Assistant General Counsel – Labour & Employment, EMEA & APAC

Job Title

Assistant General Counsel – Labour & Employment, EMEA & APAC

Job Description Summary

We are looking for an Assistant General Counsel (Labour & Employment) to join our team in London.
The successful candidate will be a strategic thought leader who will be responsible for providing practical L&E legal advice and L&E litigation management. They will efficiently and effectively support senior leadership, key business stakeholders and the Human Resources team across Cushman & Wakefield’s operations in EMEA and APAC. The position will report to the Deputy General Counsel, Corporate and M&A.
The position, located in the UK, will work closely with Cushman’s HR partners to accomplish our workforce objectives in relation to all employment matters while minimising risk across the employee lifecycle. The position will be responsible for managing outside counsel on L&E litigation matters in EMEA and APAC and providing technical L&E legal advice on key business initiatives and HR projects in EMEA and APAC. This role will act with the highest level of integrity and business and personal ethical standards in all aspects of job performance.
This position will act strategically and proactively to mitigate business risk with oversight of a diverse population across multiple legal jurisdictions. A successful candidate will be highly organised, able to handle a number of matters at once and will understand what should be handled personally and what should be delegated. They will be able to determine how to utilise both internal and external in-country legal support in order to make an impact at the right level. The candidate will have the ability and willingness to work under time-sensitive deadlines and be productive in a fast paced environment.

Job Description

• Provide technical L&E legal advice to EMEA and APAC senior leadership, key business stakeholders and the HR team in compliance with applicable employment laws and workforce objectives, including with respect to performance management, reductions in force, talent acquisition, union relations, leaves of absence and accommodations, employee benefits, compensation and rewards, and learning and development.

• Manage outside counsel on L&E litigation matters in EMEA and APAC; work with the Deputy General Counsel to develop and implement L&E litigation strategy in EMEA and APAC. While managing the litigation, they will assess legal risks and opportunities and employment issues in a manner that protects the best interests of the Company, as well as the integrity, reputation, assets, officers and employees, while ensuring that the Company operates in compliance with local laws.

• Ensure all advice and recommendations are in keeping with the internal policies, procedures and delegations of authority of the Company.

• Review and facilitate any necessary updates to EMEA and APAC employment policies/plans in coordination with HR Partners, local Managing Principals and Chief Executives, including, but not limited to, employee handbooks, bonus plans, compensation guidelines, summary plan descriptions and severance programs.

• Ensure employee/partner employment agreements, offer letters and separation agreements in EMEA and APAC are fit for purpose, legally compliant and aligned to business requirements.

• Keep senior leadership and the HR team abreast of significant employment decisions, legislation and governmental regulations that may affect the Company’s business or policy.

• Deliver a training needs analysis process following a review of learnings from legal situations arising.

• Be the key point of contact regarding Executive Hires, Terminations and Disputes, managing all outcomes and key stakeholders to ensure legal compliance whilst managing business risk.

• Have oversight of key governance documents for reward programs where there is high tax or legal exposure (share schemes etc).

• Utilise specialist legal knowledge to represent Cushman in the judicial system.

• Perform other related duties and ad hoc projects as required or requested.

Please get in touch to discuss this role in more detail or apply via the link.