Commercial Lawyer (General Commercial & Digital)

Our national General Commercial, Digital & Technology team is growing. Bringing together our general commercial, digital, IP, energy and renewables, and projects and procurement capability, we represent an impressive range of FTSE 100 and FTSE 250 companies, public sector bodies, educational institutions and industry organisations on high-profile, business-critical projects and regulatory matters.

Working at the forefront of digital transformation, advanced manufacturing, energy transition, life sciences, aerospace and defence, transport and logistics and international trade, our team plays a vital role in helping clients innovate, compete and grow. With nationally recognised leaders across our UK offices—and close collaboration with our US colleagues and Lex Mundi member firms worldwide—we deliver seamless support on complex, multi-jurisdictional matters and international transactions. We also provide a blend of City presence and local knowledge to foreign inward investors entering the UK market.

To support our strong pipeline of work, we have an exciting opportunity for a 3+ to senior PQE Commercial/digital lawyer to join us in either our Southampton, Leeds or Newcastle office.

What does the team do?

You will work across a broad range of commercial and digital matters, including:

Technology & Digital Transformation

• Complex technology transactions and digital transformation programmes
• Software licensing, IT services, procurement and outsourcing
• Data protection, privacy, cyber security and generative AI adoption
• Supporting clients as they develop, procure and deploy new technologies

Commercial Contracts & Strategic Projects

• End-to-end commercial arrangements supporting day-to-day operations and major strategic projects
• Supply chain management, procurement, product development and routes to market
• Energy transition, decarbonisation and productivity improvement initiatives
• Support for advanced manufacturing businesses including major industrial operators and specialised life sciences suppliers

Working closely with industry specialists, in-house legal teams and technical experts, you will contribute to all aspects of transactions—from contract strategy, drafting and negotiation to risk management and regulatory compliance.

You'll also have opportunities to work on international matters, help clients expand into fast-growing overseas markets (particularly the USA and Saudi Arabia), and undertake international secondments.

Every day brings variety, challenge and the chance to innovate. You will join a collaborative, supportive and diverse team where creativity and knowledge-sharing are central to how we work.

What does the ideal candidate look like?

We are looking for a commercially minded lawyer with:

Minimum Requirements

• 3+ years PQE as a UK-qualified solicitor (England, Wales or Scotland)
• Experience gained at a City firm, large regional firm or suitable in-house role
• Strong grounding in commercial contracts and/or digital, tech or data protection
• Exposure to complex, high-value transactions
• Excellent drafting and communication skills

Highly Valued Experience

• Digital/tech expertise including software licensing, IT services, cyber security or generative AI
• Experience of import/export or international contracting
• Familiarity with IP or data protection (beneficial but not essential)
• Ability to break down complex issues clearly for non-lawyers

Above all, you will bring genuine enthusiasm for commercial and digital work, a collaborative mindset and a commitment to delivering exceptional client service.

What makes it great to work here?

We continually work hard to create an open culture that sets us apart from other firms. Our culture gives us much more of a human feel, emphasising that we're more than just suits!

As signatories to the Mindful Business Charter, it's important to us that our people are able to maintain healthy and happy lives, both in and out of work. We have a number of resources and initiatives designed to support health and wellbeing and we're very happy to talk flexible working.

Through our DEI initiatives we create an environment in which difference is valued. We have an Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Group, led by our Board Sponsor, which works with our colleague networks (we currently have firm supported networks for race, ethnicity, and cultural heritage, LGBTQ+, disabilities, neurodiversity, families, and women's career development and we're in constant dialogue with our people about how we expand our networks to better support everybody). Find out more about DEI at WBD here . We encourage applicants from all social backgrounds, ethnicities, disabilities, gender identities and sexual orientations.

We are committed to ensuring our recruitment process is inclusive and accessible to all. If you have a disability or long term condition and need us to make any adjustments to give you the best possible recruitment process, please let us know by contacting the recruiter on the right hand side of this page. Please also let us know if you need this job advert or the application form in a different format.

We will offer an interview to candidates with a disability or long-term condition who meet the minimum criteria for this role. You can opt into this scheme within the application form. Your response to this question is only used for this purpose, is only visible to the recruitment team and is not used for data monitoring.

We are an in-house recruitment team and will always aim to fill our roles directly in the first instance. If you're an agency, please click here for ways that you can work with us.