WE ARE A FULL-SERVICE LAW FIRM BASED IN NEWCASTLE UPON TYNE SERVING CLIENTS THROUGHOUT THE UK AND FURTHER AFIELD. WE HAVE AN OUTSTANDING REPUTATION FOR DELIVERING HIGH QUALITY PARTNER-LED ADVICE WITH EXCEPTIONAL PERSONAL SERVICE.

Our team of over 200 colleagues includes 35 partners, 121 fee-earners and 60 people in business services roles. Our client base includes large companies, owner managed businesses, healthcare professionals, leisure operators and rural businesses
With a history stretching back over 125 years, we recognise the importance the contribution that businesses like ours should and can have on the local community and we, therefore, encourage our partners and employees to get involved and give back to the local community in which we live and work.

Our vision is to set the standard for legal excellence and in doing so, to become the law firm of choice for businesses, organisations and individuals. To meet our vision and deliver an outstanding service we employ individuals who understand our clients’ needs, take pride in what they do and how they do it. Our values go to the heart of the firm. They define who we are and how we work. It is by remaining true to our values that we will achieve our vision. This is what we value most:

• Teamwork – we trust and respect one another. We see strength in our diversity as individuals and as a practice. We achieve the best outcomes for clients when we work collaboratively, recognizing and respecting the different perspectives that we bring.
• Excellent Client Service – We take the time to truly understand our clients’ needs and aim to provide practical, tailored and commercial solutions – not just options – to help them achieve their goals. Through hard work and commitment, we aim to develop long-term relationships with all our clients, taking pride in the value that we add.
• Professionalism – We work to the highest professional and technical standards, acting with the utmost integrity at all times. We are fiercely proud of our reputation as being a trusted adviser to our clients, often over several generations, and continually strive to ensure that our clients’ interests come first and foremost.
• Our People – We work together to create an open, supportive and friendly working environment where our people feel valued, can develop their careers and achieve their professional ambitions.

If this sounds like a vision you would like to be a part of, our values resonate with your own personal values, and you meet the requirements of the role described, we’d be delighted to hear from you. Please read on!

REQUIREMENTS

We require a self-motivated, highly organised and enthusiastic individual who can work quickly and accurately often within tight timescales.
This role involves working directly with clients who have suffered life changing traumatic injuries and we become involved during a very distressing time for them and their families. The ideal candidate should therefore have experience of working in a role where a careful, considered and sensitive approach was required.
Previous experience of working as a paralegal in any legal discipline is desirable.
Experience of Court of Protection and/or Serious Injury work would also be an advantage, but not essential as full training will be given.

We are looking to expand our Court of Protection team to support our ambitious growth plans.
In this role, you would be working closely with the firm’s professional deputies, Neurotrauma and Personal Injury Departments, clients and their close friends and family, alongside support therapists and other professional advisors.

Your role will include the following, but additional tasks may be appropriate for the role:

• Assisting in the provision of administrative and legal services for clients.
• Attending clients at hospitals, care homes and in their own home.
• Providing friendly day-to-day contact with clients and an efficient service for their individual lifestyle requirements.
• Producing plain English letters, court applications and other documents as required.
• Preparing annual reports for submission to the Office of the Public Guardian and answering any queries raised by them.
• Making regular payments to clients and keep accurate schedules of these payments, forecasting forward spending and creating budgets.
• Assisting, where requested, with the provision of legal advice to clients, under supervision.
• Managing a busy workload and report on progress; be able to exercise an appropriate balance between having confidence in your own judgement and knowing when to refer decisions to others.
• Instructing relevant professionals to prepare assessments of capacity, care or therapeutic need when such a report is required.
• Considering financial review documents prepared for client investments.