Senior In-House Lawyer

Job summary

The Infected Blood Compensation Authority (IBCA) is a new arm’s-length body set up, at unprecedented pace, to administer compensation to people whose lives have been impacted by the infected blood scandal.

IBCA will ensure payment is made in recognition of the wrongs experienced by those who have been infected by HIV, Hepatitis B or C, as well as those who love and care for them. They have been frustrated and distressed by the delays in achieving proper recognition, and we must help put this right.

We are committed to putting the infected and affected blood community at the centre of every decision we make and every step we take to build our organisation to deliver compensation payments.

IBCA employees will be public servants. If successful in this role you will be appointed directly into IBCA, on IBCA terms and conditions as a public servant.

Successful applicants will join the Civil Service Pension Scheme.

Please note that the mission of IBCA means that it is likely to be operational for a period of approximately 5 to 7 years. When IBCA’s work begins to wind down, IBCA employees will receive support and practical guidance to find a new role, whether in the Civil Service, another Arms Length Body (ALB), or an external employer.

As a Senior In-House Lawyer at IBCA, you will hold a pivotal leadership position within our legal function, acting as the primary bridge between the General Counsel’s strategic vision and the operational output of the legal team. You will lead a high-performing team of Grade 7 lawyers to provide expert legal guidance on the Infected Blood Regulations, ensuring that the Authority delivers fair and timely compensation to victims while robustly managing legal risk.

Job description

The purpose of this role is to provide authoritative legal oversight and management within a fast-paced, high-profile environment. Reporting directly to the SCS1 General Counsel, you will be responsible for the day-to-day delivery of legal services, ensuring that advice provided to the Board, policy teams, and claims managers is consistent, legally sound, and sensitive to the unique mission of the IBCA. You will take a leading role in managing complex litigation, including judicial reviews and appeals, while also overseeing the legal frameworks that underpin our operational delivery, such as data protection, procurement, and public law compliance.

Beyond your technical contribution, you will act as a key leader within the organisation, providing direct line management and professional development to the Grade 7 In-House Lawyers. You will translate the General Counsel’s overarching legal strategy into actionable workstreams, ensuring the team has the resources and direction required to meet challenging deadlines. By fostering a culture of excellence and empathy, you will play a critical part in building an Authority that is both legally resilient and deeply committed to making a difference in the lives of those affected by the infected blood tragedy.

Responsibilities

• Team Leadership: Direct line management of the Grade 7 In-House Lawyers, overseeing their professional development, quality-assuring their output, and ensuring the efficient distribution of the legal caseload.
• Legal Oversight: Acting as the lead technical expert on the Infected Blood Regulations, providing nuanced advice on complex cases and high-priority claims that require senior-level intervention.
• Litigation Management: Coordinating and leading the Authority’s response to high-level litigation, including Tribunal appeals and judicial reviews, while working closely with external counsel and panel firms.
• Strategic Support: Assisting the General Counsel in the development of the organisation’s long-term legal and litigation strategies, and deputising for the General Counsel in key governance or Board meetings where required.
• Cross-Functional Collaboration: Partnering with senior leads in Policy, Operations, and Data Protection to ensure that claimant guidance and internal decision-making processes are legally robust and compliant with public law principles.
• Risk Mitigation: Identifying and escalating systemic legal risks to the leadership team, providing pragmatic and creative solutions to ensure the Authority remains fit for purpose in a high-profile, emotive environment.

Person specification

• Legal Expertise & Judgement: A qualified solicitor or barrister with substantial post-qualification experience in public law, demonstrating the ability to provide authoritative, reliable legal advice on complex statutory frameworks and managed risks.
• Leadership & Management: Proven track record of leading and developing a team of legal professionals, with the ability to manage performance, drive quality, and foster a collaborative team culture.
• Strategic Thinking: Ability to look beyond immediate legal tasks to understand the wider organisational and political context, providing advice that balances legal rigour with the IBCA’s operational mission.
• Communication & Influence: Exceptional communication skills with the credibility to advise senior officials and stakeholders, translating complex legal concepts into clear, actionable guidance for non-legal colleagues.
• Resilience & Adaptability: Experience of working at pace within a new or evolving organisation, with the ability to pick up complex areas of law quickly and maintain professional standards in a sensitive and high-profile delivery environment.

Additional information:

A minimum 60% of your working time should be spent at your principal workplace. Although requirements to attend other locations for official business will also count towards this level of attendance.

Qualifications

Applicants must be qualified to practise as a Solicitor, Barrister or Chartered Legal Executive in England and Wales or Scotland. 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:
1. Contract Law
2. Criminal Law
3. Equity and Trusts Law
4. European Union Law
5. Land Law
6. Public Law
7. 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 IBCA 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).

Behaviours

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

• Making Effective Decisions
• Communicating and Influencing

Benefits

Alongside your salary of £72,717, Infected Blood Compensation Authority contributes £21,066 towards you being a member of the Civil Service Defined Benefit Pension scheme. Find out what benefits a Civil Service Pension provides.

• Premium allowance paid monthly after probation
• Learning and development tailored to your role
• An environment with flexible working options
• A culture encouraging inclusion and diversity
• A Civil Service Pension which provides an attractive pension, benefits for dependants and employer contributions of 28.97%
• 32.5 days of paid annual leave plus 8 bank holidays
• Family friendly policies to support you and your everyday responsibilities
• Enhanced maternity and paternity leave, up to 12 months shared parental leave

Recent changes in skilled worker visa eligibility mean that a Skilled Worker must have a job offer in an eligible skilled occupation from a Home Office-approved sponsor. From 22 July 2025, the job must normally be skilled to level 6 (graduate level) on the Regulated Qualifications Framework for England and Northern Ireland, or the equivalent level in Wales or Scotland, or be included on either the Immigration Salary List or the Temporary Shortage List. Please be aware that if the role is not eligible for a skilled worker visa that we will be unable to provide sponsorship.

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, Strengths and Experience.

As part of your application you will be required to provide a CV setting out your career history/qualificationshighlighting specific responsibilities and achievements that are relevant for this role.

You will also be required to provide a Statement of Suitability (1250 words max.)

Please use your statement of suitability to explain how you consider your personal skills, qualities and experience provide evidence of your suitability for the role, with reference to the essential criteria in the person specification section of the job advert.

Your CV and Statement of Suitability will be assessed against the essential criteria listed in the 'Person Specification' section of the job advert.

Should you be successful at sift, you will be invited to attend an interview where you will be assessed on Behaviours, Experience and Strength based questions.

Candidates will be also asked a Scenario Based Experience Question at Interview Stage, details will be sent prior to interview.

Expected timeline (subject to change)

Expected sift date – w/c 20/04/2026
Expected interview date/s – w/c 27/04/2026
Interview location - Your interview will either be conducted face to face or by video. You will be notified of the location if you are selected for interview.

Reasonable Adjustment

If a person with disabilities is put at a substantial disadvantage compared to a non-disabled person, we have a duty to make reasonable changes to our processes.

If you need a change to be made so that you can make your application, you should:

• Contact Government Recruitment Service via IBCA.grs@cabinetoffice.gov.uk as soon as possible before the closing date to discuss your needs.
• Complete the ‘Assistance required’ section in the ‘Additional requirements’ page of your application form to tell us what changes or help you might need further on in the recruitment process. For instance, you may need wheelchair access at interview, or if you’re deaf, a Language Service Professional.

Further Information

A reserve list may be held for a period of 12 months from which further appointments can be made.

Any move to IBCA from another employer will mean you can no longer access childcare vouchers. You may however be eligible for other government schemes, including Tax Free Childcare; for further information visit the Childcare Choices website)

In order to process applications without delay, we will be sending a Criminal Record Check to Disclosure and Barring Service/Disclosure Scotland on your behalf.

However, we recognise in exceptional circumstances some candidates will want to send their completed forms direct. If you will be doing this, please advise Government Recruitment Service of your intention by emailing Pre-EmploymentChecks.grs@cabinetoffice.gov.uk stating the job reference number in the subject heading.

For further information on the Disclosure Scotland confidential checking service telephone: the Disclosure Scotland Helpline on 0870 609 6006 and ask to speak to
the operations manager in confidence, or email Info@disclosurescotland.co.uk

Applicants who are successful at interview will be, as part of pre-employment screening, subject to a check on the Internal Fraud Database (IFD). This check will provide information about employees who have been dismissed for fraud or dishonesty offences. This check also applies to employees who resign or otherwise leave before being dismissed for fraud or dishonesty had their employment continued. Any applicant’s details held on the IFD will be refused employment.

A candidate is not eligible to apply for a role within the IBCA if the application is made within a 5 year period following a dismissal for carrying out internal fraud against government.

If you are experiencing accessibility problems with any attachments on this advert, please contact the email address in the 'Contact point for applicants' section.

PLEASE NOTE: IBCA employees are public servants, therefore the Civil Service Nationality Rules (CSNR) do not apply. Candidates who do not meet the CSNR are welcome to apply and applications will not be rejected: successful candidates however will be subject to a Right to Work check to work within the UK.

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

Please note this Post is NOT regulated by the Civil Service Commission.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.

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

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 : IBCA Recruitment Team
• Email : ibca.recruitment@ibca.org.uk

Recruitment team

• Email : IBCA.grs@cabinetoffice.gov.uk

Further information

Our recruitment and selection processes are underpinned by the requirement of selection for appointment on the basis of merit by a fair and open competition. If you feel your application has not been treated in accordance with these principles and you wish to make a complaint, you should contact the Resourcing Team at IBCA.grs@cabinetoffice.gov.uk

Attachments

Employee Offer Opens in new window (pdf, 1851kB)