Court Associate

Ministry of Justice; London Borough of Bromley; On-site; GBP 25,000 - 32,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Annual leave 25 days

Civil Service pension

Job summary

Ministry of Justice is seeking Court Associates to support Magistrates Court hearings. You will communicate confidently with the Judge and participants, and produce accurate, timely court documents. The role is office-based with full-time hours and requires on-site presence for court sittings.

Flexible working patterns may be considered in line with policy. Your duties include ensuring smooth daily court operations, speaking publicly as needed, and maintaining high standards of service.

Qualifications

• Confident communicator able to liaise with the Judge, defence, prosecution and public.
• Ability to produce accurate and timely court documents.
• Excellent communication, organisational and prioritisation skills.
• IT proficient with ability to learn different technologies and software.

Responsibilities

• Ensure smooth running of Magistrates Courts sittings on a daily basis.
• Intervene in court when required to maximise judicial sitting time.
• Produce exact, time-critical court documentation.
• Provide high-quality customer service in a public-facing role.

Skills

Public speaking

Communication

Document accuracy

Organisational skills

Interpersonal skills

IT proficiency

Tools

Office software

Job description

Our Court Associates are essential to ensure Magistrates Court hearings run smoothly. They have the self-assurance to communicate confidently with the Judge and all participants and the skill to produce accurate and timely Court documents., These operational roles are customer facing, requiring successful applicants to be office based to provide HMCTS services to the public. Standard full time working hours are 37 hours per week. HMCTS welcomes part-time, flexible and job-sharing working patterns, where they meet the demands of the role and business needs and are agreed prior to appointment. All applications for part-time, flexible and job-sharing working patterns will be considered in accordance with the MoJ's Flexible Working policy. New recruits to the Civil Service joining MoJ are expected to join at the band minimum. The nature of the role requires the postholder to be available on-site for full court sitting days. As a result, this role is unsuitable for applicants seeking to work part-days or hybrid working. Whilst applications for part-time working (minimum 29 hours 30 minutes per week) will be considered, we are not able to accommodate working patterns of fewer than four full working days per week for this specific role. Skilled Worker Visa This role is not eligible for new Skilled Worker visas in accordance with the current immigration rules. From 22 July 2025, the Government introduced changes to the Skilled Worker visa route. The department cannot consider sponsoring you for this role unless you have held a Skilled Worker visa prior to the 22 July 2025 changes. If you have held a Skilled Worker visa continuously, please raise this during your vetting checks and eligibility will be assessed in accordance with the immigration rules and transitional provisions in place. If you are applying for this role and you have not held a Skilled Worker visa prior to the 22 July 2025 changes, you will need to consider your options for obtaining and/or maintaining your right to work in the UK in light of these changes. Successful applicants must ensure they have and maintain the legal right to live and work in the Civil Service and in the United Kingdom. The Department will continue to comply with UK Immigration Rules applied in the UK and Civil Service. You can read more about Skilled Worker visas and the eligibility criteria here. Additional Information Working Arrangements & Further Information The MoJ offers Hybrid Working arrangements where business need allows. This is an informal, non-contractual form of flexible working that blends working from your base location, different MoJ sites and / or from home (please be aware that this role can only be worked in the UK and not overseas). All employees will be expected to spend a minimum of 60% of their working time in an office, subject to local estate capacity. Some roles will not be suitable for Hybrid Working. Similarly, Hybrid Working will not suit everyone's circumstances. Arrangements will be discussed and agreed with the successful candidate(s) and subject to regular review. For nationally advertised role: all successful candidates will be appointed to the nearest viable office nearest to their home postcode and on its respective pay scale. This will be at either a HQ building (subject to desk allocation, a Justice Collaboration Centre (JCC) or a Justice Satellite Office (JSO) - See Map. All employees will be expected to spend a minimum of 60% of their working time in an office, subject to local estate capacity). For current MoJ employees, your base location will need to be changed to the nearest viable office (to your home postcode), either at a HQ building, JCC or JSO within the National Office Network and moved its location's respective pay scale (any legacy arrangements/locations will need to be amended). Some of MoJ's terms and conditions of service are changing as part of Civil Service reform. The changes will apply to staff joining MoJ who are new to the Civil Service. Staff joining MoJ from other civil service employers will transfer onto the new MoJ terms if they are already on 'modernised' terms in their current post or onto 'unmodernised' MoJ terms if they are on 'unmodernised' terms at their current post. Details will be available if an offer is made. MoJ candidates who are on a specialist grade, will be able to retain their grade on lateral transfer. All candidates who are currently in receipt of Mark Time / Pay Protection should ensure they are familiar with the new policy on permanent and temporary promotion which can be found on the employee intranet. Flexible working hours The Ministry of Justice offers a flexible working system in many offices. Standard full time working hours are 37 hours per week. MoJ welcomes part-time, flexible and job-sharing working patterns, where they meet the demands of the role and business needs. All applications for part-time, flexible and job-sharing working patterns will be considered in accordance with the MoJ's Flexible Working policy., Managing a Quality Service Experience We will assess your experience for this role via the following methods Statement of Suitability Statement of Suitability Guidance for the Statement of Suitability Please tell us why you are suitable for this role. Demonstrate your transferrable skills, knowledge and experience against the essential criteria outlined in the job description. This can be work or education based or gained in other environments such as volunteering. Using the full word count and providing personalised real life evidence of experience gained will help achieve the highest scores. Evidence of Experience Statement of SuitabilityInterview stage assessments Interview Dates Interviews expected to take place via Teams w/c 14 December 2026 Behaviours Working Together Communicating and Influencing Delivering at Pace Strengths Strengths will be assessed but these are not shared in advance. To learn more about Strengths and how they are assessed please click here. Level of security checks required DBS Standard
You're a confident communicator; able to speak publicly, with the self-assurance to confidently liaise with the Judge, the defence, prosecution, media, members of the public and more, regarding complex and sensitive matters in a calm and professional manner. A real team player, working within a Legal Team and with a Judge, you'll ensure the smooth running of all the Magistrates Courts sitting daily, able to intervene in Court when required and maximise judicial sitting time. With experience in producing exact and time critical documentation, your ability to focus will be key in taking ple

• Ability to be a supportive team player delivering excellent customer service and achieve effective performance.
• Able to speak publicly and within a court room environment.
• Excellent communication, organisational and prioritisation skills.
• Ability to complete documents accurately and to deadlines.
• IT proficient with the ability to learn and adapt to different technologies and software packages.
  HM Courts & Tribunals Service (HMCTS) is responsible for the administration of criminal, civil and family Courts and Tribunals in England and Wales. Our roles support our service users and colleagues within HMCTS, where people and businesses access potentially life-changing justice. We're looking for individuals who are committed to public service and making a difference in people' lives to deliver justice. The Civil Service is committed to attract, retain and invest in talent wherever it is found. To learn more please see the Civil Service People Plan and the Civil Service Diversity and Inclusion Strategy.
• A Great Place to Work for Veterans The "Making the Civil Service a Great Place to work for veterans" initiative includes a guaranteed interview scheme to those who meet the minimum criteria to provide eligible former members of the Armed Forces with opportunities to secure rewarding jobs. Allowing veterans to continue to serve their country, and to bring highly skilled individuals with a broad range of experience into the Civil Service in an environment, which recognises and values your previous service in the Armed Forces. For further details about the initiative and eligibility requirements visit: https://www.gov.uk/government/news/making-the-civil-service-a-great-place-to-work-for-veterans
  The MoJ offers a range of benefits: Annual Leave Annual leave is 25 days on appointment and will increase to 30 days after five years' service. There is also a scheme to allow qualifying staff to buy or sell up to three days leave each year. Additional paid time off for public holidays and 1 privilege day. Leave for part-time and job share posts will be calculated on a pro-rata basis. Pension The Civil Service offers a choice of pension schemes, giving you the flexibility to choose the pension that suits you best. Training The Ministry of Justice is committed to staff development and offers an extensive range of training and development opportunities. Networks The opportunity to join employee-run networks that have been established to provide advice and support and to enable the views of employees from minority groups to be expressed direct to senior management. There are currently networks for employees of minority ethnic origin, employees with disabilities, employees with caring responsibilities, women employees, and lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender employees. Support A range of 'Family Friendly' policies such as opportunities to work reduced hours or job share.
• Working for the Civil Service The Civil Service Code sets out the standards of behaviour expected of civil servants. We recruit by merit on the basis of fair and open competition, as outlined in the Civil Service Commission's recruitment principles. Should you feel that the recruitment process has breached the recruitment principles you are able to raise a formal complaint in the following order
  • To Transformative Business Services (0345 241 5359 (Monday to Friday 8am - 6pm) or e mail [e-mail]);
  • To Ministry of Justice Resourcing team ([e-mail]);
  • To the Civil Service Commission (details available here)
  As a Disability Confident employer, MoJ are committed to providing everyone with the opportunity to demonstrate their skills, talent and abilities, by making adjustments throughout all elements of the recruitment process and in the workplace. MoJ are able to offer an interview to disabled candidates who meet the minimum selection criteria, except in a limited number of campaigns.