Casualty Local Government Paralegal

Weightmans; Leeds; On-site; GBP 21,000 - 27,000; Full time

Job summary

Weightmans is recruiting a Paralegal for our Local Government Team in Leeds. You will support fee earners with case management, legal research, witness statements, and court preparation, contributing to client reports and hearings.

You'll handle EL/PL casualty claims, Highways, social care matters, and aim to meet deadlines, SLAs, and KPI targets, under supervision or autonomously as required. Strong drafting and communication skills are essential.

Qualifications

• Current experience of assisting with EL/PL casualty claims is essential
• Good drafting skills
• Good communication skills
• Good time management and organisation skills

Responsibilities

• Assist fee earners with case management, legal research, drafting of witness statements and reports to clients and preparation for court hearings
• Attend client meetings and court hearings to support fee earners
• Assist with instruction of Counsel and experts and respond to correspondence from clients and other parties
• Review records and support business development activities
• Ensure deadlines, SLAs, quality measures and KPIs are adhered to

Skills

EL/PL casualty claims

Drafting skills

Communication skills

Time management

Job description

About your new role

Our Casualty team provides a full, expert service in defending public (PL) and employers' liability (EL) claims, across the private sector and the public sector. Weightmans' team is second-to-none in providing defendant litigation services in these and other specialist Casualty areas. We operate on a national basis with dedicated commercial insurance and public sector teams and as part of our wider specialism we have a dedicated Casualty Fraud team.

We are currently recruiting for a Paralegal to join our Local Government Team based inLeeds.

As a Paralegal the role will see you assisting fee earners with various tasks including general case management, legal research, drafting of witness statements and reports to clients and preparation for court hearings, attending client meetings and court hearings to support fee earners, assisting with the instruction of Counsel and experts, responding promptly and accurately to correspondence and telephone enquiries from clients and other parties, with and without supervision, and reviewing records, as well as supporting the team’s business development activities.

• Predominantly PI including EL, PL and Highways
• Property damage
• Social Care
• Data Protection/GDPR
• Educational Establishments
• Complete MI procedures as and when required
• Achieve set financial and chargeable targets
• Ensure relevant deadlines, SLAs, quality measures and KPI’s are adhered to
• Comply with relevant policies and procedures

The above is not intended to be exhaustive and you will be expected to perform other duties and have other responsibilities that fall within the wider remit of the role. As a Paralegal you will also ensure that you comply with the relevant Weightmans and client policies and procedures, and consistently work in accordance with our values.

About You

You will have previous experience as a Paralegal and a genuine and demonstrable interest in the above area of work. As the role is varied, we are looking for you to have a flexible approach to the work you do and be able to adapt to different tasks. We also require you to have:

• Current experience of assisting with EL/PL casualty claims is essential
• Some knowledge of PL, EL, Highways,Social Care
• Experience of handling own casualty caseload
• Good drafting skills
• Good influencing skills.
• Good communication skills.
• Good interpersonal and team working skills
• Good IT skills
• Good written and communication skills
• Good time management and organisation skills
• Good attention to detail and concentration
• Ability to multi-task and prioritise
• Ability to work to strict deadlines
• Ability to work as part of a team and on own initiative
• Knowledge of CPR procedure with proven technical ability.

If you meet our criteria and think this is a job where you could bring enthusiasm and an eagerness to learn, then we look forward to receiving your application.

Why work for us