Legal Secretary / PA

Salary: £30,000 – £33,600 per year

Our client, a South-East London Law firm, are urgently looking to hire a Legal Secretary to join their team. Listed in The Times Best Law Firms 2020, they specialise in Family Law and are recognised for their excellent customer service and care

Scope:

We are looking for an extremely organised and proactive secretary to provide a high level of professional support to their allocated Fee Earners as well as other members of the Department. They will be highly motivated, display outstanding attention to detail and have the ability to multitask with ease. It is essential that they are a strong team player with a positive, up-beat approach. Experience of ebundling is advantageous.

Typical Duties:

* To provide effective and proactive diary management for a Partner and three Assistant Solicitors, and to demonstrate an awareness of fee earners’ workloads to plan ahead, with minimal supervision

* Audio typing of correspondence and documents for fee earners in the practice and collaborating closely with the Beckenham office to ensure all workload is covered efficiently

* To liaise with other secretaries and support staff across the two sites

* To remain professional at all times and maintain effective communications with clients and fee earners

* To liaise with the court by telephone as directed by a fee earner

* To use the HMCTS online portal to file court documents and retrieve court documents

* To prepare bundles (paper or electronic) for court hearings and for Counsel as directed by a fee earner

* To use editing software to produce e-bundles and for other purposes

* To provide excellent service to clients, both internal and external, in a timely and professional manner, presenting a positive image of the Firm at all times

* To act as a first point of contact for fee earners

* To recognise, respect and honour client confidentiality at all times

* To maintain up-to-date knowledge and understanding of fee earners’ matters to enable a proactive support service

* To answer the telephone and dealing with telephone queries / calls as directed by a fee earner

* Paper and electronic filing and to ensure files are kept in good order

* To demonstrate a good knowledge about the type of work that the department carries out, in order to be able to assist with new client enquiries

* To proof-read all documents for spelling, grammar and sense, querying wording where appropriate

* To proactively use initiative to compose and send on behalf of fee earners correspondence requiring focused concentration and attention to detail

* General administrative duties to include: photocopying, scanning, indexing, taking the post to the post box / post office, taking the DX to the DX box

* To meet and greet clients attending at our offices for meetings and preparing drinks for them

* Further secretarial tasks as directed by fee earners in the practice as required for the smooth running of the firm

Person Specification:

* To arrive ready and prepared for the working day and demonstrate excellent timekeeping (whether related to meetings, arrival at the office or going to and from lunch)

* To work as a positive, friendly and helpful team player, offering assistance if capacity allows and has a willingness to assist other fee earners in the practice area or department during busy periods

* Is flexible, reliable, co-operative and has a professional approach to work

* Communicates in a positive and constructive manner and always interacts in good faith

* Excellent attention to detail, excellent written and verbal communication skills

* Can demonstrate a proactive manner and used to working in fast-paced environments

Education and Qualifications:

* Qualified to GCSE standard, grade C (or equivalent) at Mathematics and English essential

* Previous legal secretarial experience gained within Family law

Special Aspects:

* The hours of work for this opportunity are 9:00am to 5:30pm but it is essential to be committed, flexible and prepared to work beyond the normal office hours when necessary and in response to client demand