Senior Accountant – International Offices in London

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Proskauer is seeking a Senior Accountant, based in the London office, who will be responsible for overseeing all facets of the Firm’s international offices’ accounting operations, general ledger accounting, statutory reporting, VAT compliance, accrual-basis accounting, internal control and policy development.

The Senior Accountant will have responsibility across the Firm’s international offices, with a particular focus on London and Paris, ensuring a consistent service level for each location.

Reporting to the International Controller, the Senior Accountant will establish a well-controlled, efficient and customer-focused full-service accounting function.

Responsibilities include, but are not limited to

• General Accounting and Close
• Manage the operations of the Firm’s international offices’ accounting functions (London, Paris, Hong Kong and São Paulo), acting as the London-based point of contact for international accounting
• Participate in the monthly and annual general ledger close process for the international offices’ ledgers, managing to a central global timetable, and validate the accuracy of the results
• Oversee bank, intercompany and balance sheet reconciliations across the international entities, including multi-currency balances
• Work with the Financial Planning & Analysis Team to ensure coding of expenses is correctly and consistently applied and appropriately authorized
• Provide status of the financial condition of the international offices, when requested, by collecting, interpreting and reporting key financial data
• VAT and Indirect Tax
• Own UK and French VAT compliance for the London and Paris offices, including preparing or reviewing UK VAT returns under Making Tax Digital and French VAT (TVA) returns with the outsourced Paris accountants, and meeting all filing and payment deadlines
• Ensure the correct VAT treatment and Aderant Expert tax codes are applied to purchase and sales invoices, including standard rated, zero rated, reverse charge, exempt, outside the scope and counsel fees, and apply place-of-supply rules to cross-border services
• Maintain the integrity of vendor master data, including VAT registration numbers, addresses and tax jurisdictions, and confirm a supplier’s VAT number is valid before input VAT is recovered
• Review expense reimbursements in Chrome River for VAT recovery in line with the London Office VAT policy, including partner, staff and client entertainment and travel, and identify missed or incorrect VAT claims
• Reconcile VAT control accounts (input VAT, output VAT, VAT receivable and VAT payable) each month and clear input and output VAT balances
• Apply French VAT tax-point rules for services (cash receipts basis or the option pour les débits) so that VAT recovery and payment are recognised in the correct period
• Support the Paris office’s compliance with France’s e-invoicing and e-reporting reform, including e-invoices received from suppliers and from independent Paris lawyers through the Firm’s approved platform
• Maintain and update the Firm’s London and Paris VAT policies and guides, act as the first point of contact for VAT queries from Accounts Payable, Billing and Expenses, and liaise with HMRC, the French tax authorities and external VAT advisers
• Accrual and Cash Books
• Maintain the Firm’s accrual-basis books in Aderant Expert alongside the cash-basis books, ensuring the accrual and cash accounting maps post correctly for billing, receipts, write-downs and write-ups, unbilled disbursements, unapplied cash and retainers
• Test and maintain general ledger account mapping between the cash and accrual books, including VAT receivable and payable lines, and identify and set up missing accounts
• Prepare month-end and year-end accruals and prepayments, including accrued expenses, deferred income, work in progress, bad debt provisions and foreign exchange revaluation
• Prepare cash-to-accrual reconciliations and adjustments to support UK and French statutory financial statements, US partnership reporting and local tax filings, recognising that tax bases differ by jurisdiction (for example, the French cash basis for professional income)
• Audit, Tax and Controls
• Identify and research technical accounting issues, provide leadership to management and the team around new standards, and ensure that international office reporting complies at all times with IFRS, UK GAAP (FRS 102), French accounting requirements and Firm policy
• Coordinate year-end statutory audits with external auditors in the UK, France, Hong Kong and other international offices, and manage the preparation of audit schedules, data, information and financial statements, including UK LLP statutory accounts
• Assist in managing relationships with outside audit firms, local accountants, tax advisers, banks and other providers as appropriate
• Work with the Tax Department to prepare any necessary schedules or supporting documentation for UK, French and other partnership, corporate or related tax filings
• Respond to internal and external auditors’ comments concerning Finance’s operations and oversee required action to address deficiencies
• Document international accounting processes, keep them up to date, and monitor adherence to the Firm’s Global Finance Policy and Procedure Manual
• Systems, Change and People
• Act as a liaison with the Paris office finance staff, auditors, advisers and French authorities, including communicating in French where required
• Help to clarify roles and responsibilities and develop and implement training programs in order to help staff maximize potential and reach individual and Firm goals
• Lead change management activities by suggesting, supporting and driving through changes to financial systems, structures and the control environment
• Collaborate across the Finance department with other Finance staff to increase efficiency in financial processes that cross departmental and office lines
• Work with Financial Systems to ensure accounting and financial systems for the department have robust controls, are compliant with regulations, and are up to date and best in breed, taking into consideration current business needs
• When requested, serve as project lead for any system upgrades or implementation projects, assigning resources when needed and developing project plans

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in Accounting, Finance or a related field
• ACA, ACCA or CIMA qualified (or equivalent, such as CPA or Expert-Comptable)
• Minimum 5+ years of accounting experience, including 1+ year in practice with an audit or accountancy firm
• Strong, hands‑on UK VAT experience is essential, including reverse charge, exempt and outside‑the‑scope supplies, place‑of‑supply rules for cross‑border services, VAT return preparation and VAT control account reconciliation
• Working knowledge of French VAT (TVA) and the French e‑invoicing and e‑reporting requirements is highly desirable
• Proven experience maintaining accrual‑basis accounts, including accruals, prepayments, deferred income and work in progress, and preparing cash‑to‑accrual reconciliations; experience running cash and accrual books in parallel is a strong advantage
• Strong working knowledge of IFRS and UK GAAP (FRS 102); familiarity with French GAAP (Plan Comptable Général) is an advantage
• Professional working proficiency in French (written and spoken) is strongly preferred
• Experience in a multi‑entity, multi‑currency environment; experience in a law firm or professional services firm is a plus
• Advanced knowledge of Excel and other Microsoft Office tools
• Experience in Aderant Expert (including tax codes and accounting maps) and Chrome River a plus
• Understanding, and delivery, of an effective control environment across multiple locations
• Flexibility to work across time zones with New York and other offices, and to travel occasionally to Paris and other offices
• Ability to adjust to new, different or changing requirements while conveying a sense of urgency
• Ability to multi‑task in a fast‑paced, high‑pressure environment
• Strong attention to detail
• Demonstrated ability to contribute strategically by identifying and implementing business process improvements
• Strong planning, project management and organizational skills
• Leadership experience, with strong interpersonal skills and collaboration abilities. Must be able to partner with functional counterparts
• A demonstrated ability to consistently meet multiple deadlines

This position will require physical presence in Proskauer’s offices on a regular basis (at least 3x per week, or more, if it becomes the policy of the Firm or as business needs require).

Proskauer is committed to providing a work environment that includes equal opportunity without regard to race, color, gender, age, creed, sex, religion, national origin, disability (physical or mental), marital status, citizenship, ancestry, sexual orientation, gender identity and gender expression, or any other legally protected status.

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