Financial services employment

We have a specialist team of employment lawyers who have experience in both advising and working ‘in-house’ at a number of large banking and finance institutions.

Financial Services Employment

Organisations that are authorised and regulated by one of the main financial services regulators have a myriad of extra rules to comply with.

We have a specialist team of employment lawyers who have experience in both advising and working ‘in-house’ at a number of large banking and finance institutions. Not only do they know how to apply the law, but they also understand and apply it in the context of the additional sensitive, reputational and regulatory issues that can arise.

Most individuals working in the financial services sector are impacted to some degree by the Senior Managers and Certification Regime (SMCR). SMCR was implemented in 2016 initially for large banks, but over the last few years, has been extended to cover almost 60,000 companies. SMCR affects the entire employment life cycle, from what you need to put in your employment contracts and offer letters, right through to how you carry out disciplinary investigations involving breaches of the Conduct Rules and facilitate an exit process. Disputes often arise about whether an individual’s conduct will affect their fitness and propriety, their conduct record and the contents of any regulatory reference – making employment litigation more complex and often harder to resolve. Our team of experienced lawyers can help guide you through these complex rules to get the best outcome for you.

Our team has advised financial institutions, including banks, building societies and insurance companies on the following:

  • On-boarding documentation, including offer letters and contracts
  • HR policies and procedures, particularly relating to disciplinary, performance, fitness and propriety and referencing processes
  • Exit negotiations
  • Bonus disputes
  • SMCR requirements and best practice across the employment lifecycle
  • Regulatory references
  • Complex employment tribunal litigation
  • Post-termination restrictions.

Employment support for financial services

If you would like to speak to a member of our team about employment support, please contact Olivia Toulson via [email protected] or 01223 643145.

The Birketts employment team are pragmatic, responsive and great to deal with. Their advice is always well reasoned and practical.

Legal 500 [UK 2022]

Employee working on laptop in sunny room

The Senior Managers and Certification Regime Brochure

The Senior Managers Certification Regime (SMCR) was introduced
in the wake of the 2008 financial crisis in order to bring individual responsibility and improved culture to the financial services and insurance industry.

Download our guide to this topic here.

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