About the Role
The Solutions Architect is a critical, client-facing role responsible for designing and delivering the technical architecture that powers the Strategic Applications team's client solutions. This role operates at the intersection of legal process, technology, and commercial delivery, with solutions deployed directly on client matters and evaluated on quality, reliability, and fitness for purpose.
Responsibilities
- Develop high-level and detailed solution architectures aligned to enterprise architecture standards, ensuring they are proportionate to the client mandate and deliverable within the constraints of a chargeable engagement.
- Define end-to-end solution design across document management, workflow, AI, knowledge, and data systems — starting from the legal workflow and working to the technical architecture, not the reverse.
- Design scalable integration patterns using APIs, webhooks, workflow orchestration, and agent/automation frameworks.
- Produce clear and robust architecture documentation including process maps, sequence diagrams, data flow diagrams, and technical specifications.
- Map legal workflows end to end — including handoffs between people, systems, and processes — before committing to a solution architecture.
- Design and build API integrations between core legal technology platforms and connected systems.
- Integrate core legal technology platforms including SharePoint / SharePoint Online, Microsoft Power Platform, HighQ or alternative platforms, Legatics, Kira, Contract Express, DocuSign, ShareDo, and iManage / NetDocuments.
- Design integration solutions involving Generative AI-enabled legal assistants and LLM-based platforms, integrating tools such as legal-specific GenAI solutions and foundation models.
- Ensure all integration architectures meet the firm's information security, data classification, access control, and information governance requirements.
- Partner with lawyers, innovation teams, PMOs, and business services teams to translate legal and business needs into robust technical solutions.
- Advise on the commercial implications of architectural decisions, including the cost, time, and risk profile of proposed solutions.
- Participate in vendor assessments, RFPs, and procurement activity.
- Contribute to business case proposals for addressing gaps in core infrastructure.
- Conduct and manage proofs of concept and contribute to AI governance and risk assessments for emerging technologies.
- Take ownership of the risk profile of every solution architecture produced.
- Identify, document, and escalate architectural risks before solutions are deployed on live client matters.
- Ensure solutions are designed with data security, client confidentiality, and regulatory compliance built in from the outset.
- Maintain awareness of the commercial and legal consequences of architectural failure in a chargeable, client-facing environment and design accordingly.
Requirements
- Strong knowledge of integration methods: REST APIs, Graph API, JSON, XML, OAuth, SSO, and event-driven architecture, with experience integrating external platforms using well‑structured, resilient integration patterns.
- Experience integrating LLM‑based and agentic platforms into enterprise solutions, including vendor‑provided MCPs and model APIs, with consideration of context exchange, tool invocation, and access control.
- Understanding of secure and scalable patterns for consuming external AI services, including rate limiting, error handling, versioning, auditability, and the management of prompts, context, and data boundaries in legal environments.
- Experience with workflow automation and orchestration tools (Logic Apps, Clio Operate, Power Automate, Nintex, or equivalent).
- Proficiency in data modelling and schema design, including JSON schema and relational data models.
- Experience with process mapping tools and notation (e.g. Visio, Miro, Lucidchart, or BPMN-compliant tooling).
- Familiarity with Microsoft 365 cloud ecosystem and Azure integrations.
- Working knowledge of document management systems, with iManage strongly preferred.
- Familiarity with collaboration and virtual data room platforms (HighQ, Datasite, Intralinks, Ansarada) and their role in transaction workflows.
- Exposure to Generative AI integration, including LLM-based platforms, prompt engineering, RAG architecture, and LLM orchestration frameworks (e.g. LangChain, Azure AI Studio).
- Understanding of security architecture principles including data classification, access control design, and legal-sector information governance frameworks.
- Ability to read and interpret legal technology platform documentation and connect technical outputs to legal process outcomes.
- Proven experience working with or supporting a law firm, ALSP, or legal operations team — preferably with direct exposure to corporate or transactions work.
- Demonstrated end-to-end understanding of at least one legal workflow type, for example: M&A due diligence, Contract lifecycle management, or Transaction management workflows.
- Awareness of matter economics: the ability to scope solutions in a way that is commercially sound, and to understand the relationship between architectural decisions and fee recovery on client matters.
- Excellent stakeholder engagement skills and the ability to translate complex legal and business needs into coherent architectural designs.
- Approaches solution design client-need-first: interrogates what the client is trying to achieve legally and commercially before reaching for a technical answer.
- Strong communicator, able to bridge the gap between legal, technical, and business teams.
- Analytical and critical thinker with a structured, disciplined approach to problem-solving.
- Proactive and intellectually curious, with a genuine interest in evaluating emerging technologies while exercising strong architectural judgement.
- Able to manage multiple projects and priorities in a fast-paced environment, including during live transactions where time constraints are acute.
- Risk-conscious: understands the personal, commercial, and legal consequences of errors in a chargeable, client-facing environment and takes responsibility for the risk profile of their own work.
- Collaborative by default: recognises that the best outcomes for clients come from working closely with the Senior Analyst and wider team, maintaining shared understanding of the workflow from end to end.
Skills
- REST APIs
- Graph API
- JSON
- XML
- OAuth
- SSO
- Event-driven architecture
- LLM-based platforms
- Agentic platforms
- MCPs
- Model APIs
- Prompt engineering
- RAG architecture
- LLM orchestration frameworks
- Workflow automation
- Data modelling
- Schema design
- JSON schema
- Relational data models
- Process mapping
- Microsoft 365
- Azure integrations
- Document management systems
- iManage
- HighQ
- Datasite
- Intralinks
- Ansarada
- Generative AI integration
- LangChain
- Azure AI Studio
- Security architecture principles
- Data classification
- Access control design
- Information governance frameworks
- Stakeholder engagement
- Commercial scoping
- Risk assessment
Location
- London
Work Type
- Full time
- Permanent Contract
Experience Level
- Senior
About the Company
- Herbert Smith Freehills Kramer is a world-leading global law firm, where our ambition is to help you achieve your goals.
- Exceptional client service and the pursuit of excellence are at our core.
- We invest in and care about our client relationships, which is why so many are longstanding.
- As a fully integrated transatlantic and transpacific firm, we are where you need us to be.
- Our footprint is extensive and committed across the world’s largest markets, key financial centres and major growth hubs.
- At our best tackling complexity and navigating change, we work alongside you on demanding litigation, exacting regulatory work and complex public and private market transactions.
- We are recognised as leading in these areas.
- We are immersed in the sectors and challenges that impact you.
- We are recognised as standing apart in energy, infrastructure and resources.
- And we’re focused on areas of growth that affect every business across the world.
- All of this is achieved by supporting the growth of our people, who help us deliver on our ambition – which is to help you achieve yours.
- Herbert Smith Freehills Kramer: Your goals. Our ambition
Equal Opportunity
- We are committed to attracting people from all backgrounds and creating a respectful and inclusive culture where everyone thrives. We see this as essential to our success, including our ability to innovate and achieve sustained high performance. This is a key part of our Values—Human, Bold, and Outstanding.
