Senior Lawyer, DfTLA x 8

From healthcare to artificial intelligence, energy to national security, we provide legal advice to government departments on nation-changing subjects.

At Government Legal Department we have a vital, single-minded purpose: to help the Government govern well within the rule of law. This is complemented by our exciting vision to be an outstanding legal organisation, committed to the highest standards of service and professionalism and a brilliant place to work where we can all thrive and fulfill our potential.

Our work touches almost every aspect of public life. We are the largest provider of legal services across government, working on high profile matters.

Our respected professionals are involved in everything from regulation and litigation to advice on drafting legislation. They provide expertise to the full range of government departments. We are at the heart of delivering the governments priorities and our success depends on our people.

GLD is a non-ministerial government department headed by the Treasury Solicitor, our Permanent Secretary, and employs nearly 4000 people, including nearly 3000 legal professionals. We have offices nationwide, in Bristol, Leeds, inner and outer London and Manchester. Our lawyers can also be located within other departments and overseas.

GLD also depends on a range of cross-functional professionals to provide our corporate services. There are nearly 1000 colleagues playing an essential part in helping GLD to achieve its purpose and truly deliver much more than law.

This is an exciting time to join GLD, with cutting edge legal work on global issues and a transformation agenda which is ensuring the Department exemplifies the Modern Civil Service .

To find out more about what we do you can view our introductory film . On our website you can hear from team members, find out how to apply and learn about the benefits of working for GLD. You can also read more about the future vision for GLD in our GLD Strategy 2024 2027 .

About the Department for Transport Legal Advisers

Department for Transport Legal Advisers (DfTLA) is the in-house legal team for the Department for Transport (DfT). With an exceptionally wide range of legal practice, 12 divisions and over 180 people, we are a large, friendly and welcoming team, with staff co-located with London clients in Great Minster House, and across our GLD offices in Bristol, Croydon, Leeds and Manchester Salford.

Transport touches the lives of everyone in the country. Across road, rail, air, sea and even space, our transport networks affect homes, businesses, schools, hospitals and more. Its how we deliver goods to our shops, get people to work, school and health services, and reunite with our loved ones.

DfT works with its agencies and partners to support the transport network that helps UKs businesses, creates innovation and growth whilst being safer, inclusive and greener. DfT plans and invests in transport infrastructure to keep the UK on the move.

DfTs Secretary of State, Heidi Alexander, outlines her strategic priorities as:

• Improving performance on the railways and driving forward rail reform
• Improving bus services and growing usage across the country
• Transforming infrastructure to work for the whole country, promoting social mobility and tackling inequality
• Delivering greener transport
• Better integrating transport networks

DfTLA is at the forefront of helping the Government to deliver its transport policies. Whether on domestic or international matters, our lawyers are involved across an exceptionally wide practice area with work split between public and regulatory law across all forms of transport, major infrastructure project work (including Private/Hybrid Bills through Parliament) and commercial work.

Our general advisory practice is broad and we advise on meaty, often cutting-edge policy areas. We have several of Bills announced for this parliamentary session, covering rail, aviation and autonomous shipping reform, and to facilitate road and rail infrastructure projects. There is significant focus on working towards decarbonisation of the transport system, and the legislation needed to achieve that.

We also have one of the largest statutory instrument drafting programmes in government and offer an excellent opportunity and support to develop drafting expertise. Current secondary legislation projects include regulation of automated vehicles and vehicle safety standards, implementing bus service reform and post-Brexit reform of the Channel Tunnel regulations. There will also be a significant programme of implementing regulations to achieve rail reform in the future.

"Thank you for your interest in these exciting roles in DfTLA . Im very proud to lead a talented and diverse GLD directorate where everyday, our people see the positive real-world impacts their work has in making transport better for everyone. If successful, youll be part of a hugely capable legal directorate dealing with some of the most pressing transport legal issues of the day.

If that sounds like its up your street, then I very much hope youll apply."

Stephen Cave

Legal Director, Department for Transport

About the Roles Areas of Work

There are up to 2 primarily commercial roles, both with line management:

1. Commercial Planning Lead DfTLA provides legal support on transport related planning policy development. The work ranges from legal support on planning consent applications for large transport infrastructure projects to working with other government departments on transport related planning reforms to legislation (primary or secondary) and guidance. The work is planning and environmentally focussed. The team also provides advisory support on litigation. We are therefore seeking lawyers with experience in planning law, whether national or local, and environment law to help contribute to the work of the Department.

2. Commercial Infrastructure Lead DfTLA advises on all new rail infrastructure projects, including HS2, East West Rail, Northern Powerhouse Rail and the redevelopment of Euston Station and the regeneration of the surrounding area. The work ranges from advising on consenting regimes, procurement of complex services, subsidy control issues, corporate structuring and governance. The work is commercially focussed and we are seeking lawyers with a broad commercial expertise.

3. Rail Reform Lead x 4

We currently have 4 rail legal teams, with lawyers working across teams to advise DfT on the full range of its activity, including primary and secondary legislation, public law advisory, employment and industrial law advice, and advice on DfTs commercial interests and activity.

There are expected to be up to 4 rail related roles in our rail teams, each of which will include line management responsibility.

This an exciting time to join with the creation of Great British Railways. Lawyers in our rail teams advise at the boundary of public law, statutory interpretation and drafting, and the commercial implementation of DfTs policies and funding.

Issues on which our senior lawyers lead include:

• Policy advisory and procurement funding advice regarding rail fares, ticketing and retail. This can include ...