Paralegal - Professional & Commercial Risk

DAC Beachcroft LLP; West of England; On-site; GBP 22,000 - 30,000; Full time

Job summary

DAC Beachcroft LLP in Bristol seeks a Paralegal/Claims Handler to support the Professional Negligence Team across professional indemnity and employment practices liability claims. You will assist with case reviews, drafting, and coordinating with insurers, clients and experts, while gaining exposure to litigation avoidance and ADR methods.

The role requires a Graduate calibre candidate with strong IT skills and attention to detail, and offers a pathway to independent case handling within a

Qualifications

• Graduate calibre with an excellent academic record.
• IT literate with working knowledge of Word and Excel.
• Ability to meet deadlines and manage competing priorities.
• Proactive and takes initiative while collaborating with colleagues.
• Strong attention to detail and accuracy in drafting.
• Team oriented with a collaborative approach across locations.

Responsibilities

• Manage a caseload of lower value claims under supervision and develop knowledge of professional indemnity and EPL insurance law.
• Review new cases and draft correspondence to clients.
• Maintain ongoing contact with insurers and insured professionals and report progress.
• Instruct experts and external counsel where appropriate.
• Complete administrative tasks and handle confidential information per procedures.

Skills

Graduate calibre

IT literacy

Attention to detail

Deadline-driven

Team oriented

Strong communicator

Education

Bachelor's degree

Tools

Microsoft Word

Microsoft Excel

Job description

Paralegal/ Claims Handler

Department: Professional and Commercial Risk - Claims Handling

Employment Type: Permanent

Location: Bristol

Description

Our Professional Negligence Team specialises in advising professionals and their insurers when negligence claims arise. We work across a variety of service lines, including law, construction, architecture, property consultants, financial services, and accounting, offering tailored advice for each sector. Our expertise covers a wide range of claims, from straightforward disputes to complex, high-value cases, assessing professional standards and mitigating risks for our clients. We also handle Management Liability claims i.e. directors and officers and employment practices liability claims.

We take a proactive approach to resolving disputes, often employing creative solutions to avoid litigation where possible. The team is also well-versed in alternative dispute resolution methods, such as mediation, helping to achieve favourable outcomes efficiently and cost-effectively. Through our deep knowledge of industry-specific standards and regulations, we ensure that our clients receive expert guidance on navigating claims in their respective fields.

The Professional Negligence Team sits within the wider Professional and Commercial Risks team in our Bristol office. The team is ranked in Tier 1 in both the Legal 500 and Chambers directories, with a number of leading individuals named. It includes commercial litigation together with the longest established professional negligence team in Bristol, acting for most of the leading insurers, as well as large professional services firms themselves including leading global surveyors, solicitors and insurance brokers. Alongside the team sits a market leading claims handling team, DAC Beachcroft Specialist Claims Services, handling several thousand professional indemnity claims on an outsourced basis on behalf of London Market Insurers.

This role is a claims handling/paralegal role within the Professional Negligence Team handling Professional Negligence claims, Directors and Officers and Employment Practices Liability claims.

Key Responsibilities

• Manage a caseload of lower value claims under supervision. This will include developing a knowledge of professional indemnity law, employment practices liability, insurance law and coverage issues as well as the civil procedure rules and aspects of alternative dispute resolution. The role will provide training and supervision with a view to enabling you to independently assess liability and quantum, and advise on strategy for a claim;
• Conduct the review of new cases;
• Drafting correspondence to clients;
• Maintain ongoing contact with the insurer and insured professional throughout the process to report on progress and take further instructions;
• Instruct experts and external counsel where appropriate;
• Complete administrative tasks;
• Handle confidential information in line with the firms data security protocols.

Skills, Knowledge and Expertise

• Graduate calibre with an excellent academic record;
• Previous experience of working as a claims handler or similar within the field of professional indemnity is useful but not essential;
• IT literate with working knowledge of Word and Excel.
• Able to work to deadlines, prioritise own workload effectively under pressure and manage conflicting priorities;
• Proactive and demonstrating initiative in driving forward matters on own accord, seeking guidance and input from others where appropriate;
• Very good attention to detail and accuracy with drafting;
• Team oriented. A collegiate approach to sharing knowledge and working with colleagues across locations is essential;
• Committed and enthusiastic with a mature attitude to work and a desire to commit long term to a career in this field;
• Confident oral and written communication skills.

Additional Information

As a Disability Confident Scheme employer, we’re committed to providing an inclusive and accessible recruitment process. If you need any reasonable adjustments at any stage (including the application, assessment or interview process), please contact [e-mail] in confidence with the vacancy reference in the subject line, and we’ll be happy to help.