Opportunities

Role Purpose

The successful candidate will provide general day-to-day administration and co-ordination support for the Legal Cashier department.

The role will work as part of a core team of four within the cashiers function.

They will support the team to deliver a high-level service to the firm ensuring we are compliant with the Solicitors Accounts rules, experience in this area will be extremely important to the business due to the risks involved.

They will be trained in our practice management system (SAP) and our Expense and Invoice management platform (Chrome River) in order to understand all the processes.

It is highly desirable that applicants have a genuine interest in the legal sector and a desire to work in a Finance role. Please note these roles are not a direct route to becoming a qualified lawyer at Baker McKenzie.

We are looking for someone who is able to communicate at all levels and develop strong working relationships with internal clients and suppliers. The ability to be organised and demonstrate a highly professional and committed attitude towards their work is crucial. You should also be both proactive and responsive, with strong communication skills.

In return, we offer a friendly and supportive working environment where you will be given the opportunity to reach your full potential.

Main Responsibilities

• Offering support to our core functions in our service centres (Manila and Belfast)
• Support and cover for the client/office account roles, bank reconcilitions and dealing with client money. (SRA guidelines)
• Responsible for checking, inputting and paying outside Counsel, Barrister and Professional fees (SRA guidelines)
• Processing office account cheque requests
• Responsible for monitoring our outside Counsel fee notes and other professional invoices ensuring these have been authorised and posted to SAP in a timely manner
• Dealing with multi-currency payments and payment of overseas Counsel fee's (liaison with overseas offices)
• Reviewing and approving Office and Client account payments using our online banking platform, SRA guidelines, adhering to rule 2.3 ensuring client money is paid promptly into a client account within 5 working days).
• Liasing with IP Tech team and reconciling fixed fee accounts (UKIPO, WIPO & EUIPO)
• Chasing of Chrome River unallocated credit card expenditure

About The Team

Function

The Finance function provides the following services to the Firm:

• Supporting strategic decision-making from a financial and business perspective
• Managing cash flow, including accounts payable, credit checks, billing and collections
• Ensuring Firm-wide purchasing excellent and efficiency
• Financial reporting, budgets, and forecasts
• Securing financing across the global Firm

The Team

The Finance and Accounting department has a culture of excellence - it's far more than just a back office function. We provide valuable financial advice and support to the business and its stakeholders.

As part of a world-class law firm, our clients expect the very best. To deliver a first-class service, we recruit the best, and offer a friendly working environment and structured career development. Our feedback culture will help you to thrive in your role.

Our 40-strong London team is led by our Chief Operating Officer and is structured into two broad areas:

Reporting and Accounting

This function looks after all of the Firm's reporting needs, both internal and external. This includes strategic planning and budgeting, management accounts, statutory accounts and tax work.

Finance Operations

This team is responsible for the day-to-day operations, including billing, collections, cash management & treasury, and client monies. This role involves adhering to the Solicitors Accounts Rules on a daily basis ensuring we are always compliant.

This role will report to the Head Cashier.

The key relationships of this role are with Finance colleagues, P2P team.

About the Candidate

Technical skills, qualifications and experience

• Entry Requirements: 280 UCAS Points (or equivalent)
• We are looking for someone who is willing with a flexible attitude and who displays:
  • Attention to detail: Quality and excellence are the foundations of our fluency; each of us is responsible for achieving uncompromisingly high standards in the service levels we provide and able to understand things from our internal clients' perspective
  • Strong Interpersonal Skills: Strong communicator, able to interact with team members and client contacts with confidence; able to listen effectively to truly understand needs and drivers of the business
  • Communication & Presentation Skills: Solid verbal communication; excellent written and report writing skills; must be able to communicate in English to advanced standard in both written and verbal work
  • Analysis and Insight: Good research skills; strong analytical thinking and ability; able to analyse key data and findings and then summarise for general presentation
  • Organisation and Planning: Manages own workload to ensure work is completed in time and a quality service is delivered even when under pressure; prioritises tasks based on their importance and urgency; communicates to internal clients any delays in work or areas of clarification before work is due for completion
  • Team work and Flexibility: Works harmoniously with different teams across the department and wider firm; proactively looks to support colleagues during times of heavy workload; shares information with colleagues relevant to their job; takes on new tasks as required and demonstrates flexibility and willingness to adapt to change
• In addition to the above, strong IT skills in Microsoft Office including Word, PowerPoint and Excel would be an advantage

Personal qualities

These personal qualities represent the shared characteristics of high performers across Baker McKenzie, regardless of job level and location.

Know how

• Demonstrates the ability to identify the real issue, and to anticipate requirements and potential consequences; distills a range of possibilities by thinking in a considered, prudent manner
• Has the capacity to take on new ideas and develop knowledge and think holistically about business and address media, analyst, employee, and client audiences
• Able to move through a variety of tasks requiring different approaches, knowledge, and expertise, with the agility of mind and capacity for analysis and synthesis

Dedication

• Driven by a strong personal sense of integrity and upholds exemplary quality standards
• Prepares thoroughly, takes responsibility, uses initiative and is self reliant to ensure work progresses to the fullest extent possible
• Hardworking and diligent with a keen understanding of client demands
• Demonstrates composure when dealing with difficult situations

Personal Impact

• Uses complex, coordinated influencing/negotiation strategies, adapted to people, organizations, and/or the situation, e.g. networks
• Leverages direct reports to facilitate increased collaboration across the organization
• Builds partnerships based on a common agreement that acknowledges individual differences but creates a new commonality beyond root belief large-scale
• Creates a positive impression at all times; develops relationships through collaboration and reciprocity
• Negotiates to achieve mutually satisfactory outcomes; shows good judgment on when to stand strong and when to compromise
• Invests in, nurtures, and builds a network of productive relationships

Humanity

• Respectful to others, regardless of their position, and earns the respect of others by being transparent
• Has care and concern for others and a genuine interest in others as people
• Treats delicate or confidential issues with grace and discretion.

Why Join Us?

Baker McKenzie is a truly global law firm. Founded in 1949, we advise many of the world's most dynamic and successful business organisations through our 13,200 people in 74 offices in 45 countries. Yet big does not mean impersonal. We work hard to ensure that everyone knows their role and has the support they need to perform it to the highest standard. Our culture encourages this - how we work, think and behave in a collaborative and fulfilling way.

In London you will be part of a 1,000 person office, which is also our largest office globally. Originally opened in 1961, Baker McKenzie London is well established in the UK as a leading international law firm and is regularly involved in some of the country's most high-profile legal matters. We can offer you the work, pride and experience of being part of a leading law firm but in a local office environment that is hardworking, friendly and supportive.

The strength of the firm and our culture is evidenced by a number of recent awards, including:

• Thomson Reuters (formerly Acritas' Sharplegal) Global Elite Law Firm Brand Index, 2010- 2022 - ranked 1st
• The Times Top 100 Graduate Employers 2021-2022: currently ranked 52nd
• Thomson Reuters ranked the Firm No. 1 for cross-border deals for the last 12 years. More than 70% of our deals are cross-border.
• For the 14th consecutive year, the Firm was ranked first for deals with emerging market involvement, by both number of announced and completed deals.
• Law360 ranked the Firm as one of the 400 Largest US Law Firms in in its annual survey in 2020.
• Identified as one of the Hall of Fame for best law firms for women by Working Mother magazine, 2011-2021.
• Received a a Gold Award in Stonewall's Global Workplace Equality Index of Top Global Employers for LGBTQ+ Inclusion.
• Ranked as one of the Top 20 Employers in the 2023 Social Mobility Employer Index.
• Received Double Certification for earning top marks in the 2022 Corporate Equality Index and Equidad MX of the Human Rights Campaign Foundation.
• Winner of the Europe Mentorship Programme - International Firm award in the Euromoney Women in Business Law Europe Awards 2021
• Winner of the Gender Diversity International Firm, Talent Management International Firm, and Work-Life Balance International Firm awards in the Euromoney Women in Business Law Asia Awards 2021

Have a look at our YouTube channel to find out more about us!

To Apply

Please click on the Apply icon to start the online application process for this role. We will then be in touch with you once we have reviewed your application.

For more information about this position or to discuss any adjustments you may require during the process please contact in confidence, David Roberts, Recruitment Manager, on +44 2070 72 5752 or David.Roberts@bakermckenzie.com

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NO AGENCIES PLEASE

Please note Baker McKenzie does not accept unsolicited CVs. Please click here for details of our Agency Policy and commitment to sourcing directly.

Commitment to Inclusion, Diversity & Equity

As the first truly global law firm, diversity and inclusion are foundational to our culture and strategic vision. We are a Firm of individuals from across the globe with different backgrounds, ideas, and points of view who collegially work together to solve complex problems and design practical solutions for our clients. Our multiple perspectives come from many sources, including the diverse ethnicity, culture, gender, nationality, age, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity and expression, disability, parental status, education, social background and life experience of our people.

Our global strategy is focused on our people, our culture, our clients and the communities where we operate. In 2019 we enacted ambitious new targets related to gender, racial and ethnic diversity at the Firm. These targets are viewed as a floor, not a ceiling, to advancing underrepresented groups, and they are backed by a variety of strategic initiatives aimed at achieving our goals. Our strategic vision is supported in London by six active employee led networks which champion diversity, lead on a number of internal campaigns and deliver a range of activity to celebrate differences in identity, inclusion, and key dates throughout the year including: LGBT+ History Month, International Women's Day, International Trans Day of Visibility, Mental Health Awareness Week, Pride, Black History Month, Social Mobility Week, International Day of Disabled Persons and many more!

Baker McKenzie London has been accredited by Disability Confident, joining over 18,000 organisations that have signed up to help change behaviours and cultures in businesses, networks and communities and reap the benefits of inclusive recruitment practices.