Director, Treasury Legal Advisers

Our Treasury Legal Advisers Division is responsible for legal services provided to HM Treasury (HMT), to the Cabinet Office on public sector pensions and to HMT’s agencies.
Our aim is to support HMT in achieving its strategic priorities. We are a high performing group of lawyers co-located with our clients in open plan offices in HMT’s headquarters in One Horse Guards Road, as well as in GLD’s offices in Bristol, Croydon, Leeds and Manchester.
About the Treasury Legal Advisers Team
Treasury Legal Advisers consists of approximately 100 people. It is divided into six legal teams and a Business Management Team. Each of the six legal teams in headed by a deputy director.
A deputy legal director, who reports to the legal director, manages the three legal teams which concentrate on the regulation of the financial services markets and industry.
The other three legal teams (whose deputy directors report directly to the legal director) deal with (i) financial sanctions and money laundering (ii) international trade negotiations so far as they concern HMT and (iii) public spending, public sector pensions, HMT’s agencies and arm’s length bodies, the Covid Inquiry and any other matters requiring legal advice.
A Knowledge Development Lawyer (supported by a paralegal) works with all teams on training and knowledge management. Other corporate functions (such as staff engagement and development, diversity and inclusion) are supported by groups drawn from across the division.
The Business Management Team provides professional support to all the legal teams on budgeting, finance, HR, diary management and other practical matters., To provide legal leadership to the Treasury Legal Advisers Division and contribute to the corporate leadership, strategic direction, and management of GLD, ensuring delivery of core priorities and reinforcing the organisation’s values. The successful candidate will need to work closely and collaboratively with other lawyers (both within and outside the Government Legal Department), and with policy colleagues.
The primary responsibilities of the post holder are:
+ to ensure that legal advice of the highest quality is provided to HMT, to both its Ministers and officials, including providing such advice personally where required
+ to create an environment in which legal analysis is properly integrated into the decision making and organisational culture of HMT
+ to provide outstanding personal leadership to the people under his or her direction, coaching and developing them
+ to contribute to the wider leadership of the GLD in order to deliver consistently excellent legal services to government, Executive search firm GatenbySanderson has been appointed to support this appointment and the following information should be provided through the online application process, using the following link www.gatenbysanderson.com/job/GSe113084 by no later than 12 noon on Monday 9 September 2024.
If you require support to apply, please contact mary.dempsey@gatenbysanderson.com.
You will need to provide:
+ A CV setting out your career history, with key responsibilities and achievements. Please ensure you have provided reasons for any gaps within the last two years.
+ A Statement of Suitability (no longer than two A4 pages, minimum Arial 12 font) explaining how you consider your personal skills, qualities and experience provide evidence of your suitability for the role, with particular reference to the selection criteria in the person specification.
+ Diversity Monitoring information. You will also be asked to complete a diversity monitoring form. If you do not wish to provide a declaration on any of the particular characteristics, you will have the option to select 'prefer not to say'. The information you provide when submitting your application will help us monitor our progress towards the Civil Service becoming an inclusive employer and a great place to work. See the Civil Service Diversity and Inclusion Strategy for more information.
Failure to submit all documents will mean the panel only have limited information on which to assess your application against the criteria in the person specification., Civil Service recruitment processes at Director level are regulated by the Civil Service Commission, and we follow clear guidelines to ensure that our recruitment is fair and open. We also design our recruitment processes to reflect our values-based approach to HR (using staff engagement panels, for example) and to ensure that shortlisted candidates have the opportunity to meet key stakeholders for the role, before they join us.
Full details of the selection process can be found in the Candidate Pack attached below.
Feedback will only be provided if you attend an interview or assessment.

Security
Successful candidates must undergo a criminal record check.
People working with government assets must complete baseline personnel security standard (opens in new window) checks.

Nationality requirements
This job is broadly open to the following groups:
+ UK nationals
+ nationals of the Republic of Ireland
+ nationals of Commonwealth countries who have the right to work in the UK
+ nationals of the EU, Switzerland, Norway, Iceland or Liechtenstein and family members of those nationalities with settled or pre-settled status under the European Union Settlement Scheme (EUSS) (opens in a new window)
+ nationals of the EU, Switzerland, Norway, Iceland or Liechtenstein and family members of those nationalities who have made a valid application for settled or pre-settled status under the European Union Settlement Scheme (EUSS)
+ individuals with limited leave to remain or indefinite leave to remain who were eligible to apply for EUSS on or before 31 December 2020
+ Turkish nationals, and certain family members of Turkish nationals, who have accrued the right to work in the Civil Service
Further information on nationality requirements (opens in a new window)

Working for the Civil Service
The Civil Service Code (opens in a new window) sets out the standards of behaviour expected of civil servants.
We recruit by merit on the basis of fair and open competition, as outlined in the Civil Service Commission's recruitment principles (opens in a new window).
The Civil Service embraces diversity and promotes equal opportunities. As such, we run a Disability Confident Scheme (DCS) for candidates with disabilities who meet the minimum selection criteria.
The Civil Service also offers a Redeployment Interview Scheme to civil servants who are at risk of redundancy, and who meet the minimum requirements for the advertised vacancy.

Diversity and Inclusion
The Civil Service is committed to attract, retain and invest in talent wherever it is found. To learn more please see the Civil Service People Plan (opens in a new window) and the Civil Service Diversity and Inclusion Strategy (opens in a new window).

+ Experience of providing and overseeing the provision of authoritative, risk based legal advice demonstrating excellent judgement and facilitating practical solutions with a strong background in either:
+ financial services law, which may include regulatory and/or transactional experience (such as capital markets or project finance) in an advisory not transaction management capacity; or
+ significant experience of public law

• .

+ Exceptional communication skills and the ability to command credibility with senior politicians and officials, and build deep collaborative partnerships with government departments, public bodies and other organisations
+ The ability to manage workloads and resources across a legal function, utilising external resource appropriately, with a commitment to improving service delivery and value for money.
+ The leadership skills to inspire and empower professional staff in a team with scale and complexity, supporting talent development, building a strong culture of continuous learning, flexibility and knowledge sharing.
+ A commitment to diversity, to creating a truly inclusive working environment and to the core Civil Service values of integrity, honesty, objectivity and impartiality.

• Where candidates do not have experience of both financial services law and public law, the selection panel would seek evidence of the interest and aptitude to come quickly up to speed with the area where experience is lacking., Applicants should have a minimum of a 2:1 honours degree in their first degree (in any subject). Where an applicant holds an overseas degree qualification this should be equivalent to a 2.1 degree. GLD will consider applicants who do not have a 2.1 degree but only where satisfactory evidence of equivalent high level academic and/or professional achievement can be provided (e.g. via relevant experience and results achieved for the Graduate Diploma in Law (GDL)/CPE, Legal Practice Course (LPC), Bar Professional Training Course (BPTC)).
  
  Applicants must be qualified to practise as a Solicitor, Barrister or Chartered Legal Executive in England and Wales however, we also accept applications from overseas qualified candidates. You must have completed a training contract/pupillage/qualifying employment or have been exempted from this by the Law Society, the Bar Council or CILEx. Please note that candidates cannot apply more than 3 months before their qualification date.

Professional entry criteria for Chartered Legal Executives (i.e. Fellows): Chartered Legal Executives are eligible to apply where (i) a Qualifying Law Degree (QLD) is held; or (ii) the Graduate Diploma in Law (GDL)/CPE has been completed; or (iii) where exams have been passed (i.e. a score of 50% or above achieved), at CILEx Level 6
• , in all of the following seven foundation subjects in law:

Contract Law
Criminal Law
Equity and Trusts Law
European Union Law
Land Law
Public Law
Law of Tort

• Note: There are specific requirements relating to academic achievement in the CILEx Level 6 exams where these are being used to demonstrate 2.1 degree equivalence as set out below.

Chartered Legal Executives should note that GLD will be willing to accept an, overall, average score of 65% or above across exams passed in the seven foundation subjects in law (where studied at CILEx Level 6) as demonstrating 2.1 degree equivalence (where a 2.1 degree is not held).

Alongside your salary of £120,000, Government Legal Department contributes £32,400 towards you being a member of the Civil Service Defined Benefit Pension scheme. Find out what benefits a Civil Service Pension provides.
+ Learning and development tailored to your role
+ An environment with flexible working options
+ A culture encouraging inclusion and diversity
+ A Civil Service pension with an average employer contribution of 27%