Associate

Successful businesses rely on a unique set of ideas and people. We help our clients protect and develop those vital assets, unlocking possibilities for future success. 

From iconic brands and leading multinationals to pioneering start-ups, we are proud to work with a huge range of inspiring clients, helping them to turning their ideas into reality and getting the best from - and for - their people.

Our people are not only exceptional at what they do, they also enjoy doing it and consistently give their best to a firm they’re proud to be part of. This stems from our firm culture and our ethos of bravery and kindness. That ethos runs through everything we do, from our approach to recruitment, business practices, and DEI activities to the day-to-day environment in our office and our relationships with clients.

With an internationally minded team of more than 700 working across key areas of law – plus strategic partnerships around the world – we’ve got both the combination and calibre of legal experts it takes to enable our clients’ businesses to thrive. Whether it is providing global employment law advice, managing a global IP portfolio or piecing together a multijurisdictional corporate transaction, we are able to have the right people, in the right place, at the right time.

Our Corporate team is consistently top-ranked for corporate M&A. We are ranked in Tier 1 by Legal 500 and Band 2 by Chambers & Partners. We have the experience and resources to handle major transactions with a hands-on approach. In 2023 we received a new practice ranking for venture capital by Legal 500 which reflects our capability and expertise in this area.

Our integrated business model brings together our deep sector knowledge and our specialist M&A capability with other legal disciplines enabling us to deliver highly efficient and cost-effective leadership and project management on our corporate transactions.

The team currently consists of 16 partners, 15 associates, two trainees, a paralegal and a PDL, together with a high quality secretarial and word processing support team. The team operates as one combined team based across the London, Manchester, Cardiff and Belfast offices and consists of corporate, tax, banking and finance experts. 

The Manchester Corporate team is recently formed and is rapidly expanding. It will soon consist of two partners and we are recruiting for this Associate role as well as a Senior Associate role. The Manchester office consists of employment, commercial, IP and corporate experts and as well as having a trainee and paralegal joining, it also has shared access to junior support from the other offices.

Our experts advise on the full range of corporate services including:

• Mergers and Acquisitions – share and asset sales and purchases for corporates, buyout transactions and due diligence. Our clients range from UK, European and US listed multinational organisations, through to UK and international funds, to owner-managed businesses across countless  sectors from financial services to advertising. Our long experience acting for clients in the media and technology industries gives us an unrivalled expertise in these sectors.
• Corporate finance – venture capital and private equity investments, pre-IPO fundraising, investment agreements. We act for numerous companies and investors from business angels and venture funds to private equity firms, as well as for investee companies and management/founders.
• Joint ventures – contractual structures, corporate and LLP vehicles, and tax efficient structuring. Joint ventures often provide the appropriate solution and structure for a specific business venture. We help in the choice of the appropriate joint venture vehicle and deal with its tax efficient structuring and associated funding.
• General corporate advice – insolvency and corporate recovery, statutory and regulatory compliance, shareholders’ and partnerships agreements and constitutional agreements. This includes advising individuals on the best corporate vehicle for their business; keeping them up to date with recent changes in law and practice; and the right course of action to take should their business encounter financial difficulties.
• Debt – loans and security and general financial advice. We advise both borrowers and lenders on appropriate finance structures, together with providing general advice on day to day financial matters.
• Public markets – IPOs and secondary issues (primarily on AIM or Aquis), as well as market rules and regulatory issues, continuing obligations, public to private, and acquisitions for listed companies on the Official List as well as AIM and Aquis. We count among our clients UK and international listed companies, banks, brokers, and public company directors both as boards and in their personal capacities. Our team advises public companies, sponsors and NOMADs on the full range of listed company transactions including listings and fundraisings, reverse takeovers and substantial acquisitions, and market compliance on acquisitions, disposals, refinancing’s and day-to-day business.
• Commercial tax – tax efficient structuring and reorganisations. Underpinning all of our transactional work is the support of our tax colleagues. Getting the tax advice right is fundamental to any corporate activity. Our tax experts are well versed in structuring corporate acquisitions and disposals, private equity transactions and debt structuring. They also regularly advise on issues from transfer pricing to LTIPs.
• Partnerships – Advising on a broad range of non-contentious issues, including strategic transactions, UK and international structuring and regulatory issues, commercial agreements, funding arrangements and personal matters.

We are the sole UK member of the Global Advertising Lawyers Alliance (GALA). This ‘best of breed’ network gives us access to leading specialist practices across the globe enabling us to offer market leading advice on international cross border strategic and commercial activity.

We have developed detailed career benchmarks which set out what you will be expected to achieve at each level of your professional development:

• Providing technical legal expertise: you will continually seek to build on your current knowledge and proactively look to improve your advising skills.
• Delivering excellent service: you will analyse legal information to solve problems and formulate arguments or strategy relevant to your clients’ needs. You’ll also use your initiative to proactively manage work, and provide regular and appropriate updates to your stakeholders.
• Building relationships: you will proactively develop positive working relationships with colleagues, ensuring that you work collaboratively and that you treat all colleagues with respect and professionalism.
• Developing our business: you will have an awareness of the firm’s goals and clients, and have an appropriate level of involvement in building and maintaining relationships with key clients and prospects.

Our ideal candidate will be able to demonstrate:

• 1 to 3 years’ post-qualification experience in a Corporate team.
• Excellent drafting, analytical and communication skills as well as strong attention to detail.
• An ambitious, proactive, commercial, responsive attitude.
• A keen interest in developing your marketing and business development skills.
• Preferably, experience of acting across the full range of corporate transactional and advisory work in line with the practice summary set out above.
• Comfort with taking responsibility for work output and dealing directly with clients.
• That they are a team player who is keen to support others to learn, and who is keen to learn and develop their own skills.

At Lewis Silkin our ethos is simple. We strive to do the best for our clients, our people and the communities in which we operate. We recognise that an inclusive workplace allows for all kinds of ideas and thoughts, a variety of points of view that can trigger discussions or deliver innovative results, and a wide range of versatile skills and expertise. We are proud of the diversity within Lewis Silkin and of our culture that allows people to be themselves at work, ensuring we provide the best possible service to our clients. We are committed to supporting candidates throughout the recruitment process by supporting anyone who requires adjustments, in order to ensure they have the opportunity to perform at their best. All applicants will be considered equally and fairly. If you’d like to request any adjustments throughout the recruitment process, or would like to discuss flexible working patterns, please email the recruitment team in confidence (recruitment@lewissilkin.com).