Here at VWV our corporate team is thriving.  Renowned as a firm for our culture and values, we pride ourselves on providing our lawyers with the greatest exposure to high quality work at every stage of their career. We're now looking for a corporate lawyer with a strong grounding in M&A work to join any of the offices of our national offering. Whilst the role involves focusing on work for our education sector clients, we are open minded about your sector expertise within the corporate field.

Perhaps you've a couple of years of corporate expertise or maybe you've been practising for a number of years and feel frustrated by micro-management. If so, then look no further…. Here at VWV, we do things very differently!

About us

Although we have approaching 600 employees and four offices in Bristol, Birmingham, London and Watford, you'll be struck by our close-knit culture. We believe in integrity and authenticity - in each one of us being ourselves both in our interactions with each other and with our clients. That means you'll join a team and a firm that doesn't do arrogance - you'll join the "VWV family".

As a Top 100 UK law firm you won't be surprised by the quality of our work, but you may be surprised by the breadth of it. Our clients range from family owned business, SMEs, PLCs and multi-national organisations.

The opportunity

Whilst your expertise is important, it's your commerciality and approach that really matters to us.  Regardless of your level, you'll find yourself having direct contact with clients, many of whom will be at CEO, board and governor level. We want you to enjoy building up relationships with our clients; to feel a sense of ownership of your tasks and to relish in the satisfaction of a job well done.

With our clients coming largely from our education and charities sectors, you can feel confident that your workflow will be consistent and steady, and importantly, the matters on which you're acting, will often be high profile in nature. This is high calibre work for sectors in which we have an enviable reputation - an opportunity for you to accelerate your career faster than in many firms.  In working within a fast-paced and dynamic sector, you'll enjoy the collaborative working style that we adopt here at VWV.  This means that, upon joining, you'll find yourself quickly getting to know a range of lawyers across the teams and offices.

About you

You're a corporate lawyer with a passion for transactional work and either some experience in the education sector or simply an interest in it. This is an area where clients rely on us as trusted advisors to demonstrate empathy and understanding as well as technical excellence so you're someone for whom communication skills come easily and integrity is part of your DNA.

Perhaps you're currently in private practice and are looking for a change of culture, or maybe you're in house and are seeking a return to private practice…

Our team and reputation

From the moment you come on board, you'll join a close knit and collegiate team of around 30 experts across the offices.

We are a highly rated corporate team with a national presence.  A snapshot from Legal 500 (2025) demonstrates our sector focused approach and ability within the education field:

..""VWV stands out for its expertise in the education, technology and life sciences sectors, advising on a range of transactional corporate mandates and commercial matters. Boasting 'deep expertise in the education sector', Robert Collier leads the corporate practice and acts for proprietors, corporate owners and private equity funds on M&A, refinancing and corporate restructuring mandates."   

Where will I be working?

At VWV we have a truly unique and engaging culture that we hold dear. We work hard but we also love to have fun and we recognise that it's the social interaction between us that really shapes our culture. Whilst this role can be aligned to any of our offices in Bristol, London, Birmingham, or Watford, we would like you to work from one of our locations for 3 or more days a week so that you may benefit first-hand from our warm and friendly culture as well as facilitate cross referral opportunities from your colleagues in other teams. We are of course happy to discuss any specific requirements of hybrid working with candidates on an individual basis.                                     

Why choose us?

There are so many reasons to stop and explore VWV further.  We're known for our friendly and welcoming culture where teamwork and collaboration are key.  There's no pigeon-holing or glass ceilings here, just a professional yet relaxed culture where you can finally be yourself.  We invite you to watch this short video on the right-hand side to see what our own people have to say about us.

We're striving to be an inclusive employer, to create a workplace and environment that promotes and values diversity, where everyone, regardless of background, can reach their full potential. Contact our recruiter to discuss any adjustments needed so we can make this the best possible candidate experience for you.

At VWV, we're committed to your growth with our bespoke Learning Academy, offering structured career-level programs across core business areas to prepare you for promotion opportunities and career advancement - join us to unlock your full potential.

How to apply

Whilst we're renowned for our transparent and welcoming culture, we know that making the next career move can be daunting. We've all been there! To help you to get more of a flavour for life at VWV and to find out what our own people say about us, we invite you to watch this short video on the right hand side. If you feel ready to apply, then please click on the red "Apply Now" button at the foot of the advert.

If you have one or two questions on the role or firm before you feel happy to apply, please contact me, Emma Latchem-Hughes, Talent Acquisition Advisor, ELatchem-Hughes@vwv.co.uk or call me in complete confidence on 07340 632798.

Recruitment agencies

We're happy to accept agency introductions for this vacancy subject to the acceptance of our standard agency terms.  If you're an agency and think you might have a suitable candidate, please make an anonymous approach to our Recruiter.