Knowledge Lawyer/Senior Knowledge Lawyer - Corporate
PQE: 5+
Term: Permanent
Working hours: Full-time/Part-time
Practice area: Corporate
Location: Hybrid
The Role
We are recruiting a knowledge lawyer to support the corporate team. You will work with the practice's existing senior knowledge lawyer and report formally to the corporate practice group head. The focus of the role will be working with the current senior knowledge lawyer to assist the team with its work on mainstream corporate transactions, with a particular focus on mid-market M&A, corporate restructurings, other corporate procedures and corporate governance.
The role is full time, although candidates wishing to work 4 days per week may also be considered. As a firm we work flexibly and remote/hybrid working is available, with employees strongly encouraged to be in the office at least 2 days per week.
The Team
Our award-winning corporate team offers quality and strength in depth unusual outside the City. The leading independent directories consistently rank us in the top tier. We are committed to an active intelligent growth strategy, for the team and the whole firm, and it is with this in mind that we welcome applications for technically strong, commercially minded and ambitious individuals.
The corporate team is one of the top corporate practices in the South East and consists of eleven partners with a team of 40 in total supported by at least two dedicated knowledge lawyers. The work of the team is high-quality and diverse and covers a broad range of corporate transactional and advisory matters, including:
• Private M&A (both buy side and sell side)
• Private equity (principally management advisory and portfolio work)
• Venture capital and other equity fundraisings
• Shareholders' agreements and corporate joint ventures
• Corporate rationalisations / reorganisations
• General corporate advisory / partnership law
• Inward investment and cross border
The team is supported by the full range of specialists required to deliver high quality, fast -paced corporate transactional work - including tax, employment, immigration and pensions, real estate, banking and finance, regulatory and anti-trust, intellectual property and commercial. A large proportion of our clients are multinational, based overseas or have international business interests, and we frequently work with overseas law firms, including the major jurisdictions in Europe and the US.
Our clients include household name FTSE 100 PLCs and other major national and international groups, mid-tier businesses (quoted, private equity and privately owned), management teams in private equity backed businesses, high-net-worth private clients and high growth companies.
In the run-in to the first Labour government budget in November 2024, the corporate team closed 30 deals in 30 days with a total aggregate transaction value of just under £1 billion, demonstrating the team's exceptional transactional capability.
Examples of clients that you may experience working with are listed below and further information about our experience can be found on our website here.
Diploma plc, Bunzl, Philips, The Ardonagh Group, Specialist Risk Group, Davies Group, Bright Stars Nursery Group, Rock Rail, Optio Group, Nord-Lock International AB, Corus Dental, Vestey Holdings, BMT, Clinigen, Bright Path Sports Partners (investor in Ipswich Town Football Club), [Wates]
Key Knowledge Lawyer Responsibilities:
* Drafting and updating precedents and guidance notes for use by fee earners, including liaising with lawyers in relation to market practice.
* Training, including identifying the training needs for lawyers at various levels of experience and delivering appropriate training at all levels (in conjunction with fee earning lawyers) to the team and occasionally to clients
* Playing a key role in supporting trainees and new joiners in the team and devising and helping to deliver their training, and identifying training needs
* Carrying out analysis of latest developments in corporate law and ensuring that knowledge is promptly disseminated, internally and externally
* Advising lawyers and junior members of the team on legal issues faced in their transactions and matters with on-point, thorough, and timely answers (paying regard to the commercial context)
* Acting as a sounding board and providing "second opinions" to more senior members of the team on points of law and market practice
* Providing assistance with research and directing junior members of the team to appropriate resources
* Providing knowledge support to business development initiatives, including supporting client campaigns, training sessions and other initiatives
* Keeping up to date with legal technology solutions, and liaising with other knowledge lawyers and information services personnel across the firm to train and familiarise the team with new products and processes developed, both internally and externally
* Supporting strategy and business group meetings and taking an active role in supporting the activities of those groups
* Drafting and managing the department's Learning & Development plan, and supporting the delivery of the plan
* Maintaining an up to date know how repository of relevant example documents and encouraging contribution of relevant know how from fee earners
Qualifications and Experience
Our ideal candidate will be an established corporate knowledge lawyer. However, we will also consider experienced corporate fee earners (5+) who are looking to transition into a first knowledge lawyer role. You will need to be a qualified lawyer with significant relevant experience in corporate law, and demonstrate the following:
* Excellent oral and written communication skills, and the ability to quickly gain the confidence
* of lawyers at all levels within the team and in other practice groups across the firm
* Excellent legal research skills
* Excellent attention to detail
* Interest and skills in use of legal technology, tech enabled legal service delivery and knowledge of working effectively with AI to embed technology into ways of working and drive continuous improvement in this area across the firm
* Interest and skills in use of legal technology and knowledge of working effectively with AI
* Experience in drafting in plain language and in English
* Experience in designing and delivering engaging training programmes, targeted at audiences across all levels of the firm
* Recent experience of negotiating on M&A transactions and associated market practice desirable but not essential
* Strong presentation skills
* Qualities that fit with a cohesive, friendly and supportive team
The Opportunity
* Pension Scheme (5% employer contribution)
* Profit share and discretionary bonus schemes
* Private medical insurance
* Permanent health insurance
* Life assurance
* Receive either the sum of £750 per annum as a travel allowance or reimbursement of carparking expenses via a pay as you go card at a local carpark (likely to be Farnham Road carpark)
* Travel – option to apply for an interest free loan for a season ticket or parking permit
* Enhanced maternity/paternity pay (after sufficient service)
* Cash back scheme
Comprehensive flexible benefits package including:
* Critical illness insurance
* Buy/Sell holiday scheme
* Dental insurance
* Cycle to work scheme
* Taste card
* Fun pass
* Give as you earn
* Discounted gym memberships and shopping
The Firm
Stevens & Bolton – making a positive difference to your career
You'll work with people who listen, and who actively and willingly support one another within a collaborative and engaging environment. We genuinely care about our people and strive to build and maintain a diverse, inclusive and happy workforce.
We are recognised as a top firm in The Times Best Law Firms 2025, shortlisted for "Law Firm of the Year: The Independents" at The Lawyer Awards 2025 and shortlisted for "Regional/Offshore Team of the Year" at the Legal Business Awards 2025. The Firm was recently named "Law firm of the year" at the 2025 Legal Cheek Awards, was shortlisted for "ESG Initiative of the Year" at the Women, Influence & Power in Law UK 2024 Awards and shortlisted for "UK Law Firm of the Year - Small/Mid-Sized Firm" at the British Legal Awards 2023. Our refurbished office has been awarded a RICS SKA silver certificate and a 2-star Fitwel accreditation.
We've made excellence the hallmark of our firm: in the clear advice we give, in the enduring client relationships we build and in our proactive and highly responsive service. We seek to recruit people who will help us maintain and build on this, and in return we offer excellent long-term career and development opportunities.
Diversity & Inclusion
We have a strong commitment to diversity and inclusion (D&I). This drives a strategy which focuses on constant promotion of an inclusive culture that encourages everyone to realise their full potential and be themselves at work. Previously we have been shortlisted for "Best D&I Initiative" at The HR Awards and for "Best Talent and Inclusion Initiative" at The Lawyer Awards.