Senior Lawyer – Commercial

Location: Carlisle

Contract: Permanent

About this opportunity

Are you an experienced legal professional looking for a senior role where you can make a real impact? Cumberland Council is looking to appoint a Senior Lawyer to join our Legal Services team and play a key role in supporting the Chief Legal Officer and Monitoring Officer in delivering high-quality, commercially focused legal services.

You will be joining a small team of lawyers dealing with a variety of commercial matters, primarily contracts, grants, procurement and company law. You will handle your own caseload with support of more junior lawyers and legal officers and provide advice to the Council’s officers, councillors and committees. You will also jointly oversee elements of the day-to-day management and supervision of team members and assist the management team in ensuring the provision of high quality, cost effective and innovative legal services and corporate governance.

As a Senior Lawyer, you will:

• Lead and manage a team within Legal Services, ensuring effective and efficient delivery of legal support.
• Handle a caseload of complex, high-risk, and corporately significant matters, providing expert representation in courts, tribunals, and other bodies.
• Provide strategic legal advice to support policy development, corporate governance, projects, and decision-making processes.
• Assist in commissioning and managing external legal advisers to ensure cost-effective solutions.
• Contribute to the management and development of Legal Services, maintaining compliance with Solicitors Regulation Authority standards and deputising for the Monitoring Officer when required.

We’re looking for someone who:

• Is a qualified solicitor or barrister with substantial post-qualification experience.
• Has proven expertise in handling complex legal matters and providing strategic advice.
• Demonstrates strong leadership and team management skills.
• Possesses excellent communication and negotiation abilities.
• Understands corporate governance and public sector legal frameworks.

Please do not be put off if you have not worked in local government before – it is your determination to provide a top-class legal service which will matter most, and whilst local authority experience is desirable it is not essential. In fact, we welcome the skills and experience which you will bring from other backgrounds.

Apply today and help us deliver outstanding legal services that support our Council’s objectives.

This role is available on a permanent basis.

Who we’re looking for

We’re looking for individuals who embody our organisation’s core values: ambitious, collaborative, compassionate, empowering, and innovative. We believe in the power of these values to drive positive change, deliver excellent public services and shape a better future for our communities.

We’re also about potential over perfection and we can help you grow in the role and thrive in your career.

Be sure to take a look at the post specification (below) for the essential criteria for this role.

Contact

For more information about the role or to arrange an informal chat prior to your application, please contact Emma Lawson by email at emma.lawson@cumbria.gov.uk

Guaranteed Interviews

We offer a guaranteed interview to the following applicants as long as your application can demonstrate you meet the essential criteria for the role.

• Those who consider themselves disabled as defined by the Equality Act 2010
• Those in care or who have left care and are aged 24 and under
• Those who identify as a member of the British Armed Forces community (service leavers, veterans, their partners or spouses, reservists, cadets).

If you meet one or more of the criteria above, and wish to be considered for this scheme, select ‘yes’ to the appropriate question during your application. Find out more.

Diversity, Inclusion & Adjustments

We’re dedicated to enhancing the diversity of our workforce and we encourage applications from individuals of all backgrounds. That’s why we’re a proud Disability Confident Leader and also an Age Friendly Employer – to provide opportunities for everyone to thrive.

If you need any reasonable adjustments to participate in the recruitment process, please let either the hiring manager or our Resourcing Team know by emailing Resourcing@Cumberland.gov.uk. While adjustments aren’t always guaranteed, we’ll always listen and we’ll try our best to accommodate your needs.

If you experience any difficulties logging in to apply for this role, please contact the HR Systems team at HR.Systems@cumbria.gov.uk.

Please note this role may close early subject to demand. If you’re interested in applying, you should apply well before the advised closing date. We cannot accept applications once the role has closed.

Closing date: 27 November 2026

Interview date: 7 and 8 December 2026

For further information or to apply, please click on the ‘Enquire/Apply’ button.