Associate

Shakespeare Martineau is a Top 55 law firm that combines creativity, commerciality and clarity. We work with blue-chip companies, leading organisations, high street brands and individuals across the country.

As enterprising and original thinkers, we’re driven to create exceptional experiences for our clients and our people. We handle personal and business-critical issues and game-changing deals across many dynamic sectors. It’s stimulating and rewarding.

We’re hardworking and deeply ambitious about creating opportunities for our employees; to move forward and achieve our ambition together. We provide an environment in which you’re supported to reach your potential.

Our people have a blend of excellent technical and business skills with the talent to do things differently.

Here you’ll find top quality work, cutting edge training, high profile clients, and supportive colleagues. We think it could be time you joined us.

Our Litigation & Dispute Resolution group has a long-standing experience of working with some of the most successful and influential businesses in the UK and also internationally. Our specialist teams combine expertise with a sound understanding of the commercial landscape to provide exceptional solutions for every aspect of our clients’ corporate requirements.

Our Agriculture and Disputes team in Stratford-upon-Avon represents clients ranging from individuals to private companies and landed estates.  We advise and act on rural property transactions of all kinds, from farm sales and purchases to promotion and option agreements.

We are specialised in advising farm partnerships and work with accountants to ensure consistency of approach.

We act on a wide range of commercial litigation disputes and agricultural cases.  Our litigators and non-litigators are part of the same team and work closely together.  The team handles a wide variety of disputes including those arising from partnerships and contracts as well professional negligence claims and agriculture related business and property disputes.

We are the NFU panel firm for Warwickshire and Worcestershire and receive referrals of work from NFU accordingly. 

The role:

We are looking for an Associate to join our Stratford-based Agriculture & Disputes team.  We are expanding our agricultural offering and are seeking an innovative and talented lawyer to develop expertise in this specialty and support our plans to grow.

You will work within your team to provide a quality service to clients in non-contentious agricultural property and advisory matters; the role will involve a high degree of client contact.

Your key duties will be:

• providing assistance on a broad caseload of straightforward and complex agriculture matters
• working with the team on our business development activities
• working closely with a range of clients to provide fast, pragmatic and commercial advice
• running cases efficiently and cost-effectively within strict service level agreements, as required by clients
• working with marketing strategies to attract new clients and developing relationships with current clients
• handling queries and enquiries efficiently
• maintaining good file management
• working to strict deadlines

Skills and experience you will have:

• a minimum of 4 years’ previous experience dealing with non-contentious agriculture property and advisory matters (although experienced candidates with a mix of agricultural property and commercial property experience will be considered)
• strong IT skills
• a proven track record of business development

Key competencies you will need:

• to be personable and have experience of dealing with a broad range of clients
• to be willing to attend marketing/networking events and contribute to marketing publications to develop the profile of the team
• a high degree of initiative and the ability to cope in a demanding environment
• excellent organisational and prioritising skills
• the ability to work in a busy team
• excellent communication skills

About you – you will be:

• highly enthusiastic, willing to the extra mile and be happy to go beyond the job description
• possess strong interpersonal skills and have a positive, willing and ‘can do’ attitude
• keen to learn, interested in driving your own career progression and be proactive in taking ownership of this

Due to the nature of the work undertaken, confirmation of employment will be subject to a variety of checks which will be carried out once an offer of employment is accepted. Details of the checks can be found here.

Shakespeare Martineau is a committed equal opportunities employer. We seek to attract, develop and retain talented people from a diverse range of backgrounds and cultures. We value and respect individuality and encourage a culture within our business where people can be themselves and be valued for their strengths and experiences. Everyone who either applies to or works for the firm is treated equally, regardless of their gender, age, ethnic origin, nationality, marital status, sexual orientation or religious beliefs.