Principal Associate - Corporate Healthcare

This role can be based in Birmingham, Norwich or any of our regional offices.

What does the role involve? 

We need an experienced Corporate Solicitor with great experience on Health & Care M&A to join a national Corporate Team and to be part of the fast growing award-winning independent sector Health & Care team. Our healthcare M&A team is one of the busiest and most highly regarded in the UK.  

You will undertake a broad mix of corporate work including transactional M&A, corporate finance, private equity, joint ventures, investment agreements and general corporate advisory work with a specific sector focus on independent sector health work.   

Our Health M&A may include investments in health assets by private equity, acting for buy and build platforms and M&A in the health sector as well as general advisory/strategic advice to clients.  You should have extensive knowledge and experience of acting in the health sector on corporate matters.   

This will be an advisory role where you will be responsible for leading on transactions, drafting, reporting, supervising team members and advising clients and supporting the wider team.  You will be senior enough to have adequate relevant experience of leading on transactions and running a team beneath you.  You will be confident in directly dealing with the leading clients in the health sector. You will support clients ranging from start-ups through to substantial private companies and investors on a broad range of corporate issues and transactions including M&A with an international aspect.  

You will receive partner support if needed but will largely work on your own matters unsupervised and will supervise junior members of the team who will support you on Health M&A. For this role we would expect the candidate to be responsible for leading M&A transactions. 

There is some flexibility with the location of the role but ideally you would be based in either our Birmingham or Norwich offices or otherwise in any of our other regional offices.  

What experience is required? 

You will be an experienced solicitor with a minimum of 8 years’ qualified experience gained in a City or regional firm with extensive experience of corporate M&A in the independent health sector space. You will have a great background in transactional work and be able to demonstrate both working as part of a team on transactions, and/or managing transactions largely unsupervised. You will also be able to demonstrate an understanding of, and an interest in, helping to grow our independent sector health M&A team and practice. 

What skills and attributes would I need?

• Good academics 
• Experience of Health M&A and standard M&A 
• An understanding and experience of the independent health sector and the interplay with the NHS 
• Experience of running transactional work as the day-to-day lead fee earner on the deal 
• Experience of supervising and running a team beneath you on transactional work 
• Evidence of understanding what is needed to help grow and develop a corporate practice 
• Technically strong 
• Excellent drafting and verbal/written communication skills 
• Excellent attention to detail 
• Good time and project management skills 
• Strong interpersonal skills and team skills – high EQ 
• Ambition to grow our independent health sector and to be the “go to” firm for Health M&A 

Who will I be working with? 

You will be working with Partners Julian Smith and Natalie Wade and Principal Associate, Paul Krivosic. The corporate teams are part of the cross office Corporate and Commercial National Service Line headed up by partner,  Kevin Lowe. The NSL is supported by professional support lawyers. 

Pre-employment screening

Please note that, in the event that we make an offer of employment, we will conduct pre-employment screening that includes checks relating to your professional and academic qualifications, references from previous employers, your eligibility to work in the UK and any disciplinary history recorded with the Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA). You will also be required to complete a self-declaration to assess your character and suitability. 

Disclosure and barring service check and security clearance

This post is also subject to a satisfactory response from the Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) (to check for any previous criminal convictions and cautions) and, given the nature of the work-type, you may also be required to undergo national security vetting to SC level – the latter can be undertaken following commencement of employment. 

And finally

Mills & Reeve is committed to building a diverse workforce and fostering an inclusive environment in which all our people can thrive. We hire people from a wide variety of backgrounds because it makes our firm stronger, and we have a collaborative culture that celebrates different perspectives and values respect for one another, working together, and openness and integrity. Our approach to flexible working means that we work in a way that achieves the right balance for our people, our clients and for our business.