Knowledge Lawyer - Banking & Finance (m/w/x)

Overview

This is an exciting opportunity for a candidate with deep expertise in banking to be a member of our highly successful Global Transactions practice in Germany and our valued global Knowledge function, working in a diverse team, in an inclusive environment, and directly contributing to the firm’s client and people strategies.
Global Transactions at Freshfields brings together lawyers specialising in corporate, finance and real estate in a transactional practice group, working collaboratively to provide the best transactional advice to clients. Our finance lawyers in Global Transactions in Germany focus on leveraged finance, corporate lending and acquisition financing, real estate finance, infrastructure and project finance, derivatives and structured finance, debt capital markets, asset finance and restructuring and capital solutions.

Role summary/purpose of job

The Knowledge Lawyer’s primary focus will be on banking transactions, working across the waterfront of leveraged finance, corporate and acquisition finance (including investment grade lending), infrastructure finance and real estate finance. Freshfields is a market leader in Germany, ranked Band 1 for Banking & Finance in Chambers Europe, and advises clients on highly complex, multi-jurisdictional transactions across a range of industries. The Knowledge Lawyer will work closely with our leading-edge partners and other lawyers. In addition to banking, the role will also involve coverage of general finance topics relevant to finance lawyers across the different product areas of the German practice, e.g., subordination, security and guarantees.

The Knowledge Lawyer will bring deep expertise in this area and a willingness and ability to continue to develop in this space, with a view to:

• enabling the firm to provide market-leading client service : e.g., tracking and sharing updates, insight and analysis on key developments in the loan markets, adopting a commercially-minded and practical approach to such analysis to help our lawyers understand the impacts for clients and our work, and working closely with lawyers in the practice and other Knowledge colleagues to share relevant insights from client matters;
• helping grow the business of the firm: the Knowledge lawyer will help raise the profile of the practice and strengthen client relationships by identifying opportunities for, and developing, client content, and contributing to reputation-enhancing publications, client conversations and education;
• Developing the legal skills of the lawyers in the practice: through internal training and by acting as a sounding board for legal queries, in each case upskilling our lawyers in this continually developing area of the law.

The Knowledge Lawyer will work alongside other Knowledge Lawyers in Global Transactions in Germany who specialise in restructuring and insolvency, corporate and financial services regulation, and will be part of an international team of Global Transactions Knowledge Lawyers with different areas of expertise across corporate, finance and real estate. This includes Knowledge Lawyers in London and Continental Europe who also specialise in loans, and the Knowledge Lawyer will collaborate closely with them. The Knowledge Lawyer will be welcomed into the wider Knowledge community at the firm, comprising Knowledge Lawyers and other Knowledge & Information specialists, led by the firm’s Co-Chief Knowledge Officers who focus on creating a framework for career satisfaction, high performance and excellence by fostering a supportive, inclusive, innovative, collaborative and purpose-driven culture across the function.

All Knowledge Lawyers also work closely with colleagues with other specialisms, e.g., marketing and business development, innovation and learning and development.

Key responsibilities

Enabling the firm’s lawyers to provide market-leading client service

• Monitor key legal developments and disseminate to lawyers in the practice – always considering the impact on internal knowledge products, profile raising and business development potential.
• Create and update internal knowledge products (e.g., standard forms, practice notes and other “toolkits” and resources), working with lawyers in the practice to identify products offering the most value-add.
• Work with partners and other senior stakeholders to develop house views on legal developments or market practice.
• Capture insights from client mandates, able to draw out trends and themes and share internally, and reflect them as needed in internal knowledge products or internal training.
• Engage lawyers in the practice at all levels, encouraging knowhow contribution, direct access to knowhow systems and collaboration on knowledge projects.
• Seek opportunities for innovation in the delivery of Knowledge services, including using and promoting the firm’s legal innovation tools (e.g., AI, document automation).

Helping grow the business of the firm and strengthen client relationships

• Understand the business agenda of the firm and the practice area, and what is happening in the loan markets, and help relevant stakeholders identify and pursue business opportunities and raise profile in accordance with the firm’s strategy and priorities – including fostering their own internal and external networks.
• Drive the practice’s approach to the market by identifying opportunities for client-facing knowledge products and thought leadership, writing blogs, briefings and other client content, and contributing to larger publications and articles, in all cases demonstrating the practice’s leading-edge legal technical capability and market awareness.
• Play a key role in developing and, where appropriate, delivering, client training or seminars to promote the market leading position and technical expertise of the practice.

Developing the legal skills of the firm’s lawyers

• Act as an internal advisor to lawyers working in the practice, understanding relevant developments and acting as a trusted sounding board on complex points.
• Working with other colleagues, design, deliver and contribute (and engage lawyers in the practice at all levels in delivering and contributing) to internal training.

Key requirements

Experience and qualifications

• Qualified lawyer with a strong academic background.
• A high level of relevant successful experience as a fee-earner or a knowledge management lawyer/professional support lawyer (or a combination) in a banking practice. The candidate should also have broad experience in general finance law.
• Native or professional fluency in German and professional fluency in English.

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