Senior Associate / Legal Director – Ipswich, Chelmsford, Sevenoaks, Cambridge

Birketts is a full service, UK Top 50 law firm. With a heritage spanning 160 years, we have more than 700 lawyers and legal professionals and over 600 staff based in Bristol, Cambridge, Chelmsford, Ipswich, London, Norwich and Sevenoaks. We advise businesses, government and public sector organisations and individuals in the UK and internationally across four principal practice groups: Real Estate, Corporate Services, Dispute Resolution and Private Client.

We are defined by our Next Level Law proposition. We work with our clients as a proactive partner, horizon scanning and thinking ahead to the changes, challenges or opportunities that they may face.

Next Level Law is also applied to our people. Our collegiate culture means everyone is encouraged to achieve their next level in everything they do.  RollOnFriday recently ranked us as the 6th best law firm to work at in 2026.

With our ambition to succeed, comes a strong desire to make a positive contribution to the communities we serve, and we are committed to delivering the objectives set out in our ESG strategy. Diversity plays an integral part in all that we do, with female partners comprising 45% of our partnership.

The Agriculture team sits within the wider Private Client Division. The team is one of the best qualified and largest agricultural teams in the UK market, providing a comprehensive range of legal services to farmers, landowners and agri-business specialists.

The team advises clients on all aspects of UK legislation affecting rural real estate investment – including farm acquisitions and disposals, renewable energy projects, planning issues, natural capital, investment in equestrian and rural estate, rights of way and environmental liabilities. The team is ranked in ‘Band 1’ in Chambers and ‘Tier 1’ in Legal 500

As one of the UK’s leading advisers to the rural sector, we have a long-standing reputation for delivering expert legal advice to farmers, landowners, estates, rural businesses and agricultural organisations. Our Agriculture and Estates team has a long established group of transactional lawyers across all of our offices.  In February 2026,  Edward Venmore and his team joined Birketts in our Bristol office with part of their focus being to build our specialist agricultural disputes practice across the firm. We are now looking to further expand that disputes team with a senior recruit in one of our offices in the East.   The new recruit will help us provide dedicated contentious agricultural expertise and broaden our regional coverage. They will work closely with Edward and Danielle Spalding to build our national agricultural disputes practice and at the same time work with colleagues across our wider dispute resolution teams.

We are seeking an ambitious and commercially minded agricultural disputes solicitor to join our growing Agriculture and Estates team in the East.

Responsibilities will include:

• Advising on a broad range of contentious agriculture and rural land matters, including agricultural tenancy and occupation issues, farming partnership and succession disputes, proprietary estoppel claims, rights of way, restrictive covenant and boundary issues, rural property disputes and other contentious matters affecting the agricultural sector.
• Ensuring client needs are met with the highest standard of professionalism and efficiency
• Maintaining and growing client relationships and contributing to the strategic direction and success of the firm. 
• Work closely with specialist teams across the firm, including  Private Client Advisory, Family, Real Estate, Energy, Planning and Regulatory to deliver seamless, commercially focused advice tailored to the needs of agricultural and rural clients
• Participate in networking events, conferences and other business development activities to promote the firm’s services and to build a contentious agricultural offering in the East.

Please note that this job profile is not an exhaustive list of duties but merely an outline of the key components of the role. You may be required by your line manager to take on additional responsibilities when requested.

Birketts has designed a ‘Talent Management Framework’ which provides a career structure that will help us develop, retain and reward talented people.  As a Senior Associate, we typically expect candidates to have a minimum of 6 years PQE. As a Legal Director, we typically expect a minimum of 8 years PQE.

• Brings specialist legal expertise, aligns advice with clients’ commercial objectives, directs research effectively, and drafts clear, accurate complex documentation 

• Manages time recording and billing effectively, prices work profitably, supports credit control, meets financial targets. 

• Demonstrates strategic business development, winning new clients, driving high-profile pitches, building a strong regional profile, and identifying cross-selling opportunities across the firm 

• Manages matters and client relationships to a high standard, maintaining regular contact, meeting expectations, and demonstrating deep understanding of clients’ businesses and strategic objectives 

• Builds credibility and trust through strong relationships, continuous professional development, and championing positive change 

• Strong attention to detail to produce work documentation which is consistently of a high standard 

• Professional integrity and a commitment to providing excellent client service 

• To be competent in using Microsoft Word, Excel, time recording software, case management, Outlook and digital dictation 

Any information provided in relation to PQE should be used for guidance only and will not be determinative in the recruitment decision. Applicants will be considered on their individual merits.    

Birketts is a flexible business which has embraced a hybrid working model where our colleagues enjoy a mix of home and office working. This role attracts a split of 60% office days and 40% working from home days per week.

We welcome applications from people looking for flexible, agile, and part-time roles and we are happy to explore your preferred working patterns as part of your application. 

As a Birketts colleague, you will be eligible to receive a wide range of benefits:

• 30 days holiday (FTE) plus Bank Holidays 
• Long Service holiday award – 1 extra week every 10 years continuous service
• Private Healthcare with BUPA (offered after probation is passed)
• Scottish Widows Pension Scheme (5% employer / 5% Employee)
• Staff Profit Share and Individual Performance Bonus Scheme 
• Salary sacrifice (Pensions, Staff Profit Share)
• Life Assurance – 4 x salary / Permanent Health Insurance
• Paid CSR Day
• Enhanced Maternity/Paternity Leave
• Subsidised gym membership
• Electric car scheme
• Dress for your Day Policy

You can find out more on our website: https://www.birketts.co.uk/recognition-reward-benefits/

At Birketts, our culture is driven by ambition and a commitment to positively impact all the communities we serve. We are dedicated to the success, development, and wellbeing of our colleagues, helping them achieve their goals and seize the opportunities that come with our growth. 

Birketts is committed to being an Equal Opportunity Employer. Our policy is unequivocal: we do not tolerate discrimination based on age, disability, sex, race, religion or belief, gender reassignment, marriage or civil partnership, pregnancy or maternity, or sexual orientation.

We pride ourselves on being an inclusive organisation that actively promotes equality of opportunity for all, valuing the right mix of talent, skills, and potential. We welcome applications from a diverse range of candidates, and selection for roles is based solely on individual merit.

If you require this advert in an accessible format, please visit https://diversityjobsgroup.com/company/birketts/

At Birketts, we recognise the evolving role of artificial intelligence (AI) in the legal profession and recruitment. We welcome innovation and understand that candidates may use AI tools to support their job applications. However, we expect all applicants to use AI responsibly and ethically.

 Our expectations regarding AI use in applications:

• Your application should reflect your own voice, experiences, and insights. AI may assist in structuring or refining your responses, but it must not replace your personal input.
• Do not use AI to misrepresent your qualifications, experiences, or skills. Any form of exaggeration or fabrication may result in rejection from the process.
• If you have used AI tools to assist with your application, be prepared to discuss how and why you used them during the interview process.
• Do not submit content generated by AI tools that may include personal or sensitive data not intended for public disclosure.
• AI-generated content should be reviewed and edited by you to ensure accuracy, relevance, and alignment with the role and our firm’s values. 

We are committed to fair and inclusive recruitment practices. The use of AI should enhance, not compromise, your application. We encourage candidates to demonstrate critical thinking, commercial awareness, and a genuine interest in our firm.

If you have any questions about our expectations or the use of AI in your application, please contact our Talent Acquisition Team via talent@birketts.co.uk