Job Description
Private Client Senior Associate
Salary: £85,000–£115,000
Location: London | Highly Regarded Boutique Firm
A Rare Opportunity in a Distinctive Private Client Practice
Not all private client roles are created equal. This one stands out.
Our client is a well-regarded, multidisciplinary London law firm with a genuinely distinctive client base — spanning high-net-worth individuals, family offices, technology entrepreneurs, established names from the entertainment and media industries, sports professionals, and international private wealth clients with connections to the US and Middle East. This is not a vanilla private client seat. The work is technically demanding, cross-border in scope, and handled by a team that punches well above its weight in terms of quality and reputation.
If you are a senior associate with a strong private client background who wants to do complex, rewarding work in a collegiate environment — and progress your career alongside people who invest in your development — this role is worth a conversation.
The Role at a Glance
Job Title: Private Client Senior Associate
Location: London (hybrid working available)
Salary: £85,000–£115,000 depending on PQE and experience
PQE: 4–7 years (applications considered from strong candidates outside this range)
Practice Area: Private Client and Tax
Consultant: David Hawthorne-Finch
About Our Client
Our client is a dynamic, full-service law firm headquartered in London, widely recognised for its expertise across the creative, technology, finance, entertainment, media, and sports sectors. Their Private Client and Tax Group is a highly regarded team, sitting at the heart of the firm’s broader Private Capital initiative.
Their client roster includes high-net-worth and ultra-high-net-worth individuals, family offices, trustees, financial institutions, and established businesses — many with complex international structures and cross-border requirements. This is a firm that attracts interesting work and interesting people in equal measure.
They offer a clear path for career progression, structured training and development programmes throughout the year, and a genuinely supportive, collegiate culture. They do not pay lip service to career development — they build it into how they operate.
What You Will Be Doing
You will join the Private Client and Tax Group as a senior associate, working across a complex and varied caseload that includes:
Succession Planning and Wealth Structuring
- Drafting wills and advising on succession planning strategies
- Creating and maintaining wealth planning structures including onshore and offshore trusts, foundations, family investment companies (FICs), and partnerships
- Supporting trustees and beneficiaries regarding their rights and responsibilities, including trust restructuring projects
Tax Advisory
- Advising on inheritance tax including reliefs, exemptions, double tax treaties, and strategic planning exercises
- Providing guidance on tax residency and domicile, income tax, capital gains tax, the remittance basis of taxation, split-year treatment, overseas workday relief, and other personal tax matters
- Advising on the establishment, management, and unwinding of UK residential property holding structures, covering IHT, CGT, income tax, ATED, SDLT, and corporate tax considerations
Cross-Border and International Matters
- Advising on cross-border succession planning, conflict of law issues, and co-ordinating with foreign counsel to implement global strategies
- Working with clients linked to the Middle East and US markets
Capacity and Compliance
- Advising on legal issues arising from the loss of mental capacity, including the preparation and registration of lasting powers of attorney
- Assisting with compliance matters including reporting obligations, transparency, and anti-corruption regulations
Philanthropy and Charitable Law
- Advising individuals and trustees on philanthropic initiatives and impact investing
- Providing guidance on charitable law for charitable organisations
What We Are Looking For
Essential:
- Qualified solicitor with a minimum of 4 years’ PQE in private client, gained within a UK law firm
- Strong grounding in wills, trusts, succession planning, and personal tax (IHT, CGT, income tax, domicile and residency)
- Experience advising high-net-worth or ultra-high-net-worth individuals
- Excellent academic background with strong technical and drafting skills
- Proactive, self-sufficient, and able to manage your own caseload
Desirable:
- Experience with cross-border succession planning and international private client matters
- Exposure to trust structuring, FICs, or offshore arrangements
- Some familiarity with LPAs and mental capacity matters
- Prior involvement with philanthropic or charitable law matters
- Experience working alongside clients in the technology, entertainment, media, or sports sectors
Personal Qualities:
- Technically excellent with strong commercial judgement
- Confident and personable — comfortable building direct client relationships
- Collaborative by nature, with the ability to work independently and know when to escalate
- Enthusiastic, driven, and genuinely interested in private client work
What Is On Offer
- Salary: £85,000–£115,000 (commensurate with PQE and experience)
- Hybrid working with flexible arrangements in place
- Clear, structured career progression with a genuine route to partnership
- Access to firmwide training and development programmes throughout the year
- A collegiate, inclusive, and supportive team culture — this is a firm where people stay and progress
- Exposure to a distinctive and diverse client base not typically found at a generalist firm
- High-quality, complex work with real responsibility at senior associate level
- Involvement in the firm’s broader Private Capital initiative
- Opportunity to develop sector-specific expertise across technology, entertainment, media, sport, and international private wealth
How to Apply
This role is being handled on a strictly confidential basis.
To express your interest or to have a confidential conversation about the role, please contact:
David Hawthorne-Finch
Managing Director, Hawthorne-Finch Talent Solutions Ltd
0333 996 2882
All applications and enquiries are treated in complete confidence. Your details will not be shared with our client without your written consent.
Hawthorne-Finch Talent Solutions Ltd is an equal opportunities recruiter. We welcome applications from candidates of all backgrounds.