Job Type: PermanentBuild a brilliant future with HiscoxSenior Employment CounselThe RoleThis is a senior legal business partner role within the Hiscox Legal team, reporting to the Group General Counsel. The successful candidate will serve as the lead employment lawyer for Hiscox, providing commercially focused legal advice on employment, labour relations, workforce change, employee relations, investigations and people-related risk across the Group. The successful candidate will work closely with senior leaders in Human Resources, business leadership, Risk, Compliance and local legal teams to support good decision-making, protect the business and enable Hiscox to manage its workforce in a fair, compliant and commercially effective way. The role requires excellent legal judgement, strong stakeholder management skills, discretion, resilience and the ability to balance legal rigour with pace, pragmatism and sensitivity across multiple jurisdictions. Key ResponsibilitiesStrategic Business PartneringAct as a trusted legal adviser to the Group General Counsel, Chief People Officer, people leadership and senior business stakeholders on employment law and workforce-related matters. Provide commercially pragmatic legal advice which supports strategic decision-making and helps manage employment, conduct, regulatory and reputational risk. Support significant people-related projects, including organisational design, restructuring, transformation, senior hiring and exits, workplace investigations and cross-border workforce initiatives. Influence and shape business outcomes through proactive engagement, clear risk analysis and solution-oriented legal support. Employment Law AdvisoryAdvise on the full range of employment law matters, including employee relations, disciplinary and grievance issues, performance management, sickness absence, reasonable adjustments, whistleblowing, discrimination, harassment, restrictive covenants and settlement agreements. Provide practical guidance that balances legal risk, employee fairness, regulatory expectations and commercial objectives. Workforce Change and International SupportLead legal support for restructurings, reorganisations, redundancy programmes, transfers and other workforce change initiatives. Advise on cross-border employment matters, working with local legal colleagues and external counsel where required. Support consistency of employment law advice across the Group while recognising local legal, regulatory and cultural requirements. Help senior stakeholders manage people risk arising from acquisitions, integrations, disposals, outsourcing and business transformation. Investigations, Litigation and DisputesAdvise on internal investigations, whistleblowing matters, conduct concerns and other sensitive employee issues. Manage employment disputes, threatened claims and litigation, including instructing and supervising external counsel where appropriate. Support preparation of legally privileged advice, investigation plans, witness materials, settlement strategy and risk assessments. Identify themes and lessons learned from disputes and investigations, and work with stakeholders to reduce future risk. Policy, Governance and Regulatory AlignmentAdvise on employment-related policies, procedures, templates and guidance, ensuring they remain legally compliant, practical and aligned with Hiscox values. Monitor legal and regulatory developments affecting employment law and workforce governance, translating them into practical guidance for HR and the business. Support employment-related aspects of regulatory, governance and culture matters, including conduct, accountability, whistleblowing, diversity and inclusion, and workplace behaviour. Contribute to training and awareness for HR, managers and legal colleagues on key employment law and people risk topics. Legal Operations and Team ContributionDrive continuous improvement in the delivery of employment law support, including use of templates, playbooks, triage processes, AI tools and external counsel management. Optimise use of external counsel and legal service providers, ensuring cost discipline, quality and appropriate escalation of sensitive matters. Promote collaboration, knowledge sharing and best practice across the global Legal function and people teams. Support and mentor colleagues within the Legal team where appropriate. Role ScopeLead employment law support for significant, sensitive and cross-border people matters. Manage a diverse portfolio of complex employment law and workforce risk matters with substantial autonomy. Act as employment law subject matter expert within the Hiscox Legal team. Build trusted relationships with people team, senior management, Risk, Compliance and local legal teams. Contribute to the ongoing development of the Legal function and its operating model. Acts as the lead employment law adviser to the Group General Counsel, People leadership and senior business stakeholders. Works closely with People, Risk, Compliance, Privacy, Finance and local legal teams. Manages relationships with external employment law advisers and other relevant legal service providers. Supports and develops more junior legal colleagues where appropriate. Strong employment law experience, ideally gained through a combination of private practice and in-house roles. Experience providing pragmatic legal advice to HR and senior business stakeholders on sensitive and confidential people matters. Strong understanding of employment litigation risk, settlement strategy and dispute resolution. Experience working within financial services, insurance or another regulated or complex corporate environment. Proven ability to influence senior stakeholders and provide commercially focused legal advice. Sound judgement, discretion, resilience and a pragmatic approach to risk management. DesirableKnowledge of insurance, financial services regulation or conduct-related employment issues. Experience supporting large-scale transformation, restructuring or integration programmes. Experience leading policy improvement, employment law training or legal process improvement initiatives. Combine strong technical employment law capability with practical commercial judgement. Diversity and flexible working at HiscoxAt Hiscox we care about our people. We hire the best people for the job, and we are committed to diversity and creating a truly inclusive culture, which we believe drives success. Working life does not always have to be in the office so we have introduced hybrid working to encourage a healthy work life balance. This hybrid working model is set by the team rather than the business to enable you to manage your own personal work-life balance. ColchesterType: Full time
Senior Counsel - EMEA in London employer: Hiscox AG
Hiscox is an exceptional employer that prioritises the well-being and development of its employees, offering a dynamic work culture that embraces diversity and inclusivity. As a Workforce Change Manager, you will enjoy the benefits of hybrid working, allowing for a balanced professional and personal life while contributing to meaningful people change initiatives. With opportunities for professional growth and collaboration with talented colleagues across global locations like London, Lisbon, and York, Hiscox stands out as a place where your expertise can truly make an impact.
