Associate - Employment in Bristol

Are you keen to find an exciting new role where you will be part of a dynamic, forward-thinking, agile team? If so, come and join us on the journey.

Why Michelmores? Michelmores is the destination law firm for the ambitious, the imaginative and the distinctive. We help enterprises and individuals navigate change to find a positive future. We are a flexible, friendly and inclusive organisation with as clear a focus on fresh thinking as we have on growth and success. We value and nurture our people’s potential and inspiration and give them a creative, open and collaborative environment in which to develop a career and succeed. We believe that whatever your legal experience, you’ll find Michelmores different.

From day one we encourage our people to forge relationships and expand their understanding and knowledge of areas that interest them — developing an understanding of commercial challenges and opportunities, rather than just knowing the law. We nurture creative and commercial thinking to help in your long‑term career success — it mirrors our approach to ensuring the very best outcomes for our clients too. Finally, our culture really is something special to us. At Michelmores we take pride in how we all work together, whatever our role or seniority, and you’ll really grow and thrive because we encourage people to develop in areas that excite them or make them different. That’s how we nurture the brightest and best lawyers.

What sort of work? Our highly experienced Employment team is looking for an Associate to join either our Exeter or Cheltenham office. In this role you will support the team in delivering a first‑class service to clients. This will include:

• Providing expert legal counsel to clients on a wide range of employment law issues, including employment status and associated rights, contracts and handbooks, redundancy and discrimination.
• Providing clear, decisive, commercial and sensitive HR support to clients and their in‑house HR teams to ensure the safe and effective management of their workforce, including dealing with grievances, performance issues, sickness absence management and disciplinary procedures.
• Conducting thorough legal research and analysis to support client cases and providing strategic advice.
• Managing Employment Tribunal claims from ACAS Early Conciliations right through to Appeal Hearings and Cost Applications.
• Representing clients in Employment Tribunals, mediations and other dispute resolution proceedings.
• Collaborating with colleagues across all teams within the Firm to deliver comprehensive legal solutions to clients in a timely manner, such as supporting corporate deals, working with our Commercial team to help our clients 'future‑proof' and expand their businesses and working with our Commercial Dispute Resolutions teams on injunctions and defamation issues.
• Staying up to date with changes in employment law, including case law decisions. Providing regular updates to the rest of the team, drafting related articles and proactively advising clients on changes that may impact their businesses.
• Working with our Professional Support Lawyer and Paralegals to update and refine our policies, contracts and templates.
• Proactively engaging in the team and the Firm’s business development projects and strategies, such as attending company and client events, solidifying relationships with clients and partner organisations through events, meetings and training and facilitating referrer relationships.

Why this team? Our Employment team, led by James Baker, supports employers across all sectors, as they face their greatest challenges — especially in cases involving media scrutiny in highly unionised and litigious environments, where legislative uncertainty and organisational change compound pressures. With a focus on lasting relationships and innovative solutions, we work as an expert extension to in‑house HR functions, providing reassurance and guidance in difficult, time‑sensitive cases involving issues such as complex discrimination claims and whistleblowing investigations. Our clients rely on our support during complex multi‑faceted investigations; large‑scale restructuring; the various forms of TUPE; insolvency implications for employees, industrial actions and employment tribunals / civil court enforcement actions. We also help businesses from SMEs to PLCs, local authorities, government departments, and third‑sector organisations to achieve excellent outcomes in complex employment disputes. We provide excellent training and career progression opportunities in an inclusive environment.

How do we work? We take a flexible, agile approach to working patterns. As a team we agree together on the best working arrangements that will enable each of us to provide exceptional client service, to collaborate and connect with colleagues, and to achieve the right home/work balance. As a Firm we are committed to supporting our people across all levels to achieve the balance they need. We are open to talking about flexible working and to empowering any candidate to put forward a flexible working pattern to meet their needs.

Who are we looking for? We are looking for somebody who will understand our values and thrive in our culture. The role will be based either in our Exeter or Cheltenham office and the ideal candidate will:

• Become a vital member of a busy and friendly team. Enjoying our work and the people we work with is essential to our success and a fundamental part of why our work is of the highest quality, our clients enjoy working with us, and we actually enjoy coming to work!
• Be a qualified solicitor in England and Wales or Scotland with 1‑5 years post‑qualification experience in employment law.
• Have in depth knowledge of UK employment legislation, case law and best practices. An understanding of the differences in employment law between England and Wales and Scotland is desirable but not essential.
• Have a proven track record of successfully handling complex employment law matters, including settlement negotiations and Employment Tribunal cases, and achieving favourable outcomes for clients. Experience of advocating for clients at Tribunal is desirable but not essential.
• Demonstrate excellent communication skills, negotiation and advocacy skills with the ability to build rapport with clients, colleagues and partner organisations. The successful candidate will need to deliver outstanding client service, having plenty of day‑to‑day contact with clients, colleagues and partner organisations.
• Have a keen attention to detail. This is absolutely critical to the work we do in order to provide the quality of output that we and our clients expect.
• Have strong analytical and problem‑solving skills.
• Have excellent organisational skills with a methodical approach to workloads and an ability to adhere to strict deadlines. Candidates will need to manage a diverse caseload, work with different Senior Associates and Partners in the team and be able to prioritise tasks effectively to thrive in a fast‑paced environment.
• Be prepared to put forward and develop ideas to improve our transactional processes and delivery of client service.
• Be keen to contribute to the team's growth by identifying opportunities and participating in team and the Firm’s business development projects and strategies.

This is a great opportunity to join a Firm which believes potential, inspiration, and teamwork should be valued and nurtured. We work hard to create and sustain an open and collaborative environment. We embrace change and constantly evolve to meet our people’s diverse needs, in the same way that we help our clients to navigate and stay ahead of developments, to move forward together.

Michelmores LLP is an Equal Opportunities Employer. We do not discriminate on grounds of race, gender, marital status, age, religion, colour, nationality, ethnic origin, disability or sexual orientation in the selection, recruitment and treatment of our staff.