Legal Counsel (Employment) In-House | Manchester | Newly Created Role The Opportunity A global business headquartered in Manchester is looking to appoint a Legal Counsel (Employment) to join its centralised Group Legal Team. This is a newly created role within the Employment Law Service, reporting directly to the Head of Employment Law and Employee Relations. The role has been created to support a growing and ambitious legal function that was recently nominated for In-House Legal Team of the Year. It offers broad exposure to employment law across both the UK and international jurisdictions, including the US, APAC, and Europe. This is an excellent opportunity for an early-career employment lawyer who is looking to step into a high-visibility in-house position, take ownership of a wide-ranging brief, and build close relationships with senior stakeholders across the business. The Role Working alongside the Head of Employment Law and senior legal colleagues, you will provide pragmatic, commercial employment law advice across the full spectrum of contentious and non-contentious matters. Your responsibilities will include: - Advising the People Team and senior Group stakeholders (Executive and Director level) on employment law matters relating to the internal workforce. - Supporting the business on employment law aspects of its commercial activities Developing and refining employment templates, policies, contracts, and guidance materials. - Supporting engagement with external counsel in a cost-effective and efficient manner. - Contributing to legal projects, process improvement, and knowledge-sharing initiatives Horizon-scanning for legislative and regulatory change, and advising the business accordingly. - Assisting with the preparation and negotiation of commercial contracts where required About You The ideal candidate will be: A qualified solicitor (or equivalent) with up to approximately 3 years’ post-qualification experience in employment law, experienced in both contentious and non-contentious employment matters. Commercially aware, pragmatic, and solutions-focused. An effective communicator with confidence engaging non-legal stakeholders. Well organised, proactive, and able to manage competing priorities. Interested in developing knowledge across multiple jurisdictions Enthusiastic about legal operations and process improvement. Why Apply? Newly created role with real scope to shape the Employment Law Service as it scales. Direct access to and visibility with senior business leadership Broad, cross-jurisdictional employment law experience from day on. A collaborative, high-performing legal team environment Strong platform for career development in a growing global business To find out more, please get in touch in confidence. Andy Balmer | Think Legal Recruitment | andy@thinklegalrecruitment.co.uk