Senior Associate/Managing Associate - Commercial

If you are keen to find an exciting new role where you will be part of a dynamic, forward-thinking, agile team, come and join us on our journey.

Why Michelmores? Michelmores is the destination law firm for the ambitious, the imaginative and the distinctive. We help enterprises and individuals navigate change to find a positive future.

We are a flexible, friendly and inclusive organisation with as clear a focus on fresh thinking as we have on growth and success. We value and nurture our people’s potential and inspiration and give them a creative, open and collaborative environment in which to develop a career and succeed.

We believe that whatever your legal experience, you’ll find Michelmores different. From day one we encourage our people to forge relationships and expand their understanding and knowledge of areas that interest them – developing an understanding of commercial challenges and opportunities, rather than just knowing the law. We nurture creative and commercial thinking to help in your long-term career success – it mirrors our approach to ensuring the very best outcomes for our clients too.

What sort of work? Right now, our highly regarded Commercial Team is looking for an enthusiastic and ambitious Commercial lawyer to join the team as an experienced Senior Associate or Managing Associate. Based from either our Bristol, Cambridge or Exeter office, the successful individual will join the team in delivering first-class service to clients. This will include:-

• Commercial agreements, including standard terms of supply and purchase of goods and/or services
• IT software licences and "software as a service" agreements
• IT system integrations
• Franchising, concessions, agency
• Managed services and outsourcing agreements
• Advice on protection, management and exploitation of intellectual property (including drafting assignments/licences)
• International trade
• Consumer protection
• Data protection law in the context of commercial agreements
• Transactional support (undertaking due diligence from a commercial contract, IP, IT and data protection perspective)

While not essential to the role, we would expect senior lawyers to have developed some key specialism(s), whether that may be in a specific sector or a particular area of law (for example, financial services advice, data protection or thought leadership on AI).

Headed up by Tom Torkar, the Commercial Team consists of highly regarded specialist lawyers dedicated to advising clients on all aspects of non-contentious and contentious issues. We help tech-focused businesses to realise the potential of new technologies, to develop ideas and to make them a commercial success. Our clients are increasingly required to adapt and diversify into new business areas, while all the time complying with new regulatory requirements. Our adaptable and innovative lawyers provide expert advice and solutions to help clients meet these challenges, including in the agri-tech and smart energy sectors

We are known for being an ambitious, growing team, providing a high level of expertise and high-quality service at competitive rates, which we leverage to attract a broad, national mix of private and public sector clients.

Our Southwest and London-based practices are top ranked in Legal 500 and Chambers and you will be working with lawyers that have been highlighted as leading individuals in their field.

"The team provides pragmatic, commercial advice in a timely manner. They are just as effective as traditional city firms and provide much greater value." Legal 500 UK 2026

"The team are excellent at dealing with the complex technical nature of cases and providing clear and commercial guidance." Legal 500 UK 2026

"The team at Michelmores adopts an approach and behaviour like they are an extension of the … team, they fully understand our business and operations, and are able to advise and offer counsel through a thorough understanding of the challenges and our customers." Legal 500 UK 2026

How do we work? We take a flexible, agile approach to working patterns. As a team we agree together on the best working arrangements that will enable each of us to provide exceptional client service, to collaborate and connect with colleagues, and to achieve the right home/work balance.

As a Firm we are committed to supporting our people across all levels to achieve the balance they need. We are open to talking about flexible working and empower any candidate to put forward a flexible working pattern to meet their needs.

Who are we looking for? We are looking for somebody who understands our values and can thrive in our culture. This is an excellent opportunity for a confident, ambitious and commercially minded lawyer who thrives on taking the initiative and building lasting client relationships. The role is particularly well suited to a self-starter who is keen to play a key part in the continued growth and development of our commercial practice in one of our national offices. The successful candidate will have an opportunity to progress their career and develop a profile within the firm and externally. Working collaboratively with colleagues across our business-facing teams, they will help to shape our commercial offering in their region while contributing to the wider national practice. The ideal candidate will have:

• At least 5 years of post-qualified UK law firm experience in a Commercial/Technology team with expertise in the key areas outlined above.
• Experience of advising a range of clients from fast growth/emerging companies through to large corporates.
• Experience in contributing to and playing a key role in marketing initiatives and seminars

Other skills required include

• Strong interpersonal skills; effective communicator at all levels (written and verbal).
• A commercial, pro-active and professional approach to work.
• Excellent organisational skills, demonstrable examples of multi-tasking and an ability to juggle competing priorities.
• Must interact well with others in a sensitive and effective way - a team player.
• Must be self-motivated, committed to working towards goals with strong enthusiasm and career commitment.
• Understand the importance of confidentiality and use of discretion. Must be flexible, successfully adapting to changing demands and conditions.
• Demonstrate self-confidence, initiative and be an innovative thinker.

This is a great opportunity to join a Firm which believes potential, inspiration, and teamwork should be valued and nurtured.

We work hard to create and sustain an open and collaborative environment. We embrace change and constantly evolve to meet our people’s diverse needs, in the same way that we help our clients to navigate and stay ahead of developments, to move forward together.

Next Steps To apply please click below or if you would like to talk to someone about the role, please call Lisa Gater (Recruitment Business Partner) on 07355 677 986.

Michelmores LLP is an Equal Opportunities Employer

We do not discriminate on grounds of race, gender, marital status, age, religion, colour, nationality, ethnic origin, disability or sexual orientation in the selection, recruitment and treatment of our staff.

View our Inclusion and Belonging pages for more information.

As part of our recruitment policy our candidates are subject to pre-employment screening checks. The Employee Screening Process includes DBS screening, adverse media checks, financial screening, and will also involve verification of employment history, your right to work in the UK and any relevant qualifications and memberships. If you would like further information around this, at this stage, please get in touch with our recruitment team (careers@michelmores.com)

*No agencies please – any agency assistance will be via invitation only. Please note any speculative candidates submitted via agencies without invitation will not be considered as represented by that agent.