Conflicts Lawyer

Summary

Sidley in London

We are proud to offer our lawyers and professional staff myriad opportunities to apply their talents toward important, challenging projects on a global stage. Our culture of collegiality attracts people with diverse skills and backgrounds who are dedicated to teamwork, collaboration and superior client service.

Sidley has built an inclusive, collegiate culture firmwide and we maintain an environment focused on teamwork and cooperation. Our London office has a relaxed, down-to-earth friendliness, with lawyers and business professionals at all levels treating each other with genuine respect. We value the skills and knowledge that each team member brings and believe in creating a work environment where everyone thrives.

We are located in a distinctive new development at 70 St. Mary Axe with panoramic views across London. Based in the heart of the City and close to Liverpool Street station with all the area has to offer - fantastic restaurants and bars, shopping and sporting facilities.
You’ll find a great social scene within the office, with organised events including sailing and skiing weekends, seasonal parties and charitable team activities.

Inclusion

Sidley is committed to fostering a welcoming and inclusive culture. We recognise that bringing together individuals from various backgrounds, experiences, and perspectives strengthens the quality of our legal work and continues to position us as a trusted leader in the legal profession. Our commitment to inclusion not only enriches our workplace but also enhances our ability to fulfill our mission providing the highest quality legal services for our clients.

Role overview

Based in the London office, the Conflicts Staff Lawyer will be working as an integral member of the firm’s global Conflicts New Business Department, headquartered in Chicago and led by the firm’s Deputy General Counsel. The UK and EU team works closely with the US and other international offices, and this is a visible and internationally connected role from the outset.

The UK and EU team is led by the Director of Conflicts, AML & Compliance for Europe and the Middle East, and the Conflicts Lawyer to whom the Conflicts Lawyer reports. The Conflicts Lawyer works alongside other Conflicts Lawyers, the Conflicts/AML Analysts and the Team Administrator to provide an exceptional conflicts clearance and new business intake service to Partners, Associates and Secretaries across Sidley’s global offices.

This is an advisory and stakeholder facing position rather than a purely administrative function. The Conflicts team is viewed as a business enabling partner to the firm, balancing robust risk management with commercial pragmatism. The successful candidate will work directly with Partners and senior stakeholders across offices, providing clear, practical and commercially grounded guidance.

As one of the world’s largest law firms, the firm depends on a responsive, commercially sound and technically robust conflicts and onboarding function. The Conflicts Staff Lawyer will provide a critical business service across three main areas:

• Reviewing escalated conflicts searches submitted during London business hours and providing clear, practical clearance advice
• Reviewing and approving new clients and matters to ensure compliance with the firm’s new business intake policies and procedures
• Advising on new business intake policy and procedural issues across jurisdictions

The successful candidate must be comfortable operating in a fast paced, high performing international firm environment where responsiveness, sound judgement and strong stakeholder engagement are essential.

The Conflicts and New Business team currently operates on a hybrid working model of three days per week in the office and two days working from home, although additional days in the office may be required in the future dependent on business need. Wednesday is currently the team’s anchor day, when all team members are expected to be in the office to support collaboration, training and team alignment.

There is flexibility in selecting the remaining in office days, subject to operational requirements.

To support effective…