Legal Counsel

Church of England

London (Hybrid)

Up to £73000 per annum + £73,000

Full-time

Permanent

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Job description

Summary

Join our community as a Legal Counsel, supporting the Legal Office and the Designated Officer for clergy discipline. You'll be part of a diverse group dedicated to making a difference at national and international levels.

The post holder will be working with the Legal Office where we provide advice to the national policy-making and governance institutions of the Church of England, including a legislative assembly.

We are a small, inclusive team comprising barristers and solicitors, working with paralegal and administrative support. Our existing team's professional backgrounds are diverse, with members coming to us from private practice in law firms, at the Bar and from regulators. Our work requires the provision of advice on diverse and intellectually stimulating points of law at the intersection of public and private law. The work is high quality, intellectually stimulating, and rewarding. We are a collegiate and supportive team, and we are proud of the work we do.

The ideal candidate is motivated by work at the intersection of public and private law, regulatory/disciplinary law, and resolving complex, novel, and politically sensitive challenges. Our work is high quality, intellectually stimulating, and rewarding.

You will have opportunities for career growth and development, interacting with senior stakeholders and participating in various projects. We seek self-starters with at least 2-3 years of post-qualification experience who thrive in a team environment.

Summary of main responsibilities

Provide legal and procedural advice to various Church of England bodies, including legislative and regulatory activities.
Support the Designated Officer in clergy discipline matters, including investigations, case preparation, and court advocacy.
Liaise with external law firms on litigation strategy and dispute resolution.
Contribute to national policy and code of practice development.
Act as a registrar during General Synod sessions, offering legal advice and managing legislative programs.
Represent the Legal Office in committees and meetings.
Undertake special assignments or project work as needed.

Key role requirements

Hybrid work arrangement, with the expectation to work from the office (Church House, London or The Old Brewhouse - Bishopthorpe, York) 1-3 days per week.

About You

The Church of England is for everyone and we want to reflect the diversity of the community the Church serves across the whole country. Therefore, while of course we welcome all applications from interested and suitably experienced people, we would particularly welcome applicants from UK Minoritised Ethnicities (UKME)/Global Majority Heritage (GMH) and other under-represented groups. As a Disability Confident employer, we are committed to recruiting disabled people. We offer interviews to disabled people who meet the minimum criteria for the role.

You will need to be/have a:

Qualified solicitor or barrister with at least 2-3 years of post-qualification experience.
Minimum 2:1 in first degree (any subject). We will consider applicants who do not have a 2:1 degree if you can show satisfactory evidence of equivalent high-level academic and/or professional achievement (for example in GLD, LPC, or BPC results).
Able to juggle competing priorities within a restricted deadline.
Good grasp of legal research methodology, including in unfamiliar areas of law.
Ability to work individually without supervision, and as part of a team
Willingness to work proactively and take the initiative in developing and improving complex processes without unnecessary formality.
An interest in, or willingness to develop an interest in, legal project management and legal technology (Desirable).
Some professional experience in dispute resolution or professional investigations (Desirable).
A working understanding of one or more of the following areas of non-contentious practice: employment, data protection/regulatory, and/or corporate/governance (Desirable).
Experience working with clients in the public, government services, or third sector would be a plus (Desirable).
Experience of practice in criminal or regulatory law (you may need to undertake some court advocacy in this role), plus at least one of:
- - ecclesiastical law
  - administrative and public law.
  - charity law

Please refer to the Job Description for more information about the role and person specification.

What we offer

Your Salary

A market rate salary of £73,000 per annum, plus age-related pension contributions between 8-15% of salary. We will also match any pension contributions you make up to an additional 3% of your salary.

Your Benefits

25 days annual leave (increasing to 30 days within 5 years) plus eight bank holidays and three additional days (pro-rated if working part-time).
We welcome all flexible working arrangement requests. This is looked at in a case-by-case scenario and if this fits within the department's needs. We try to be as flexible as we can in your work pattern to support you with other commitments, and to give a good work-life balance