The post-holders (Legal Advisers) will be required to provide high-quality commercial, financial and public law advice over a wide range of areas of legal practice, with minimal supervision.
Banking and finance focused roles
Although individual Legal Advisers may have a focus on areas of finance such as syndicated lending, asset finance (including aviation), project finance and trade finance, Legal Advisers are required to operate in a wide range of areas of legal practice. These could include:
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export finance, general banking and trade finance matters;
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trade credit and investment insurance;
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public and private debt restructuring, claims and recoveries and reinsurance work;
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some debt capital markets, swaps and derivatives in support of the above; and
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advising on the development of new finance products and product variations for the organisation;
Legal advisers may also be required to advise generally and from time to time on the activities of the organisation. These areas may cover: public law matters; public procurement law matters; international agreements governing the provision of export credits and public international law matters; information law, including the Freedom of Information Act and the Environmental Information Regulations requests and the UK GDPR.
Public law focused role
In alternative to the above, the Legal Division is looking for an individual with demonstrable experience in providing legal advice on public law matters including statutory powers, policy compliance, state aid and subsidies and/or public law litigation such as judicial review. It is anticipated that this postholder will devote a majority of their time in the Legal Division working on these matters though they will, under appropriate legal supervision, also advise on the broader areas outlined above and depending on the needs of the team.
In all Legal Adviser roles, knowledge of environmental, social and governance (ESG) matters as they relate to finance transactions and/or public law issues would be advantageous.
Legal Advisers are required to provide high-quality legal advice and support clients at all stages of transactions, from structuring, negotiation, signing and completion through to all aspects of post-issue transaction management, including amendments, claims and recoveries and litigation. This also involves responsibility for managing relationships with key clients within the Department and a variety of external stakeholders.
Assistance may also be needed for other aspects of the Legal Divisions legal work and amendments to existing products to reflect changes in law or policy as well as contributions to cross-Department projects. The roles in Legal Division are varied and the post-holders must therefore be willing to learn about areas of law with which they are unfamiliar.
Legal Advisers must have strong interpersonal skills to work as part of a team and to interact with Departmental colleagues, counterparties and other external stakeholders. They need to be able to prioritise work effectively and work to deadlines.
Legal Advisers are expected to contribute to the enhancement of the Legal Divisions reputation both internally and externally. This includes participating in Department-wide projects, training and initiatives in furtherance of the Departments strategic and policy objectives.
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Providing (and managing the provision) of high-quality legal advice; providing representation and support in relation to and managing transactions, occasional litigation and other matters in which UKEF is involved, including drafting relevant correspondence and legal documentation, and conducting negotiations. Some travel (including international travel) for work purposes may be required depending on the transactions and from time to time.
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Drafting and managing the drafting of transactional documentation based on UKEF templates (based on LMA standards) including Departmental specific policies.
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Instructing and managing law firms, counsel and other external legal advisers, both in the UK and overseas, and supporting the procurement of the Departments Panel law firms.
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Carrying out (and managing the carrying out of) legal research and presenting results.
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Utilising, supervising and developing the paralegals and Legal Support Team in the Legal Division.
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Identifying training requirements, and devising, contributing to and delivering training to a range of clients and stakeholders, and organising training by external training providers or law firms.
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Contributing to Divisional and Departmental meetings and committees and cross-Departmental projects.
This list is not exhaustive, and you may be required to carry out additional duties according to business needs.
