Associate/Senior Associate, Human Rights Abuse Claims, 3-5PQE (12 month FTC)

Leigh Day And Co; Greater London; On-site; GBP 70,000 - 100,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Hybrid working 2-3 days from home

29 days annual leave

Enhanced pension contributions

Life assurance 4 x salary

Cycle to Work scheme

Discounted gym membership

Enhanced maternity & paternity pay

Electric car scheme

Job summary

Leigh Day is seeking an Associate/Senior Associate in London to cover a maternity leave within the Human Rights, Abuse Claims team. The role handles individual and small group abuse claims, including Human Rights Act damages, with funding via CFA and Legal Aid.

You will supervise junior lawyers and paralegals, manage deadlines, and work with vulnerable clients using trauma-informed practices. Hybrid/flexible working options apply.

Qualifications

• Qualified lawyer with ~3-5 years' PQE in a relevant area of law.
• Experience of managing claimant private law claims involving personal injury and human rights breaches.
• Experience working with vulnerable individuals and/or a challenging client group with the ability to build trust and confidence.
• Strong emotional resilience given that working with this client group can be emotionally challenging at times.
• Experience of supervising paralegals and other junior team members.
• Strong practical experience of the operation of the LAA scheme.

Responsibilities

• Oversee a caseload of individual abuse claims and small group claims, including Human Rights Act damages.
• Support supervising junior solicitors and paralegals in the team.
• Work within the LAA funding framework and manage alignments with private law responsibilities.
• Contribute to high-quality advocacy and settlement discussions for vulnerable clients.

Skills

PQE 3-5 years

Domestic civil law

Human rights breaches

Personal injury experience

Vulnerable clients

Case management

Team supervision

Education

Qualified lawyer

Tools

MS Word

Excel

Case Management Systems

Outlook

Job description

• Associate/Senior Associate, Human Rights, Abuse Claims, 3-5PQE (12 month FTC)

Associate/Senior Associate, Human Rights, Abuse Claims, 3-5PQE (12 month FTC)

Department:

Human Rights

Location:

London

Competitive

Contract type:

fixed term contract

About the team

This role will join Alison Millar's team, which specialises in conducting claims for adult survivors of non-recent sexual or physical abuse in childhood, claims for the mistreatment of children and adults at risk of harm in care settings and individuals who have suffered sexual assault in a healthcare setting or within the workplace.

The team has extensive experience of claims brought against a wide range of organisations including local authorities, in relation to abuse perpetrated in children's homes and community schools; independent schools; churches; sporting organisations and membership organisations.

About the role

We are looking for a 3-5 PQE solicitor to join the team to cover a period of maternity leave within the team. The role will oversee a caseload of individual abuse claims and small group claims, including claims for Human Rights Act damages, for children and adults, including individuals with additional needs. The claims are funded by a mixture of Conditional Fee Agreements and Legal Aid funding, therefore we are seeking a candidate with experience of the Legal Aid system.

They will also support overseeing the junior solicitors and paralegals in the team. This role will suit someone who has a solid grounding in private law claims involving personal injury and human rights breaches, ideally within the context of abuse work.

Please note it is critical that applicants understand that this role will require working on cases, some of which involve sexual abuse, the details of which may be distressing. Working for abuse survivors can be very rewarding but also personally challenging, requiring emotional resilience and an ability to work in a trauma-informed and boundaried way.

The full JD is available to download from our website listing.

What you'll bring

• Ability to demonstrate a commitment to equality, access to justice and affordable legal advice of the highest quality.
• Qualified lawyer with ~3-5 years' PQE in a relevant area of law.
• Relevant knowledge of domestic civil law and procedure.
• Demonstrable experience with managing claimant private law claims involving personal injury and human rights breaches.
• Experience working with or on behalf of vulnerable individuals and / or a challenging client group with the ability to build trust and confidence.
• Ability to manage difficult situations and conversations.
• Strong emotional resilience given that working with this client group can be emotionally challenging at times.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills, and the ability and sensitivity to tailor these to the intended audience.
• Experience of managing a large number of cases with limitation/service and court deadlines.
• Strong experience in using a variety of IT packages (MS Word, Excel, Case Management Systems and Outlook).
• Experience in working and contributing effectively to a team environment.
• Strong academic background.
• Experience of supervising paralegals and other junior team members.
• Strong practical experience of the operation of the LAA scheme.
• Direct experience of working on sexual and physical abuse claims will be highly advantageous.

About Leigh Day

We are a top 100 law firmcommitted to claimant-only cases, ensuring that individuals have the same access to justice as the UK Government and large corporations. We're not afraid to take on difficult and challenging cases involving medical negligence, serious personal injuries, discrimination in the workplace, defective products and human rights abuses in this country and overseas.

• Hybrid working (typically 2-3 days from home for a full time worker)
• 29 days annual leave (excluding public holidays)
• Enhanced pension contributions
• Life assurance 4 x salary
• Cycle to Work scheme
• Discounted gym membership
• Enhanced maternity & paternity pay
• Electric car scheme

Commitment to equality, diversity, and inclusion

Leigh Day is committed to the principles of equality, diversity, and inclusion. We value the diversity of our colleagues, our clients and the third parties with whom we work. We seek to create an environment where everyone feels included and valued for their unique characteristics, skills and abilities and supported in their needs and responsibilities.

We welcome applicants from all sections of the community regardless of age, sex, gender (or gender identity), ethnicity, disability, sexual orientation and transgender status. Please let us know if you would like to discuss any reasonable adjustments at any stage of the application or recruitment process. There is an option to detail this on your application form, however, please just get in touch should you wish to discuss this prior to formally submitting an application. Please note all conversations or disclosures are treated in the strictest confidence.