Employment Lawyer

Job summary

NCA Legal comprises of the following teams:

Data and Operational Advisory Team, Civil Litigation Team, Financial Disruptions Litigation Team, Disruptive Actions Litigation Team and Commercial and Employment Law Team.

This vacancy is for an employment lawyer in the Commercial and Employment Law Team, focused on advising on employment matters only. The employment work is varied and challenging, ranging from advising on complex disciplinary matters and grievances to managing employment tribunals, including advising on matters with a national security aspect.

Virtual Event

To find out more about the role and the application process we will be holding a virtual open evening via MS Teams on Tuesday 6th October 2026 at 1800 to 1900 hours.

This event is by invitation only.

To register, please click on the following link

Virtual Event - Employment Lawyer

You will be asked for your name and email address.

Registration will close at midday on 5th October 2026

You will not be able to register after this date and time.

Job description

As an employment lawyer you will provide legal advice on a range of contentious and non-contentious employment matters. This includes advising on the following areas:

Policy and Trade Union Consultation - Advising HR colleagues on policy development and assisting with drafting policy wording to ensure the NCA's employment related policies are legally compliant. Advising in respect of engagement with the Trade Unions regarding the same.

Workforce planning, including recruitment - Support HR with legal advice to enable the implementation of the Agency's strategic vision for its workforce.

Individual employment matters - Providing legal advice to HR specialists on complex issues relating to staff such as in relation to sickness management and ill health retirement.

Grievances and employment tribunals - Advising decision-makers on grievances and leading for Legal on overseeing the defence of employment tribunal proceedings, which may involve complex and sensitive national security matters.

Disciplinary and misconduct matters - Advising the Professional Standards Unit on the application of the NCA (Complaints and Misconduct Regulations) 2013 to enable conduct matters to be effectively and efficiently managed, and advising disciplinary panels.

Pensions - Advising Finance in respect of any pension disputes as well as key changes in pension legislation to facilitate the management of NCA staff with police pensions in particular.

Person specification

You will be expected to use your legal skills and judgement to contribute to the strategic direction of the NCA by providing specialist employment law advice across all areas of the Agency. You will need to be able to think creatively to help manage legal risk in cases that are often novel, complex and challenging.

Flexible Working

This role operates under a hybrid working model, offering flexibility between office-based and remote working.

However, permanent homeworking is not available. Successful candidates will be expected to attend the office as required and undertake court attendance where necessary as part of their duties, in line with the NCA's hybrid working policy.

Qualifications

To apply for this role you must be either

(a) a Solicitor or Barrister qualified to practise in England and Wales or Northern Ireland, with significant relevant experience; or
(b) Chartered Legal Executive in England and Wales, with significant relevant experience. Upon appointment, Barristers and Solicitors qualified in Northern Ireland will be registered by the NCA with their respective professional bodies in England & Wales, to enable them to practise in both jurisdictions.

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. 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) / Common Professional Examination (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:

1. Criminal Law
2. Equity and Trusts
3. Law of the European Union
4. Obligations 1 (Contract)
5. Obligations 2 (Tort)
6. Property / Land Law
7. Public Law (Constitutional Law, Administrative Law and Human Rights Law)

Additionally, Chartered Legal Executives may need a Practice Rights Certificate depending on the role.

Please ensure the dates of any accreditations you are relying on, are entered on to your CV.

Solicitors should also include their roll number.

Behaviours

We'll assess you against these behaviours during the selection process:

• Communicating and Influencing
• Making Effective Decisions
• Working Together
• Delivering at Pace
• Leadership

Technical skills

We'll assess you against these technical skills during the selection process:

• Significant and strong employment law knowledge and experience.
• The ability to think strategically and creatively, seeing legal issues in their wider context.
• Legal Professional Skills with a sound understanding of public law, reliable judgement and appreciation of legal risk.

Benefits

Alongside your salary of £70,179, National Crime Agency contributes £20,330 towards you being a member of the Civil Service Defined Benefit Pension scheme. Find out what benefits a Civil Service Pension provides (opens in a new window).

New entrants to the NCA receive 26 days annual leave, rising to 31 on completion of 5 years continuous service, plus 8 bank holidays.

If qualifying criteria is met new joiners from UK Police Forces or the UK Intelligence Community (UKIC) will have service with those employers taken into account for continuous service purposes for annual leave entitlement only, this will be up to a maximum of 31 days leave (including 1 privilege day).

Other benefits include:

• Flexible working, including flexi-time, compressed hours and job sharing (in line with business requirements)
• Family friendly policies, notably above the statutory minimum
• Learning and Development opportunities
• Interest free loans and advances, including season tickets, childcare and rental deposits
• Housing schemes - Key Worker status
• Discounts and Savings with a wide variety of services including Cycle to Work, Smart Tech schemes, dental insurance, gym discounts and savings on everyday spending, available through the Reward Gateway , Edenred and Blue Light Card schemes.
• Staff support groups/networks
• Sports and social activities, including membership to the Civil Service Sports Council (CSSC)

Further information is available on the NCA Website.

Things you need to know

Artificial intelligence

Artificial intelligence can be a useful tool to support your application, however, all examples and statements provided must be truthful, factually accurate and taken directly from your own experience. Where plagiarism has been identified (presenting the ideas and experiences of others, or generated by artificial intelligence, as your own) applications may be withdrawn and internal candidates may be subject to disciplinary action. Please see our candidate guidance (opens in a new window) for more information on appropriate and inappropriate use.

Selection process details

This vacancy is using Success Profiles (opens in a new window), and will assess your Behaviours, Experience and Technical skills.

Your application will be assessed against the following:

Experience - This will be assessed:

CV

Please include your full career history, training, qualifications, key responsibilities, and achievements. Explain any employment gaps in the last two years. Ensure all accreditation dates are accurate.

Details of what is expected within your CV are as follows: Please ensure that each entry of your career history has a few sentences outlining a description and the key elements of the role. Please ensure you include all relevant experience to cover the technical requirements for this role detailing all employment law experience.

Statement of Suitability

Please provide a 750 word personal statement demonstrating how you meet the criteria below:

- Significant and strong employment law knowledge and experience.
- The ability to think strategically and creatively, seeing legal issues in their wider context.
- Legal Professional Skills with a sound understanding of public law, reliable judgement and appreciation of legal risk.

A panel will assess how well your application demonstrates the requirements outlined above.

You will receive an acknowledgement once your application is submitted.

We aim to have sift completed and scores released within 10 working days of the closing date of the advert. For high volume campaigns this timeframe may be extended.

Scores will be provided but further feedback will not be available at this stage.

For guidance on the application process, visit:
NCA Applying and Onboarding

Assessment 1

The format of this assessment will be a Role Play Exercise and Interview which will be tested on via the details listed below.

The role play exercise will assess the following:

Communicating and Influencing

Significant and strong employment law knowledge and experience.

Role Play Exercise - an hour before your interview you will be sent a scenario and you will need to review this and prepare advice in relation to the scenario (the details will be explained as part of the scenario). You will then join the interview panel and give your advice orally where follow-up questions may be asked (around 15 mins).

This will be followed by the interview questions.

Success Profiles at Assessment

Behaviours

• Communicating and Influencing

• Making Effective Decisions

• Working Together

• Delivering at Pace

• Leadership

Technical

• Significant and strong employment law knowledge and experience.

• The ability to think strategically and creatively, seeing legal issues in their wider context.

• Legal Professional Skills with a sound understanding of public law, reliable judgement and appreciation of legal risk.

Assessment Outcome

Outcomes will be communicated via the NCA recruitment portal.
If successful but no role is immediately available, you may be placed on a reserve list for 12 months.
Reserve lists can be used to fill similar role types across the Agency where the assessment criteria is considered a match by the recruitment team and the business area.

In the event of a tie at the assessment stage, available roles will be offered in merit order using the following order:

1. Lead criteria (behaviours/technical/experience)
2. If still tied, desirable criteria will be assessed (if advertised)
3. If still tied, application sift scores will be used

Feedback is provided only to those who attend an assessment.

You will be subject to vetting and pre-employment checks before appointment.

Once the vacancy closes, the advert will no longer be accessible. Please save a copy for your records.

We encourage all candidates to visit the NCA Careers Page for more information.

Eligibility, Pre-Employment Check and Vetting

Please see the NCA T&Cs and Privacy Policy (pdf) for details on how your data is handled.

If you are an internal candidate who has passed interview but is undergoing an internal investigation or have a written warning in place preventing a post move you may not be able to be posted until this investigation is concluded or restriction lifted.

Nationality Requirements

This role is broadly open to the following groups:

• UK nationals or dual nationals, where one component is British
• 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)
• 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

You will be required to participate in digital right to work and address checks as part of the recruitment process.

Security and Vetting

People working with government assets must complete baseline personnel security standard checks.

Successful candidates must meet the security requirements before they can be appointed. The level of security needed is SC Enhanced. All security clearances will be managed by the NCA.

For more information on security vetting please visit: UK Security Vetting guidance for applicants and Demystifying Vetting and see our vetting charter at: The Vetting Charter.

Vetting requirements - SC Enhanced

Prior to commencing the role, you will need to successfully complete SC Enhanced clearance.

The requirement for SC clearance is to have been present in the UK for at least 3 of the last 5 years.

Failure to meet the residency requirements will result in your security clearance application being rejected.

For further information on National Security Vetting checks please visit the following page Demystifying Vetting

Individuals will be required to undertake and pass a substance misuse test as part of pre-employment checks.

Full advert details for this vacancy can found on the advert on the NCA Recruitment Portal. Please follow the link to apply at advertisers' site.

Feedback will only be provided if you attend an interview or assessment.

Security

Successful candidates must meet the security requirements before they can be appointed. The level of security needed is security check (opens in a new window).

See our vetting charter (opens in a new window).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 theCivil Service People Plan (opens in a new window) and the Civil Service Diversity and Inclusion Strategy (opens in a new window).

Apply and further information

This vacancy is part of the Great Place to Work for Veterans (opens in a new window) initiative.Once this job has closed, the job advert will no longer be available. You may want to save a copy for your records.

Contact point for applicants

Job contact :

• Name : central.recruitment@nca.gov.uk
• Email : central.recruitment@nca.gov.uk
• Telephone : central.recruitment@nca.gov.uk

Recruitment team

• Email : central.recruitment@nca.gov.uk

Further information

If you believe your application has not been treated fairly, email: Central.Recruitment@nca.gov.uk (quoting the vacancy reference).
If unresolved, you may escalate your complaint to the Civil Service Commission.

Attachments

Day in the Life - Employment Lawyer Opens in new window (pdf, 134kB)