentary General Elections, local elections, PCC elections, mayoral elections, referendums and elections for the devolved parliaments,
• advising on regulatory decisions and enforcement action affecting political parties and campaigners,
• working on proposed legislation and the implementation of new legislation, and
• advising on the Commission’s wider legal obligations as a public body.

Since the Commission operates in a niche area, we do not require or expect candidates to have experience of electoral law but experience of advisory work, statutory interpretation and public and administrative law will be essential. You will be supported by one of the Senior Lawyers and receive training in role.

About the team

You’ll be joining the Legal Team, part of the Devolution and Law directorate. The team is currently comprised of a Head of Legal, a Legal Management Team of Senior Lawyers, Lawyers and a Legal Officer, under the Commission’s General Counsel. We are a collaborative, supportive and solutions focused team that works closely with colleagues across the Commission. We pride ourselves on being approachable, responsive and innovative in the way we provide legal advice. Our work is high-profile and varied with electoral reform, the regulation of parties and candidates, and devolution all being hot topics across the whole of the UK. The work is interesting, intellectually challenging, and varied.

Who we’re looking for

To be successful in this role, you will need to:

• be fully entitled to practice in England & Wales, Scotland, or Northern Ireland under the rules of the relevant national Law Society, Bar Council or Faculty of Advocates. This includes those dual qualified to also practice in any of the above jurisdictions.
• have experience of advisory work, statutory interpretation and administrative and public law.
• have strong legal analytical skills, a sound public law knowledge base and the ability confidently and effectively to interpret and apply new and complex legislation.

For a full list of competencies, please refer to the job description and person specification.

Why work for us?

This role offers a unique opportunity to contribute to democracy in the UK by providing high quality legal advice to the Commission. You’ll gain exposure to high profile stakeholders, play a key role during major electoral events, and develop expertise in electoral law. We offer a strong total reward package, including:

• Flexible working and hybrid model (40% office minimum)
• 28 rising to 30 days annual leave + bank holidays
• Civil Service pension scheme (28.97% employer contribution)
• Study support for professional qualifications
• Ongoing learning and development opportunities
• Ride2Work, eye care vouchers and more

How to apply

We are committed to fair and inclusive recruitment. To help reduce unconscious bias and ensure all applicants are assessed solely on their skills, knowledge and experience, we use an anonymous recruitment process. When applying, provide an anonymised CV which omits your protected characteristics and any personally identifiable information:

• Do not include: Your name, address, phone number, email or other contact details, Your date of birth or age, Gender, ethnicity, nationality or other personal identifiers, A photo of yourself, Remove educational dates as these are a clear indication of your age, There is no requirement to include your primary education details.
• Do include: Your employment history including employers and dates of employment, Explanation for gaps in your history, Your duties, responsibilities and achievements.

If your CV contains personal details (such as your name or contact information), we will be unable to consider your application. Please double-check your documents before submitting, including the file name you use to save and upload your CV.

Supporting disabled applicants

The Electoral Commission is proud to be a Level 2 Disability Confident Employer. As part of our commitment, we offer a guaranteed interview scheme for disabled applicants. If you have a disability and meet the minimum essential criteria listed in the job description, you will be offered an interview. To be considered under this scheme, please indicate this when you apply. We also welcome requests for reasonable adjustments during the recruitment process or in the workplace.

Key dates

Application deadline: 18 January 2026 (23:59). Interviews: Week commencing 2 February 2026. Interviews will be conducted virtually via Microsoft Teams. Shortlisted candidates will also be asked to undertake a written assessment.