Principal Housing Lawyer

Epping Forest District Council; United States; Hybrid; USD 60,000 - 87,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Hybrid working

Job summary

Epping Forest District Council is seeking an experienced legal professional to provide high-quality housing law advice and representation to the Council, its Members, officers and partner organisations. The role supports statutory functions, ensures compliance with legislation, and manages risk while delivering effective outcomes for the community.

The successful candidate will handle a varied caseload from instruction to conclusion, conduct or instruct advocacy in courts and tribunals, draft

Qualifications

• Qualified Solicitor, Barrister, Legal Executive or equivalent.
• Experience advocating in Magistrates and County Court.
• Experience advising on whether there is sufficient evidence to issue or defend.
• Strong technical experience in housing management and landlord/tenant matters.
• Experience managing a large caseload with excellent outcomes.
• Knowledge of pre-action protocols and Civil Procedure Rules.
• Knowledge of housing management law for social landlords and regulated housing.
• Awareness/experience of the Data Protection Act 2018.

Responsibilities

• Provide expert legal advice on a wide range of housing matters, including homelessness duties, allocations and housing registers, tenancy management, possession proceedings, ASB, disrepair and housing conditions.
• Draft legal documents including pleadings, witness statements and settlement agreements; liaise with external counsel as required.
• Manage a varied caseload from instruction through to conclusion; conduct or instruct advocacy in courts and tribunals.

Skills

Housing law expertise

Advocacy in courts

Policy advice

Data protection awareness

Drafting legal documents

Education

Solicitor/Barrister qualification

Job description

To provide high-quality, professional legal advice and representation on all aspects of housing law to the Council, its Members, officers, and partner organisations. The role supports the authority's statutory functions, ensuring compliance with legislation while managing legal risk and delivering effective outcomes for the community. The role holder will be required to ensure that all casework is well managed and dealt with in an efficient and cost-effective manner, ensure that the organisations regulatory, statutory and common law obligations are met. Additionally, to raise awareness of developments within the sector, identify risk and provide training as required to the organisation, be an effective business partner to key internal stakeholders within the organisation who require support and advice in respect of their housing management operations and housing litigation. This role is specific to supporting our Housing & Property Directorate, however, subject to business need there may be a requirement to assist with other areas and conduct work not set out under 'accountabilities' below, such as building compliance, compensation requests, complaints.

Key Responsibilities

• Provide expert legal advice on a wide range of housing matters, including:
• Homelessness duties (Housing Act 1996, Homelessness Reduction Act 2017)
• Allocations and housing registers
• Tenancy management, possession proceedings, and evictions
• Anti-social behaviour (ASB legislation and injunctions)
• Disrepair claims and housing conditions
• Equality and human rights considerations in housing decisions
• Advise on policy development, ensuring compliance with statutory obligations and best practice.
• Manage a varied caseload of housing law matters from instruction through to conclusion.
• Conduct or instruct advocacy in courts and tribunals, including:
  • County Court possession claims
  • Judicial review proceedings
  • Appeals and homelessness reviews
• Draft legal documents including pleadings, witness statements, and settlement agreements.
• Liaise with external counsel where required.

Requirements

• a qualified Solicitor, Barrister, Legal Executive or equivalent
• an experienced advocate in the Magistrates and County Court
• experience of advising on whether there is sufficient evidence to issue proceedings or defend a case.
• Strong technical experience in dealing with a wide range of non-contentious housing management matters and contentious landlord and tenant matters (including tenancy management issues, anti-social behaviour, possession, Injunctions and contempt of Court applications), either on the Claimant or Defendant side.
• Experience of successfully managing a large caseload successfully, achieving excellent outcomes.
• Knowledge of the pre-action protocols and Civil Procedure Rules.
• Knowledge of the relevant statutory, regulatory and common law applicable to the housing management functions of a social landlord, and the provision of regulated social and affordable housing.
• Practical awareness and/or experience of the Data Protection Act 2018.

Working Arrangements

This role is offered on a Hybrid basis with an expectation of at least 3 days per week in the office or in attendance at court.