The FCA regulates the conduct of 45,000 firms in the UK to ensure our financial markets are honest, fair and competitive. Follow this link to find out more About the FCA.

Are you interested in joining a team of lawyers who are helping reform the regulatory framework for the regulation of financial services in the UK?

The team/department

The Regulatory Framework & International team leads the FCA Legal Division’s work on structural reforms and the programme to replace firm-facing provisions in assimilated law with rules made by the financial services regulators operating within a framework set by the government and Parliament.

We advise, for example, on the planning and implementation of the transfer of assimilated law from the statute book to the FCA Handbook and the operationalisation of the accountability and scrutiny arrangements introduced by the last financial services Act, such as the secondary international competitiveness and growth objective, the new CBA panel, and the new rule review framework.

The team also advises on international trade and deference arrangements, such as market access arrangements with Gibraltar and Switzerland, as well as on co-operation agreements and information-sharing with overseas authorities.

We work closely with stakeholders from across the Legal Division and the wider FCA, the Bank of England and HM Treasury.

What you will be doing (the role)

• Advising on bilateral and multilateral cooperation agreements and information-sharing
• Supporting the programme for the repeal of assimilated law and its replacement with Handbook rules
• Advising on the implementation of international trade and deference arrangements
• Exercising strong analytical skills, providing practical advice and delivering legislative and regulatory solutions
• Making a positive contribution to the team and the wider Division, including regularly delivering training and contributing to knowledge management
• Building and maintaining strong relationships with colleagues across the FCA and with the Bank of England and HM Treasury

What you will get from the role

• Acquire broad knowledge of how a regulator works and of how law and regulation is made.
• Experience working on structural reforms, trade and cooperation arrangements, and implementing legislation
• Work with a range of stakeholders, including senior leaders
• Work in a diverse, inclusive and supportive environment

Which skills are required?

We are a Disability Confident Employer; therefore, disabled people or individuals with long-term conditions who best meet the minimum criteria for a role will go through to the next stage of the recruitment process. (To learn more about the Disability Confident Scheme, Click Here)

Minimum

• You must be a qualified Lawyer (solicitor, barrister or Chartered Legal Executive)
• You must have 3 years’ relevant PQE (in-house, public sector or private practice) or equivalent experience.

Essential

• You will have an understanding of the overarching legislative framework for the regulation of financial services, particularly that which governs the role and powers of the FCA, so as to be able to support the work of the team as described above.
• You must be able to demonstrate ability or evidence your potential to perform the skills and behaviours described below in a way that is in accordance with FCA values.
• Strong analytical skills and the ability to deliver good and clear analysis of issues
• Ability to pick up and work independently on novel and complex legal issues quickly and with enthusiasm
• Ability to create solutions and deliver pragmatic outcome-focused judgments
• Ability to advise in a confident and reasoned manner both in writing and orally and to challenge appropriately
• Ability to work effectively in a team and to build and sustain positive relationships across the Legal Division and wider FCA and with any relevant external stakeholders

Our Values & Diversity

We are proud to be an inclusive employer, and our ambition is to cultivate a culture that respects all employees' individual strengths, views, and experiences. We believe that our differences and similarities enable us to be a better organisation – one that makes better decisions drives innovation, and delivers better regulation.

Within the workplace you will have access to various employee resource groups which aim to promote and achieve a healthy work/life balance and support our diversity ambitions.

Did you know? 50% of our Executive Committee were the first in their family to attend university.

The FCA is committed to achieving greater diversity across all levels of the organisation. Given this, we particularly welcome applications from men (PBS Roles) /women, minority ethnic, disabled, and neurodivergent candidates for our Senior Associate role.

Benefits of working at the FCA

• 25 days holiday per year plus bank holidays
• Hybrid working (work from home up to 60% of your time)
• Private healthcare with Bupa 
• A non-contributory Pension of at least 8%
• Life assurance
• Income protection

We also have a competitive flexible benefits scheme which gives you the opportunity to create a personalised benefits package, tailored to suit your lifestyle.

We welcome applications from candidates who are looking for flexible arrangements.  Many of our staff work flexibly including working part-time, staggered hours, and job shares.  We can’t promise to give you exactly what you want but we can explore what might work best for both sides.

Follow this link to see what life is like at the FCA - Life at the FCA.

Application Support

We are dedicated to removing barriers and ensuring our application process is accessible to everyone. We offer a range of adjustments to make your application experience as comfortable and straightforward as possible.

If you have an accessibility need, disability, or condition requiring changes to the recruitment process, please contact your recruiter using the details below and they will be happy to discuss this further with you.

Useful Information and Timeline

• This role is graded as Senior Associate – Practicing Legal
• Advert Closing Date:  1st December 2024
• Interviews and Case Study Assessment: Commencing on the 11th of December 2024

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Your Recruiter will discuss the process in detail with you during screening for the role, therefore, please make them aware if you are going to be unavailable for any date during this time. 

Got a question?

If you are interested in learning more about the role, please contact: 

• For internal applicants, please contact Katie Ayling at katie.ayling@fca.org.uk
• For external applicants, please contact Chhavi Bartaria at chhavi.bartaria@fca.org.uk

Applications must be submitted through our online portal. Applications sent via email will not be accepted.