Managing Director, Litigation and Special Situations - Burson Buchanan

WPP · Europe

  • Senior
  • Full-time
  • Posted 2026-10-27
  • Confirmed live on 28 October 2026

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Job description

WPP is the trusted growth partner for the world’s leading brands.

We unite cutting-edge media intelligence and data solutions, world-class creativity, next-generation production, transformative enterprise solutions and expert strategic counsel in a single company – powered by exceptional talent and our agentic marketing platform, WPP Open, to help our clients navigate change, capture opportunity and deliver transformational growth.

We work with the world's most valuable brands and have global reach across 100+ markets, with deep local expertise.

Our people are the key to our success. We're committed to fostering a culture of creativity, belonging and continuous learning, attracting and developing the brightest talent, and providing exciting career opportunities that help our people grow.

For more information, visit WPP.com.

As a Managing Director at Burson Buchanan, you will be a principal growth engine, client counsellor, and key leader within our premier strategic advisory boutique. Burson Buchanan delivers high-level advisory and communications support to clients on major capital markets events, ongoing financial communications, high-profile litigation and government investigations, crises and other reputation-defining events. Backed by Burson’s global network and market-leading data, analytics and AI tools, Burson Buchanan is defining strategic communications advisory for the intelligence era.

As a key leader in our Litigation and Special Situations work, you will be responsible for building, launching, and scaling Burson Buchanan’s new Litigation Communications practice across the UK and Europe, as well as supporting the firm’s efforts to counsel clients on high-stakes capital markets events, crises and other market-shaping issues.

You will establish Burson Buchanan as the premier strategic advisory boutique for contentious matters in Europe. While this represents an exciting new capability for Burson Buchanan in the UK and Europe, you will build upon and draw strength from the deep crisis, regulatory, and corporate affairs expertise in Burson Buchanan in the U.S. and embedded across the wider Burson and WPP global networks.

As a business generator, you will leverage your deep network of relationships at leading law firms and in the executive ranks (especially at the General Counsel level) and boardrooms of leading companies to help originate new business leads and opportunities. As a strategic senior counsellor, you will oversee accounts and lead teams in responding to the market-shaping events faced by Burson Buchanan clients, ensuring we consistently deliver excellent client work and results.

As a member of the Burson Buchanan Senior Leadership Team (SLT), you will help shape the strategic direction of the firm. Leading by example, you will set the tone for a team culture that is built on high performance, teamwork, and open and respectful feedback to continue to elevate the value we bring to clients.

PRACTICE LEADERSHIP & STRATEGIC ADVISORY

• Shape the market offering: define and execute the go-to-market strategy to launch and scale Burson Buchanan’s Litigation Communications capability across the UK and Europe, building on the established work and expertise within Burson Buchanan in the U.S. and in lockstep with Burson’s broader litigation and crisis capabilities.

• Advise and lead: serve as a trusted advisor to C-suite, Boards, General Counsels, and outside legal counsel on high-stakes and high-profile litigation and government investigations, including:

• Securities & Financial Litigation

• Antitrust & Competition Matters

• Government & Regulatory Investigations

• White Collar Crime & Whistleblower Cases

• IP, Patent & Trade Secrets

• Class-Action, Collective Litigation & MDL

• Employee & Labour Disputes

• Client service leader: lead complex litigation, government investigations, and crisis and issues mandates, ensuring flawless execution, game-changing strategic positioning, and the highest standards of quality control across all deliverables.

• Innovate: champion bold, innovative, and data-informed comms strategies, leveraging our global network to support clients across complex legal and corporate communications challenges.

• Lead by example: operate with a true “player-coach” mindset—demonstrating the agility to transition seamlessly from board-level counsel to rolling up your sleeves on core deliverables, taking proactive ownership to solve both client and firm-wide challenges.

COMMERCIAL & BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT

• Origination & growth: act as a principal revenue driver, cultivating a deep referral network of law firm partners, litigators, litigation funders, and General Counsels across key UK and European legal hubs (London, Frankfurt, Paris, Brussels, Dublin).

• Pitch & proposal leadership: lead client pitches, RFPs, and crisis response mobilisations with speed, authority, and commercial rigor.

• Cross-selling: identify opportunities to cross-sell litigatio

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