Legal Support Assistant

Clyde & Co; Manchester; On-site; GBP 25,000 - 35,000; Full time

Job summary

Clyde & Co is seeking a Legal Support Assistant in Manchester, serving as a primary contact for Partners and Fee Earners. This role encompasses managing document processes, enhancing client relationships, and providing exceptional administrative support, contributing to a collaborative environment within a leading legal firm.

Benefits

Healthcare

Retirement Planning

Wellbeing Initiatives

Qualifications

• Advanced knowledge of document management/case management systems.
• Proven experience of managing client-facing tasks with a practical approach.
• Conscientious, taking personal responsibility for quality deliverables.

Responsibilities

• Manage the production of documents and check returned work for accuracy.
• Support fee earners in business development activities and preparation of pitches.
• Monitor and manage key dates for clients, ensuring compliance procedures.

Skills

Communication

Customer Service

Document Management

Organization

Attention to Detail

Job description

The Role

As the single point of contact for Partners and Fee Earners and the completion of their work, the role will undertake all aspects of the Legal Support Assistant role, or where appropriate, manage the workflow by utilising Administrative Assistants and Document Production, retaining ownership and accountability of all tasks through to completion. Provide a high quality, comprehensive workflow management and organisational service to Fee Earners in the group and exceptional client service.

Key Responsibilities

Client Relationship Management

• Manage the production of documents and check returned work produced by the Document Production team/speech recognition for accuracy/formatting, before it is passed to the relevant lawyer.
• Taking and making client related calls, dealing with and handling message taking as appropriate.
• Manage Interaction and ensure new prospects, clients and contacts, activities and business development information are added.
• Responsible for keeping up to date with client specific protocols and processes, implementing, providing guidance and training to others where necessary and ongoing monitoring.
  
  

Administrative

• Responsible for files to be opened and closed and supervise general filing requirements and record keeping and production of engagement letters ensuring compliant at all times.
• Monitor and manage key dates for clients and ensure compliance procedures are up to date on all files and matters.
• Support fee earners in business development activities including the involvement in preparation of pitches and presentations, scheduling meetings e.g. tenders, directories, internal clients.
• Manage diaries, ensuring they are up-to date, anticipating requirements e.g. associated travel /accommodation bookings, meeting rooms, drafting itineraries, preparing agendas, preparing and circulating papers.
• Produce and maintain Excel spreadsheets as required.
• First point of contact for the team, dealing with queries and acting on initiative to provide exceptional client service, promoting and developing ownership within the teams.
• Arrange for the preparation and collation of internal sector newsletters and briefings.
• Arrange photocopying, printing, organising couriers, sending out letters, faxes etc.
• Receiving instructions via digital dictation for tasks and acting upon the same.
  
  

Communication

• Key point of contact for Fee Earners and Clients to maintain relationships and ensure a high level of support is always provided by the team.
• Monitor post and/or emails and dealing with as appropriate ensuring all client related correspondence is passed on to an appropriate Fee Earner and actioned as necessary; proactively responding to and drafting responses on behalf of others, prioritising emails, collating necessary paperwork and e-filing.
• Liaising with and providing support to their immediate colleagues in the department, and where practical, other legal and support departments as requested by Hub Leader.
• Answering phone calls for other members of the team when they are away from their desk and participating in a lunch time telephone rota within the Practice Assistant team.
• Minute taking, following up designated actions to ensure completion ahead of the next meeting.
• Liaising with and taking direction from your Legal Support Manager.
• Liaise with the Legal Support Managers over any planned absences, arranging cover as necessary and communicating this to the relevant Fee Earners.
  
  

Financial

• Assisting fee earners with billing related tasks.
• Reviewing and updating time allocation and disbursements ensuring appropriate matter allocation.
• Request cheques, bank transfers, and paying in money received, as appropriate.
• Supporting the co-ordination of the WIP process.
• Dealing with matter related finance administration to include APRs, BACs, TTs.
• Processing expenses.
  
  

Processing

• Responsible for managing priorities and workloads to ensure deadlines are met and liaising with Hub Leader/Legal Support Managers where challenges arise.
• Responsible for managing the creation and maintenance of data rooms and client information in accordance with case milestones.
• Responsible for ensuring client and matter data is maintained and updated within appropriate systems, raising requests with the BAU team as appropriate.
• Online applications e.g. Companies House, Land Registry, Searchflow, CRU forms.
• Undertaking searches and completion of requisite forms and submissions.
• Ensuring compliance with firm wide/department policies and procedures.
  
  

Customer Service

• Arranging and attending team meetings.
• Liaising with Fee Earners, Hub Leaders and Legal Support Managers to take instruction and liaise on work requirements.
• Consistently and appropriately update service users on progress where appropriate.
• Regularly offer assistance wherever possible.
  
  

Essential Skills & Experience

• Advanced knowledge of document management/case management systems.
• An effective communicator with excellent customer and client service approach; striving to provide exceptional service at all times.
• Proven experience of managing client facing tasks and priorities, with a hands-on, practical approach.
• Effective at investigating issues and seeing a problem through to completion.
• Conscientious, taking personal responsibility for own work and accountability for its delivery and quality.
• Excellent team player, sharing team goals to provide excellent quality and efficiency of service, with a willingness to take on new responsibilities and challenges.
• Positive can-do attitude with the ability to adapt to change.
• Confidential and discreet but able to redirect information when appropriate to ensure areas of concern are resolved effectively.
• Well organised and methodical with excellent attention to detail, ensuring accuracy in all client communications and deliverables.
  
  

When you work at Clyde & Co, you join a team of 490 partners, 2,400 lawyers, 3,200 legal professionals and 5,500 people in nearly 70 offices and associated offices worldwide. Our values are the principles that guide the decisions we make, unite us in our endeavours and strengthen our delivery, for both our clients and our firm. We work as one, excel with clients, celebrate difference and act boldly. We are committed to operating in a responsible way by progressing towards a diverse and inclusive workforce that reflects the communities and clients it serves. We are devoted to providing an environment in which everyone can realise their potential, using its legal and professional skills to support its communities. We do this through pro bono work, volunteering and charitable partnerships, and minimising the impact it has on the environment, including through our commitment to the SBTi Net-Zero standard and the setting of ambitious emissions reduction targets.

We offer a range of tailored benefits and support, including healthcare, retirement planning and wellbeing initiatives.

Clyde & Co is proud to be an equal opportunities employer. Our core values encourage us to support fairness, celebrate diversity and prohibit all forms of discrimination in the workplace to allow everyone to excel at work. Therefore, we welcome and encourage all applications from suitably qualified individuals, regardless of background or identity.

Please take a moment to read our privacy notice carefully. This describes what personal information Clyde & Co (we) may hold about you, what it’s used for, how it’s obtained, your rights and how to contact us as a data subject.

If you are submitting a candidate as a Recruitment Agency Partner, it is an essential requirement and your responsibility to ensure that candidates applying to Clyde & Co are aware of this privacy notice.