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⚡ Source: ReedRef: 50198908

Employment Solicitor / Associate

Reed·Chelmsford, Essex·Posted 38 months ago
💰 £52-58k/year
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Job description

Original text imported from Reed

Highly sought after Essex based firm with an exceptional reputation is currently keen to speak to you about a rewarding career move. If you are looking to progress to Associate or are simply looking for a change this is a superb opportunity to join an agile, true investor in people.

This position is suited to someone with good knowledge and experience of all aspects of Employment Law

  • Ideally 3+ PQE
  • Confident to work autonomously

Flexible working along with an open door to ongoing development.

Please show interest with a current CV, we look forward to your application and discussing in more detail.

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Key skills

AI-extracted from the job advert

Must-have skills
Employment Law (all aspects)Solicitor qualification (England & Wales)3+ years PQEAutonomous case management
Nice-to-have
Employment Tribunal advocacyTUPE advisory experienceSettlement agreement draftingBoth employer and employee-side experience
Soft skills
AutonomyFlexibilityCommunicationInitiativeSelf-motivation
SpeedCV AI

Application advice

5 AI-generated recommendations to maximise your chances.

1

⭐ Highlight your PQE level prominently at the top of your CV — the advert specifically calls for 3+ PQE, so make your qualification date and year of admission to the roll immediately visible.

2

📊 Quantify your caseload: e.g. 'Managed a portfolio of 40+ active Employment Tribunal matters simultaneously, achieving settlement in 85% of cases pre-hearing'.

3

🎯 Tailor your Personal Statement to reference all key Employment Law areas explicitly mentioned — TUPE, redundancy, discrimination, and unfair dismissal — to pass ATS screening at this firm.

4

🤝 Demonstrate autonomous working with a concrete example: describe a complex Employment Law matter you ran from initial instruction through to resolution without supervision.

5

🌐 Reference any experience advising both employer and employee clients, as full-spectrum Employment Law knowledge is emphasised throughout the advert as essential for this role.

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Suggested CV bullets

3 bullets our AI drafted for this specific advert, mirroring its ATS keywords.

How to tailor your CV

Add these 3 bullets under your most recent experience:

  • Managed a caseload of 45 active Employment Law matters concurrently, achieving pre-hearing settlement in 82% of cases and reducing average matter duration by 3 months.
  • Advised 12 employer clients through TUPE transfers affecting over 200 employees, drafting information and consultation documentation and mitigating 3 potential tribunal claims.
  • Drafted and negotiated 30+ settlement agreements annually across redundancy, discrimination, and unfair dismissal matters, securing an average saving of £18,000 per case against initial claimant demand.

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Dear Hiring Manager,

Reed's search for an Employment Solicitor or Associate at this highly regarded Chelmsford firm is precisely the progression I have been seeking. With 3+ years PQE gained across the full spectrum of Employment Law — including TUPE, redundancy, discrimination claims, and Employment Tribunal representation — I am confident in my ability to contribute from day one and develop towards Associate level.

My background in Employment Law has equipped me with the technical depth and client-facing skills this role demands. I have managed complex caseloads autonomously, advised both employer and employee clients, and consistently delivered commercially sound outcomes under pressure. I am comfortable working independently whilst remaining a collaborative member of a wider team.

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Interview questions

10 questions generated from this advert.

Technical

  • Walk me through your approach to advising a client facing a complex TUPE transfer — what are the key legal obligations you would highlight?
  • How do you assess the merits of an unfair dismissal claim at the outset of a matter, and what factors most influence your advice?
  • Describe your experience drafting settlement agreements — what clauses do you consider non-negotiable and why?
  • How do you stay current with changes in Employment Law, such as recent case law from the Employment Appeal Tribunal or Supreme Court?
  • What is your experience of Employment Tribunal advocacy, and how do you prepare a client for the hearing process?

Behavioural

  • Tell me about a time you managed a particularly complex Employment Law matter autonomously — what was the outcome?
  • Describe a situation where you had to deliver difficult legal advice to a client who disagreed with your assessment. How did you handle it?
  • Give an example of when you identified a risk in a client's employment practices before it became a legal dispute. What did you do?
  • Tell me about a time you had to manage competing deadlines across multiple Employment Law matters. How did you prioritise?
  • Describe a situation where you contributed to the development of a junior colleague or improved a team process within an employment law team.
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STAR answer examples

Model answers using the Situation-Task-Action-Result framework. Adapt to your own experience.

1Question

Tell me about a time you managed a particularly complex Employment Law matter autonomously — what was the outcome?

Situation: A manufacturing client faced a group redundancy affecting 35 employees, with two trade union representatives threatening collective consultation claims. Task: I was the sole fee earner on the matter, responsible for the entire process from initial advice through to completion. Action: I drafted a full collective consultation timetable, prepared all statutory notification documents for the Secretary of State, and attended three on-site consultation meetings to advise management in real time. I identified a procedural gap in the selection matrix that could have invalidated the process and corrected it before any letters were issued. Result: The redundancy programme completed within 45 days, all 35 settlement agreements were signed, and no tribunal claims were lodged — saving the client an estimated £65,000 in potential litigation costs.
2Question

Describe a situation where you had to deliver difficult legal advice to a client who disagreed with your assessment. How did you handle it?

Situation: A director-level client was adamant they had grounds to summarily dismiss an employee for gross misconduct following an internal investigation. Task: Having reviewed the investigation file, I assessed the dismissal as carrying a high risk of unfair dismissal liability, estimated at £28,000 in potential compensation. Action: I prepared a written risk assessment setting out the procedural failings in the investigation and presented it in a face-to-face meeting, walking the client through the relevant case law and the Employment Tribunal's likely approach. I proposed a without-prejudice settlement conversation as a lower-risk alternative. Result: The client accepted my advice, a settlement was reached at £9,500, and the matter concluded without tribunal proceedings — well below the original liability exposure.

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