Senior Lawyer (Team Leader) – Property Law Team

Senior Lawyer (Team Leader) – Property Law Team

£46,374

Birmingham , Bristol , Exeter , Peterborough , Reading

The Environment Agency operates at the place where environmental change has its greatest impact on people’s lives. We work closely with a wide range of partners to make sure there is enough water for people and wildlife, reduce the risk of flooding, protect and improve air, land and water quality and apply environmental standards within which industry can operate.

In this role, you will be one of three Team Leaders managing a team of 16 lawyers advising on a wide range of property law matters including sustainability, large strategic projects, net zero and the Land Strategy as well as advising colleagues in Estates and Flood and Coastal Risk Management (FCRM) Delivery Hubs on transactional property law work. The team also advise on title due diligence, negotiation of heads of terms and the acquisition of the land and interests (including works licences, options, transfers, easements and leases) necessary to facilitate the construction of the Environment Agency’s Flood Alleviation Schemes. You will also help provide and manage the provision of property law support to lawyers in our other legal teams.

You will have a varied, high quality, interesting and challenging caseload, and ensure that services are provided in a client-focused manner.

The team (61/75)

The role is part of our FCRM, Planning and Professional Support team. As well as working closely with other lawyers, colleagues in Estates and FCRM Delivery Hubs, you will also need to work with other internal clients, external public, private and third sector partners and engage proactively with lawyers in the Government Legal Department and the wider public and private sectors.

Experience/skills required (145/150)

To succeed in this role you will have:

• experience of managing a team or be able to demonstrate, through transferable skills and experience, the capabilities required to manage a team;
• experience of handling a complex legal caseload involving multi-party transactions and projects, advising on technical issues, and prioritising competing demands;
• excellent communication and analytical skills with a sophisticated understanding of Property Law issues;
• a willingness and aptitude to rapidly get up to speed on new legal issues;
• confidence and experience to assimilate a new area of law quickly;
• the ability to influence and persuade a wide range of people up to organisational leaders, advising managers, officers and lawyers upon the direction and conduct of property casework;
• the ability to write detailed legal briefings for use at director/board/government level, and to compose correspondence in response to challenging external questions.

Contact and additional information (118/125) 

You will be admitted as a barrister, solicitor or legal executive with current right to practise in England. Applicants from other common law jurisdictions are welcome, at the time of applying they must be fully qualified in England.

Candidates seeking flexible working, including job share are welcome.

We are currently home-working, moving to a hybrid of home working and office attendance. For an exceptional candidate we may consider a base other than those listed. National travel will be required.

Please download the candidate pack for full details of the role and the wide range of benefits we offer, including a career average pension scheme. If you would like to discuss the role further, please contact Will McKenzie: will.mckenzie@environment-agency.gov.uk

Closing date: 15 December 2021.