Force Lawyer (Employment and Contracts)

Northumbria Police; Newcastle upon Tyne; Hybrid; GBP 53,000 - 59,000; Part time

Job summary

Join Northumbria Police as a Force Lawyer focusing on Employment Law. You will provide legal advice, manage cases, and conduct tribunal proceedings. This part-time role offers a competitive salary and the chance to make a difference in the community.

Qualifications

• Minimum of five years’ employment tribunal experience.
• Ability to manage own caseload and liaise with stakeholders.

Responsibilities

• Handle employment law cases and conduct tribunal proceedings.
• Offer legal advice on employment law issues.
• Conduct research into legislation and case law.

Skills

Employment Law

Legal Advice

Case Management

Research

Communication

Education

Solicitor of the Senior Courts of England and Wales

Job description

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Join to apply for the Force Lawyer (Employment and Contracts) role at Northumbria Police

This range is provided by Northumbria Police. Your actual pay will be based on your skills and experience — talk with your recruiter to learn more.

Base pay range

Direct message the job poster from Northumbria Police

Salary: Band 11 (starting salary £53,583 rising to £58,455, pro rata)

Location: Agile, Forth Banks Police Station and homeworking

Hours/Contract: Permanent, 22.5 hours per week

The role

Here at Northumbria Police, we think our region is amazing! It takes a great deal of people from different backgrounds, with diverse skills and experience to serve our force area effectively. Think you have what it takes to help us make a difference? This could be the perfect time for you to join us in our Legal Department as a Force Lawyer (Employment & Contracts).

Reporting to the Head of Legal, the role is primarily focused on providing Employment law advice to our People Department and defending Employment Tribunal claims with some quasi-commercial/contractual work required from time to time.

As one of two Force Lawyers specialising in Employment law you will provide a comprehensive legal service to the force in relation to employment legislation and case law. You will also assist the Head of Legal from time to time in respect of quasi-commercial/contractual work.

What you’ll do

• Casework Management: Handle allocated employment law cases, conduct employment tribunal proceedings including advocacy, manage resources, and liaise with relevant stakeholders to provide comprehensive legal services to the Chief Constable.
• Legal Advice: Offer timely and courteous legal advice on all employment law issues, ensuring high-quality support for decision-making processes.
• External Legal Specialists: Select, appoint, and monitor the performance of external legal specialists, complete necessary documentation, and obtain approval from the Legal Senior Management Team to ensure appropriate advice and representation, ensuring value for money.
• Legislation and Case Law Research: Conduct research into new legislation and case law, assess potential impacts on the force, and disseminate guidance to inform legal policies and procedures, minimizing litigation risks.
• Reporting and Communication: Prepare reports, briefing papers, tribunal updates and media statements with detailed recommendations and advice for internal departments or external bodies.
• Drafting and commercial/contractual advice: Draft agreements, memorandums of understanding, section 22 agreements under the Police Act 1996, transfer agreements and any other documents required and provide advice on the same.
• CPD: organise your own CPD and keep up to date with employment law changes.

What you’ll bring

• Admission as a solicitor of the Senior Courts of England and Wales.
• Minimum of five years’ employment tribunal experience, ideally in Respondent or predominantly Respondent practice.
• Previous experience of acting for public sector clients will be helpful but not essential.
• Experienced at: – managing own caseload from start to finish, organising necessary meetings, ongoing compliance with tribunal orders.
• Ability to identify key issues in a claim and determine the most effective resolution.
• Ability to work with and support other members of the department and to liaise with other areas of the force as necessary.
• Ability to identify issues affecting other areas of the force and to be able to communicate these through the SMT and to the Chief Officer Team and OPCC where necessary.
• Prior experience drafting contractual arrangements or an ability and willingness to learn.

Prior experience of police work is not required.

We know it’s important for you to feel that you’re not only part of a great team, but part of a community. We welcome applications from suitably qualified people from all sections of the community, regardless of age, disability, gender reassignment, marriage and civil partnership, pregnancy and maternity, race, religion or belief, sex, and sexual orientation.

Harnessing these differences creates a productive environment in which everyone feels valued, and their talents are fully utilised. Appointments are based on merit alone.

Interested to learn more? For further information about the role please contact Richard Heron, Head of Legal Services by email at [e-mail]

Just so you know

Our application form will help us understand how your work, education and life experience has prepared you for the role of a Force Lawyer Employment and Civil with #TeamNP. To help support your application research what makes us tick here at Northumbria, the role you’re applying for and the values and behaviours that contribute.

The recruitment process will consist of the initial application form followed by an interview. Just so you know, you can save your application and come back to it any time prior to the closing date on the advert.

We are proud members of the Business Disability Forum, with whom we collaborate with to improve the lives of disabled employees. We are also a Disability Confident Employer, therefore if you demonstrate that you meet the minimum criteria for this role as stated in the advert, we will progress your application and offer you an interview.

If you tell us that you have a disability, we can make adjustments to support you through the recruitment process (for example we can arrange extra time for tests or provide a sign language interpreter) You can get in touch with us via [e-mail] for any support regarding the application process. Please provide us with plenty of notice so we can ensure your visit goes smoothly.

If your application is successful, we’ll ask you to complete a Recruitment Vetting (RV) form, therefore you must be a resident of the UK for a minimum period of 3 years to ensure vetting checks can be successfully performed. A job offer will be dependent upon vetting clearance, medical information, and references.

Terms of appointment

This is a permanent role subject to a six-month probationary period.

If you are successful in your application, you will have a 6-month probation period with us where you will be unable to apply for any other post advertised internally or externally.

We reserve the right to close this vacancy early if we receive sufficient applications for the role. Therefore, if you are interested, please submit your application as early as possible.

Seniority level

• Seniority level

  Mid-Senior level

Employment type

• Employment type

  Part-time

Job function

• Job function

  Legal

• Industries

  Law Enforcement

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