External Affairs Manager

The Law Society

About the Organisation

Law Society represents solicitors in England and Wales. From negotiating with and lobbying the profession's regulators, government, and others, to offering training and advice, we're here to help, protect, and promote solicitors across England and Wales. An exciting opportunity has arisen to recruit for a role at the heart of the Law Society's campaigning and political influencing activity.

The Law Society is the independent professional body for over 200,000 solicitors in England and Wales. A year into the new government, there is a huge opportunity to influence the political debate, driving important issues such as access to justice, the rule of law, and supporting a thriving legal business sector up the agenda and influence on behalf of our members. 

About the role

Are you a motivated professional with a flair for communication, a keen interest in the legal world and a passion for stakeholder or member engagement? We're on the hunt for an External Affairs Manager to support our engagement with members and key players across the legal sector. Join our External Affairs Team at the Law Society and be at the forefront of our engagement with the largest 150 member firms, top in-house teams, and pivotal city and business groups.

Responsibilities

Key Accountabilities:

• Work with colleagues and senior leaders across the Law Society to support the shaping and delivery of the in-house' member offer’, whilst also taking responsibility for leading elements of the offer for the largest 50 in-house teams. 
• Identify and apply member and market insights to ensure the Law Society continues to understand its key stakeholders and large in-house member interests, and can respond appropriately. 
• Ensure close collaborative working with a broad range of colleagues to make connections with stakeholders managed through other teams,  local law societies, politicians/policy makers, international stakeholders, and D&I networks. 
• Identify and engage with a wider stakeholder community engaged in key issues of interest for large in-house/business sector – these could include ‘new law’ enterprises, charitable and social initiatives, city and business networks.
• Develop strong personal relationships with the most senior individuals in stakeholder organisations, including Senior and Managing Partners, General Counsel, Chairmen, Directors, CIOs, and CEO’s, introducing them to others in TLS and facilitating their participation in TLS strategic activities. 
• Develop and communicate (internally and externally) a thorough understanding of the structure and running of the Law Society and of strategically important external bodies. 
• Play a central role in activities intended to promote London as a global legal hub and to raise awareness of the contribution that leading English and Welsh law firms make to the legal profession domestically and internationally. 
• Devise and play a central role in activities designed to demonstrate the value and impact of external engagement to the Law Society, facilitated by building and maintaining strong internal relationships across the organization at all levels, including Office Holders and Executive Leadership. 
• Make a key contribution to efforts across the Law Society designed to promote stakeholder engagement, developing strong internal relationships to ensure close and effective working with key teams, including Member Communications, Member Engagement, Policy, and PA. 
• Oversee and manage an account management approach to our large firms and large in-house member segments, ensuring we make best use of CRM, reporting, and data to drive wider and deeper engagement with these groups.
• Project manage Roundtables, Webinars, Podcasts, and contributions from the Law Society at external meetings and events - ensuring these are delivered in line with an agreed business plan and relevant wider resources.
• Respond to external developments by creating opportunities for the Law Society to convene stakeholders and add value to strategically important policy and professional issues.
• Initiate and deliver projects, including those delivered in partnership with other agencies or organisations. 
• Lead on the planning and delivery of events, and prepare and deliver presentations.
• Commission, follow up, and present relevant work to support strategic stakeholder activities. 
• Deal independently with substantial incoming communications, initiate action, and deal with these on own initiative, including confidential information. 
• Deliver achievable and ambitious plans for the External Affairs function as part of the annual business planning process - monitoring and providing effective and clear reporting on delivery.
• Oversee the work of an External Affairs Executive within the External Affairs team, ensuring speed of response and quality of support reflect the high expectations of these key stakeholder groups.

Skills, Competencies & Experience

Knowledge, Skills & Experience:

• Experience of working on substantial projects with senior executives and Board Members, an ability to develop and maintain close working relationships with them and their teams
• Excellent project management, communication, presentation skills, report writing, and drafting skills 
• Ability to conduct substantial research, identify the key information/messages, and be able to communicate these effectively 
• High level of initiative, problem-solving, and decision-making skills 
• Excellent organisation skills and attention to detail 
• Excellent ability to build, develop, and maintain working relationships with other team members and with senior internal and external stakeholders 
• Excellent analytical, computer, and database skills 
• Ability to multitask and work independently under pressure 
• Ability to project a positive and confident image of TLS 
• Good working knowledge of other cultures and business practices 
• Ability to exercise sound judgement across a range of complex and diverse issues 
• Experience in overseeing the work of others to ensure work is delivered on time and to a high standard
• Strong influencing and negotiating skills
• Proactive, action-oriented orientated and delivery-focused approach

Required Qualifications

• Degree-level

Compensation & Benefits

• Full-time staff get 25 days of annual leave, in addition to public holidays. This increases to:
  • 27 days after two years' service
  • 30 days after five years' service
• Contribute two times our employees' contributions up to 3.5% of your notional base pay, and one and a half times any contributions you make between 3.5% and 7%.
• Notional pay is your salary before salary sacrifice.
• If you contribute 7% of your notional base pay, our contribution will be 12.25%.
• If you contribute more than 7%, our contribution will remain at 12.25%
• You’re covered for a lump sum life assurance cover of four times your notional base pay if you die while working at the Law Society, up until the age of 75.
• Eligibility for this taxable benefit is dependent on length of service and pay grade.
• All staff are eligible for this tax-free benefit after they’ve completed two years of employment.
• A season ticket loan of up to £8,000 is available after you complete your probation.
• 3% flex fund after 3 months, plus comprehensive benefits

Working locations

• Hybrid model, working in the London office and remotely

How to apply

• Apply Online
• Please note: if you are an internal applicant, the Pay Policy will apply.

Interviews

• We hope that interviews will be held in the first week of December 2025.

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