Senior Associate - Construction in Cheltenham

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.

At Michelmores, we believe in empowering our people to thrive. That’s why we’ve launched Michelmores Academy – our innovative skills development framework designed to support your career progression at every stage. Through a blend of core programmes and elective sessions, the Academy helps you build the skills, knowledge, and mindset needed to deliver exceptional client service and drive sustainable growth. Whether you’re attending live workshops or exploring our digital learning resources – including e‑learning, podcasts, and best practice guides – you’ll have the tools to grow professionally and personally.

Aligned with our strategic vision, the Academy focuses on key pillars that will deliver our strategic aims. You’ll also have the opportunity to connect with peers across the Firm, expand your network, and benefit from mentoring relationships that support your long‑term success.

What sort of work? Right now, our highly regarded Construction team is looking for an experienced Senior Associate to join them, with a real focus on non‑contentious work. This position offers an opportunity to broaden your knowledge and progress your career in a supportive team environment. In this role you will undertake primarily non‑contentious work, although we would also like to hear from candidates who are willing and able to undertake contentious work too.

Working alongside Partners Anna Wood, Ashley Pigott, Maria Greener and Managing and Senior Associates across the team, you will act for both public and private sector clients across the construction supply chain, primarily on the employer/client side. Your files will relate to high value and often high profile regional and national developments across a broad range of sectors including energy and infrastructure, health, education, commercial, and consumer brands.

Our successful candidate will join a busy team and their day‑to‑day work will include reviewing and advising on contract terms proposed to our clients, drafting and negotiating contracts, appointments and ancillary documents, and interacting with clients and their other advisors both in person and on Teams calls. Your cases will be highly varied and often fast‑paced, providing an exciting and stimulating working environment, in which you will be well‑supported by colleagues.

Why this team? Our experienced Construction and Engineering practice advises regional, national and international clients on a wide range of issues across the supply chain providing first rate and solutions‑driven advice at all stages from the outset of a project through procurement and beyond. Clients include owners and occupiers, developers, main contractors, project managers, members of the professional design team, funders and public sector authorities, at both local and central government level.

On the transactional side, the practice complements the work of the Firm’s Commercial Development and Projects teams, particularly in relation to its developer and public sector clients, advising on the complexities of multi‑million pound multi‑stakeholder procurement on prestigious regional and national projects. The team also has a busy construction dispute resolution caseload including both employer and contractor‑side cases, whether in adjudication, Pre‑Action Protocol, TCC or arbitration proceedings.

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. We are looking for an ambitious lawyer, who has gained experience in a range of construction matters. The role will be based in one of our Bristol, Exeter or Cheltenham offices, with the opportunity to work with colleagues and clients across all our offices including London.

The ideal candidate will have:

• At least 5 years' post‑qualified experience in Construction and Engineering practice.
• Experience of advising and acting on a range of construction matters that align with the client and work types described above.
• Extensive drafting and negotiating experience across a range of contract families including JCT, NEC, FIDIC, IChemE, Energy contracts including EPCs, O&Ms, Bespoke appointments and contracts and Ancillary documents (collateral warranties, bonds, PCGs etc).
• A genuine interest in promoting business development opportunities.

The team works across various sectors and for funders, employers/clients, contractors and sub‑contractors. The successful candidate will have experience of more than one sector, but we have no specific requirements for particular sectors. The matters that we work on are usually high value complex matters and the successful candidate will primarily work alongside a Partner and/or a Managing Associate to be a safe pair of hands for the day‑to‑day running of files.

Other skills required include:

• Strong interpersonal skills; effective communicator at all levels (written and verbal).
• A commercial, pro‑active and professional approach to work.
• Excellent organisational skills, demonstrable examples of multi‑tasking and an ability to effectively juggle competing priorities.
• Must interact well with others in a sensitive and effective way – a team player.
• Must be self‑motivated, committed to working towards goals with strong enthusiasm and career commitment.
• A strong understanding of the importance of confidentiality and use of discretion.
• Demonstrable self‑confidence, initiative and innovative thinking.

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.

Next Steps To apply please click here or if you would like to talk to someone about the role, please call Lisa Gater, Recruitment Business Partner, on 07355 677 986.

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.

As part of our recruitment policy our candidates are subject to pre‑employment screening checks. The Employee Screening Process includes DBS screening, adverse media checks, financial screening, and will also involve verification of employment history, your right to work in the UK and any relevant qualifications and memberships.

If you would like further information around this, at this stage, please get in touch with our recruitment team (careers@michelmores.com). No agencies please – any agency assistance will be via invitation only. Please note any speculative candidates submitted via agencies without invitation will not be considered as represented by that agent.