Part Time Legal Assistant

Exchange House Services Australia Pty Ltd; Sydney; On-site; AUD 55,000 - 75,000; Part time

Benefits offered by this job

Holistic wellbeing fund

Home office allowance

Job summary

Herbert Smith Freehills Kramer is seeking a capable Legal Assistant to join the Corporate Financial Services team in Sydney on a part-time parental leave contract until September 2027. You will support two Partners and two Senior Associates, in a job-share setup, with fixed Mon-Wed hours.

The role requires diary management, document handling, and strong client service, with billing oversight. Applicants should be law students with at least two years remaining in their degree, and prior legal

Qualifications

• Demonstrated experience as a Legal Assistant or senior legal support in a legal/services setting.
• Experience supporting senior stakeholders with calm, proactive approach.
• Strong discretion and judgment handling sensitive matters.

Responsibilities

• Manage complex diaries, inboxes, workflows, and competing priorities.
• Coordinate meetings, calls, events, and travel arrangements.
• Prepare, format, and manage documents and matters with high accuracy.
• Liaise with clients, internal and external stakeholders.
• Oversee billing processes, pre-bills, edits, finalisation and cost reporting.
• Support junior team members and mentor where needed.

Skills

Legal assistant experience

Diary management

Client service

Discretion and judgment

Staying organized

Mentoring juniors

Tech-savvy / AI awareness

Education

Law student with ≥2 years remaining

Tools

Billing systems

Matter management software

Job description

Herbert Smith Freehills Kramer: Your goals. Our ambition

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. We enjoy breaking new ground, as we have for over 170 years. 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.

The Opportunity

We are looking for an experienced Legal Assistant to join our Corporate Financial Services team in Sydney on a part-time, parental leave contract until September 2027. This role provides high-level support to two Partners and two Senior Associates in our busy Financial Services team and works as part of a job-share arrangement with another experienced Legal Assistant. The role is part-time, working Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday, 9.00am to 5.36pm - please note, these days are fixed and we cannot consider candidates unable to accommodate them for the duration of the contract. This is a great opportunity for a confident, organised and proactive Legal Assistant who enjoys being a trusted right-hand support to senior lawyers. You will be joining a high-performing, fast-paced practice where strong diary management, attention to detail, client service and the ability to manage competing priorities are essential. Please note, we can only consider law students with previous experience in legal assistant (not paralegal) roles who have 2 years or more remaining in their law degree.

What you’ll do

• Managing complex diaries, inboxes, workflows and competing priorities
• Acting as a key coordination point for the team across day-to-day administrative matters
• Preparing, formatting and managing correspondence, documents and matter administration to a high standard
• Coordinating internal and client meetings, calls, events and travel arrangements
• Liaising confidently with clients, internal stakeholders and external parties
• Managing billing processes, including pre-bills, edits, finalisation and cost reporting
• Monitoring deadlines, commitments and follow-up actions to help the practice run smoothly
• Supporting the team with client and industry meetings and events
• Working collaboratively with other Legal Assistants and Administrative Assistants across the Corporate group
• Helping identify efficient ways of working, including the use of technology and AI tools where appropriate

What you’ll bring:

• Demonstrated experience as a Legal Assistant or senior legal support professional within a legal or professional services environment
• Strong experience supporting senior stakeholders, with a calm, organised and proactive approach
• Excellent judgment, discretion and confidence managing sensitive matters
• Strong organisational skills with the ability to manage competing priorities and tight deadlines
• Experience with billing, reporting and matter management systems
• Previous job share experience is preferred but not essential
• A commitment to mentoring and guiding junior team members
• A service‑oriented mindset with a genuine commitment to enabling fee earners to focus on client delivery
• An innovative mindset, curious about AI and emerging technologies

What you can expect from us:

We're a world leading international law firm with a global team of over 6,000 professionals across 26 offices. As the market leader in Australia, we are committed to high performance, collaboration, diversity and digital innovation. We are client-centred, commercially driven, and renowned for our solution-focused expertise. We will align your growth with our ambitions. We make your personal and professional growth our business. And as part of the team, our ambition is yours too. Wherever you are in your career: grow and help the firm grow with you. We will provide opportunities to learn on the job as well as a mix of learning opportunities tailored to you. Daily experiences, supportive challenges, team collaboration, mentors, and structured learning opportunities help you to expand your knowledge and reach your goals. We value your wellbeing, both at home and work and we place a strong emphasis on mental health. If you need support, you'll have it and we'll empower you to harness your personal strengths, navigate uncertainty, embrace opportunities, and effectively manage things within your control.

For more benefits on offer such as our holistic wellbeing fund or home office allowance.

Join us to be part of a human, bold and outstanding team at Australia's market leading law firm.

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.

Team Corporate Working Pattern Part time Location Sydney Contract type Permanent Contract Diversity & Inclusion 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.

At Herbert Smith Freehills Kramer, we align your growth and ambition with ours. We invest in your personal and professional growth and support you to achieve your ambitions. And you share responsibility for playing a part in delivering the firm’s growth and ambition too. A leading global law firm, with over 6,000 people, we are in the world's largest markets, key financial centres and major growth hubs. We're recognised leaders in demanding contentious matters, exacting regulatory work and complex public and private transactions. We're immersed in the many challenges facing our clients. We're invested and resourceful. We understand the part technology and digitalisation play in the delivery of legal services. We want to make a positive impact wherever in the world we operate. You'll have the opportunity to engage with this with an open mind and curiosity. We are known for our diverse perspectives and renowned for our culture. Being human, bold and outstanding are more than our values: you'll discover they are our lived experience. And by being ambitious for your growth and ours, we'll achieve our goals together.

Herbert Smith Freehills Kramer: Your growth. Our ambition