Senior Litigation Director

Job summary

The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) is the UK’s principal competition and consumer protection authority, using a wide and growing range of powers to deliver high‑profile, complex work in the public interest. For litigators, the CMA offers a uniquely varied and challenging environment, with regular litigation in the Competition Appeal Tribunal, the High Court, Court of Appeal, Supreme Court and various other courts and tribunals. You’ll undertake cutting-edge, high-profile work spanning merger control, digital markets, competition and consumer enforcement, markets and subsidy advice.

If you are motivated by a dynamic environment with the opportunity to lead the CMA’s litigation work, then this could be the ideal role for you.

Job description

Reporting to the General Counsel, you will share senior responsibility for leading and managing the CMA’s litigation function, providing senior oversight of all civil litigation and strategic advice to senior decision makers. You will lead the CMA’s litigation team of approximately 30 litigators and have direct line management responsibility for four Litigation Directors, while working closely with Senior Legal Directors and other Executive and Senior Directors. As a key member of the Legal Service Senior Leadership Team, you will also contribute to the leadership and development of the wider CMA Legal Service (around 150 lawyers and other professionals).

This is an exceptional opportunity to play a unique strategic and operational leadership role in an ambitious and purpose driven organisation, and to continue to take the CMA forward as the volume, breadth, complexity and importance of the work we undertake extends to new frontiers.

For full details about the role and working at the CMA you can review the attached role profile and candidate pack.

What you’ll do

• Be accountable at senior level for the conduct of the CMA’s civil litigation and the quality and robustness of litigation advice underpinning CMA investigations and decisions.
• Provide timely, strategic and authoritative advice on the most analytically complex and important issues across the CMA’s work.
• Ensure effective allocation of work and resources across the litigation function, including budget and financial reporting.
• Lead, motivate and develop all of the CMA’s litigators; and build a culture that supports innovative thinking and integrated working across the CMA’s Legal Service.
• Maintain proactive relationships with key external partners (including counsel, domestic and international competition agencies and government departments) and represent the CMA externally.

About you

You will be a fully qualified lawyer entitled to practise in England and Wales, with outstanding litigation experience (including some competition law, public law and/or consumer protection law), strong strategic judgement, and the credibility to influence senior stakeholders and external counterparts. You will bring excellent leadership and people management skills, with a clear commitment to equality, diversity and inclusion.

The benefits

Your benefits package will include a competitive contributory pension scheme and generous annual leave, plus opportunities for flexible and hybrid working. The package also includes childcare benefits, and season ticket and bicycle loans. The Civil Service is committed to becoming the most inclusive employer in the UK and we want to maximise the potential of everyone who chooses to work for us. In return for your dedication, you will enjoy our commitment to your career and development.

Person specification

It is important through your CV and Statement of Suitability that you give evidence and examples of proven experience of each of the following essential criteria.

• Fully qualified lawyer entitled to practise as a solicitor (Barrister or Chartered Legal Executive (CILEx Fellow) in England and Wales.
• Outstanding experience in litigation casework, including some experience of competition law, public law and/or consumer protection law, and a proven capacity for strategic thinking and experience of leading, managing and delivering complex litigation within defined resources and tight timescales.
• Strong appreciation of the legal and litigation expertise required to ensure the successful delivery of public enforcement outcomes by the CMA including ability to grasp new and complex concepts and areas of law quickly and accurately, including relevant competition and consumer law and procedure and developments in policy, and to identify links and synergies between discrete issues internally or externally.
• Demonstrable ability to provide an authoritative view on complex litigation and public law questions working effectively with senior counterparts from other disciplines.
• Demonstrable ability to influence colleagues at all levels, as well as external stakeholders, including those at the Bar, Courts and Tribunals and colleagues across Whitehall and with international counterparts.

Benefits

Alongside your salary of £132,618, Competition & Markets Authority contributes £38,419 towards you being a member of the Civil Service Defined Benefit Pension scheme. Find out what benefits a Civil Service Pension provides.

You’ll also get:

• 25 days leave (increasing to 30 days over five years), plus 8 public holidays and an additional day off for the King’s birthday. In addition, you’ll be able to access a wide range of other types of leave as and when you need it, including generous maternity, paternity, shared parental leave and adoption options, as well as paid special leave for volunteering.
• Access to our benefits platform which includes retail discounts, cycle to work scheme and payroll giving. Employees can also sign up for season ticket loans.
• Access to the Civil Service Sports & Leisure, giving discounted gym membership, high street discounts, free access to UK wide attractions and a free Tastecard.
• A range of wellbeing benefits, including an employee assistance programme, flu vaccinations and eye tests. We also have flexible working options and family friendly policies.

You can read more about our benefits in our candidate pack.

Our Values

We are Ambitious and Evidence-based, and always strive for Excellence.​ We treat everyone with Respect and are Collaborative and Inclusive.​

Everything we do is underpinned by the Civil Service values: Honesty, Integrity, Impartiality and Objectivity.

You can read more about life at the CMA in our candidate pack.

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 Ability and Experience.

For further information about the position, application process and timelines and additional details on qualifications, requirements, terms and conditions of service, and how to apply, please review the candidate pack.

To apply for this post, you will need to complete the application process no later than the advert closing date, which is 23:55 on 2nd June 2026.

As part of the application process, you will be asked to complete the following;

1. 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.
2. A Statement of Suitability (no longer than two pages), giving examples of how you consider your personal skills, qualities and experience provide evidence of your suitability for the role, with particular reference to the criteria in the person specification.
3. A completed Diversity Questionnaire. We’re committed to implementing and monitoring our equality and diversity policies with the aim of recruiting, retaining and promoting staff regardless of their age, disability, gender reassignment, marriage and civil partnership, pregnancy and maternity, race, religion and belief, sex and sexual orientation. You will be asked to complete the diversity questionnaire when you make your application via Civil Service Jobs.

Sift stage

You will receive email acknowledgment of your application through the online process.

The panel will then assess your application to select those demonstrating the best fit with the role by considering the evidence you have provided against the essential criteria set out in the ‘Person Specification’ section. Failure to address any or all of these may affect your application.

At the shortlist meeting, those candidates who demonstrate strongest suitability will be shortlisted and invited to the interview stage.

The timeline later in the candidate pack indicates the date by which decisions are expected to be made, and all candidates will be advised of the outcome as soon as possible thereafter.

Unfortunately we are only able to provide feedback to shortlisted candidates.

Interview stage

If you are shortlisted, you will be asked to take part in a series of assessments which could include psychometric tests and a staff engagement exercise and you will have the opportunity to speak with the vacancy holder prior to the final interview to learn more about the role and the organisation. Please note this conversation is not part of the formal assessment process.

You will be asked to attend a panel interview in order to have a more in-depth discussion of your previous experience and professional competence in relation to the criteria set out in the Person Specification noted above and included in the candidate pack and attached role profile.

Interviews will consist of questions in which candidates will be expected to build on the information provided in their personal statement and CV. Candidates may be asked to prepare a short presentation on a topic to be advised if/when invited to the interview stage. Full details of the assessment process will be made available to shortlisted candidates.

A reserve list may be held for up to 12 months from which further appointments may be made for the same or similar roles.

Timeline

• The advert closing date is Tuesday 2nd June 2026 (23:55). We are not able to accept late applications.
• The short list is scheduled to take place Thursday 11th June 2026.
• Assessments will be held on Thursday 18th June for the staff engagement exercise, and individual leadership assessment between 12th - 26th June 2026.
• Interviews will be held on Monday 29th June 2026, at the CMA London office in Canary Wharf.

Our recruitment process is fully inclusive and we can make adjustments to provide you with the opportunity and support to bring your best self to the recruitment process. This could include having an interview buddy, extra time at interviews/assessments, or receiving interview questions in advance. We will be happy to discuss any person-centred adjustments you’d like us to make to the process and you can contact us by emailing our dedicated mailbox at adjustments@cma.gov.uk.

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

Security

Successful candidates must undergo a criminal record check.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 : CMA Recruitment
• Email : scsrecruitment@cma.gov.uk

Recruitment team

• Email : scsrecruitment@cma.gov.uk

Further information

If your application has not been treated in accordance with the Recruitment Principles and you wish to make a complaint, you should contact Recruitment@cma.gov.uk in the first instance. If you are not satisfied with the response you receive you can contact the Civil Service Commission http://civilservicecommission.independent.gov.uk.

Candidate Pack - https://cma-gov.pagetiger.com/dwybwgi/1

Attachments

Senior Litigation Director - Role Profile CMA3242 Opens in new window (pdf, 232kB)