New: Banking & Finance Associate, 2-6 PQE, £62,000-£75,000, leading North West firm, Manchester

This role sits in the banking team at a leading North West firm's Manchester office. It fills a genuine gap in the team, so you'll be working directly with the partner on live matters from the start rather than waiting behind a layer of senior associates. The team is small and close-knit, so your contribution will be noticed.

The work is a mix of lender and borrower instructions. The lender side covers most of the major UK clearing banks, as well as challenger banks, debt funds and private banks. On the borrower side, clients range from growth businesses to some of the largest corporates in the region. Seeing deals from both sides of the table is one of the quickest ways to build a rounded banking practice, and it makes you more useful to clients on either side.

You'll see leveraged and acquisition finance, including MBOs, MBIs and IBOs. Alongside that there's real estate investment and development finance, asset-based lending, receivables finance, restructuring and general corporate banking. A fair amount of the work has an international element. At the junior end of the PQE range, that means early client contact and a real part in negotiations. At the senior end, there's scope to take on more of the day-to-day running of transactions.

The firm is investing in its Manchester office, which gives you room to build your own practice and profile over time. The supervision is strong too: the team is recognised in The Legal 500 and Chambers, and several of its senior lawyers spent years at international firms before joining.

For a banking lawyer who wants real partner contact and deal responsibility without a big-firm hierarchy, this is one of the more interesting openings in Manchester right now.

Interested? Apply here or contact Chris Barr at QED Legal.