The Role Department: Legal Support Location:
Various Role: Practice Assistant
The Team As the single point of contact for Partners and
the completion of their work, the role will undertake all aspects of
the Practice Assistant role, or where appropriate, manage the workflow
by utilising Team Assistants and Document Production, retaining
ownership and accountability of all tasks through to completion.
Provide a high quality, comprehensive workflow management and
organisational service to fee earners in the group and exceptional
client service.
Key Responsibilities Client Relationship Management •
Become an active part in the care of clients and be wholly familiar
with contacts/clients and dealing with basic client queries as
appropriate. • Manage the production of documents and check
returned work produced by the Document Production team/speech
recognition for accuracy/formatting, before it is passed to the
relevant lawyer. • Taking and making client related calls,
dealing with and handling message taking as appropriate. •
Liaise with Client & Marketing and provide support for scheduling
tender meetings, directory interviews, client training
etc. • Manage Interaction and ensure new prospects, clients and
contacts, activities and business development information are
added. • Responsible for keeping up to date with client specific
protocols and processes, implementing, providing guidance and
training to others where necessary and ongoing monitoring.
Administrative • Responsible for files to be opened and
closed and supervise general filing requirements and record keeping
and production of engagement letters ensuring compliant at all
times. • Monitor and manage key dates for clients and
ensure compliance procedures are up to date on all files and
matters. • Support fee earners in business development activities
including the involvement in preparation of pitches and
presentations, scheduling meetings e.g. tenders, directories,
internal clients. • Work with business development managers
on the maintenance of CRM to ensure key client contacts are in
Interaction and 'bounce-backs' e.g. contacts with rejected email
addresses are reviewed, updated or archived from system. •
Assisting in the organisation of internal and external events,
seminars and conferences (vulture). • Manage diaries, ensuring
they are up-to date, anticipating requirements e.g. associated travel
/accommodation bookings, meeting rooms, drafting itineraries,
preparing agendas, preparing and circulating papers. • Produce
and maintain Excel spreadsheets as required. • First point of
contact for the team, dealing with queries and acting on initiative to
provide exceptional client service, promoting and developing ownership
within the teams. • Assisting in the tender process - liaising
with Business Development, collating outstanding information,
assisting with draft/final submissions. • Arrange for the
preparation and collation of internal sector newsletters and briefings
• Arrange photocopying, printing, organising couriers, sending
out letters, faxes etc • Receiving instructions via digital
dictation for tasks and acting upon the same • Maintaining
LinkedIn profile, updating connections and adding new activity •
Checks CVs, copies of old tenders • Manages enquiry inboxes, and
website queries
Communication • Key point of contact for allocated
Partners, Fee Earners and Clients to maintain relationships and
ensure a high level of support is always provided by the team. •
Monitor post and/or emails and dealing with as appropriate ensuring
all client related correspondence is passed on to an appropriate
Fee Earner and actioned as necessary; proactively responding to
and drafting responses on behalf of others, prioritising emails,
collating necessary paperwork and e-filing. • Liaising with and
providing support to their immediate colleagues in the department, and
where practical, other legal and support departments as requested by
Hub Leader. Assisting others where there is spare capacity or it
is evident that a colleague needs assistance with their
workload. • Answering phone calls for other members of the team
when they are away from their desk and participating in a lunch
time telephone rota within the Practice Assistant team. • Minute
taking, following up designated actions to ensure completion ahead of
the next meeting. • Liaison with and taking direction from your
Legal Support Manager • Liaise with the Legal Support Managers
over any planned absences, arranging cover as necessary and
communicating this to the relevant Fee Earners.
Processing • Responsible for managing priorities and
workloads to ensure deadlines are met. Liaising with Hub
Leader/Legal Support Managers where challenges arise. •
Responsible for managing the creation and maintenance of data rooms
and client information in accordance with case
milestones. • Responsible for ensuring client and matter data is
maintained and updated within appropriate systems, raising
requests with the BAU team as appropriate. • Online applications
e.g. Companies House, Land Registry, Searchflow, CRU forms •
Undertaking searches and completion of requisite forms and
submissions • Ensuring compliance with firm wide/department
policies and procedures
Customer Service • Arranging and attending team
meetings • Liaising with Fee Earners, Hub Leaders and Legal
Support Managers to take instruction and liaise on work
requirements. • Consistently and appropriately update service
users on progress where appropriate • Regularly offer assistance
wherever possible
Essential Skills & Experience • Advanced knowledge of
document management/case management systems • An effective
communicator with the ability to establish and build client
relationships; striving to provide exceptional service at all
times. • Customer/client service focused • Proven experience
of managing high level client facing tasks and priorities, with a
hands-on, practical approach. • Effective at investigating
issues and seeing a problem through to conclusion •
Conscientious, taking personal responsibility for own work and
accountability for its delivery and quality. • Excellent
team player, sharing in team goals to provide excellent quality and
efficiency of service, with a willingness to take on new
responsibilities and challenges. • Positive can-do attitude with
the ability to adapt to change • Confidential and discreet but
able to redirect information when appropriate to ensure areas of
concern are resolved effectively. • Well organised and methodical
with excellent attention to detail, ensuring accuracy in all client
communications and deliverables. Technical Skills •
Experience of working in a legal or professional services
environment • An aptitude for providing top level organisational
support, anticipating support needs, producing documents and
client communications of the highest standard. • Advanced
knowledge of Microsoft Office
Please click on the link to see the full job description.
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