Associate Director, Professional Indemnity - 12 Month FTC (Maternity Cover)

At BCLP, we’ve built our firm on the foundations of thinking differently. Curious, inquisitive and unbound by tradition, we’re building change within our sector and beyond.

It starts with our people, which is why we are looking for an Associate Director, Professional Indemnity to join our team. This established role within the Office of General Counsel (OGC) is responsible for managing contentious professional indemnity and risk matters across the UK and EMEA. The role also leads the identification of claims trends and the development of best practices to help mitigate risk across the Firm.

Working as part of the OGC team, you will support the Firm's approach to professional liability and cyber insurance while helping ensure risks are managed in line with the Firm's risk framework and professional standards.

The Associate Director, Professional Indemnity will provide:

• timely and cost effective insurance placement and renewal (in conjunction with the Firm’s brokers and Global General Counsel and Deputy GCs) of the firm’s global professional risk insurances programme;
• trusted strategic advice to Senior Management, Partners and fee earners at all levels in respect of claims and potential claims to ensure their effective management and the handling of those issues by the team in terms of notifications with insurers and brokers for the relevant insurances;
• trusted advice as Complaints Counsel for the Firm in the UK & EMEA; and
• professional indemnity, legal and reputation risk management leadership across BCLP globally, including reporting to and supporting the BCLP Audit and Risk Committee (and all other BCLP governance bodies), on issues concerning professional indemnity, risk and insurances relating to the UK & EMEA.

You’ll be responsible for:

Insurance and professional risk / practice protection

• Annual placement and renewal (in conjunction with the Firm’s brokers and the global PI team) of the firm’s global professional risk insurance programme including professional indemnity, management liability, and speciality products for particular areas, such as cyber risk;
• Maintenance of working relationships with Office Managing Partners across the UK & EMEA, Office of General Counsel lawyers and other business services staff in respect of the placement of compulsory local professional risk insurance policies and their integration into the firm's global policy programme;
• Strategic advice in respect of the handling of the Firm’s most serious and complex claims and potential claims, including identifying the most appropriate external legal counsel to support the Firm;
• Managing the PI team in respect of the handling of notifications, live claims, potential claims and/or ancillary litigation arising in the course of the firm’s business and/or through the annual PI trawl, ensuring that contentious risk issues are appropriately reported to the PI team and seamlessly managed both locally and centrally;
• Management alongside the GCs and CFOO and Finance team to ensure all financial implications of claims and insurance requirements are fully provided for and providing liaison with BCLP’s auditors regarding reserving in respect of audit processes and preparation of accounts; similarly work closely with the internal communications team to manage any external public relations issues which may arise from contentious risk issues within the public arena;
• Act as “complaints counsel” and leading the firm’s response to professional complaints and general management of this area under the firm’s Complaints Handling Policy and Professional Practice Principles Policy in the UK and EMEA;
• Provision of technical and legal support for the firm’s general insurance programme, specifically concerning travel, contents and business interruption; or insurance related issues in commercial contracts or Outside Counsel Guidelines;
• Maintenance of professional relationships and networks with insurance brokers and insurers and other peers in this sector;
• Working closely with partners and lawyers in the business (worldwide) to resolve professional practice risk and compliance related issues and with members of other business support teams, for example, the IT team in relation to annual PI trawl and other processes which could improve the efficiency of the management of the firm’s approach to its insurance programme.
• Lead and develop a holistic and aligned professional risk management approach across the UK & EMEA, liaising with the Legal & Regulatory team leadership throughout to ensure the development of policy, guidance, process improvement, internal training and education to further develop the firm's global approach to professional risk standards and reputation;
• Ensure regulatory compliance and broader professional risk management objectives are addressed through appropriate and effective policy, procedure, training regime requirements and delivery and monitoring relevant developments and emerging areas of risk and associated reputation issues;
• Maintain and improve systems and processes, concerning records of circumstances, claims, complaints, renewal information, PI trawls, and other professional risk information;
• Support the firm's approach to professional risk review, identifying notification and claims trends across the business through comprehensive periodic and ad hoc review and analysis across sources of professional risk data including claims, complaints and circumstances, monitoring relevant developments, market trends and emerging areas of risk and associated reputation issues; this activity will include regularly meeting with Office Managing Partners, practice group leaders and other key stakeholders to ensure they understand the issues and trends and co-partnering with them in any change projects or initiatives which result;
• Integrate the above analysis and develop a holistic understanding of the Firm’s risk profile to inform the overall strategic priorities for the OGC risk management programme, working in close collaboration and liaising closely with the Directors and Associate Directors in the OGC team to further enhance sound, ethical decision-making;
• Benchmark our professional risk approach against industry best practice and leading market trends and data to drive continuous improvement.

Training

• Design, develop and deliver or support the Risk team in delivering, (the latter in conjunction with other OGC staff) relevant and inspiring OGC training and communications for lawyers and business support teams across the firm to learn from the professional errors and omissions made both within the Firm and the legal sector more generally to mitigate repeated errors and support a no blame culture across the Firm;
• Involvement in crisis resilience issues and scenario exercises as part of testing the effectiveness of our insurance programme;

Reporting

• Contribute to OGC quarterly reports to the Board and/or Audit and Risk Committee and monthly reports to the CFOO and appear as needed to present on relevant topics or to other relevant stakeholders as required, for example regulators or clients, whilst being mindful of all privilege issues accordingly.

Team management and supervision

• Responsibility for supervising more junior lawyers and trainees in the OGC to support management of claims, complaints and other professional risk management programme work.

Skill and Experience Required

The successful candidate will have:

• A Bachelor’s or Master’s degree qualification (or equivalent) with a proven understanding and knowledge of issues arising within a commercial legal practice;
• Significant experience (likely 5 years’+) in managing contentious risk issues in an international commercial law environment and delivering legal advice to senior lawyers, with experience in insurance also helpful, alongside the ability to define and deliver strategic direction for the Firm, senior management and team;
• Excellent ability to manage internal and external stakeholders, mediating as required and driving action whilst challenging inaction and the skill to be able to influence others, build connections and work collaboratively across boundaries at all levels.
• Proactive and pragmatic thinker who has the ability to anticipate problems and develop commercially aligned solutions, seeking a good outcome for all involved whilst at all times maintaining a good service ethic, managing all issues with discretion and sensitivity.
• Technical expertise and experience in relevant legislative and regulatory regimes, including the SRA Code of Conduct for Solicitors, RELs and RFLs and for Firms, SRA Indemnity Insurance Rules 2013 and experience of dealing with complex professional indemnity issues in a professional services context in an international operating and cultural environment, insurance legislation and market and insurer practice.
• Excellent verbal and written communication skills including presentation development and delivery and the ability to communication complex legal and commercial issues and risks to a variety of stakeholders.
• Experience leading/project managing or contributing to cross functional team to deliver strategic and functional level practice and cultural change as well as being a good trainer who is able to inspire and influence busy lawyers to engage with relevant training and scenarios.

Agencies: Please note that BCLP does not accept speculative or unsolicited resumes submitted directly to hiring managers, partners or other employees. Candidate submissions will only be accepted from agencies that have agreed terms of business with the Recruitment Team and are submitted via the approved recruitment portal.

Any resumes submitted outside of this process will be treated as unsolicited, and BCLP reserves the right to engage such candidates without any obligation to the submitting agency, including the payment of any fees.

For further information, please contact resourcing.team@bclplaw.com

At BCLP we understand the value of a workforce with diverse perspectives and experiences, and we believe people perform at their best when they can truly be themselves at work. We aim to create an inclusive environment where all our employees are valued, motivated and able to be themselves. In order to provide the best possible service to our robust client base, we are committed to recruiting, retaining, rewarding and developing our people with regard to their abilities and contributions and without reference to their background, gender, gender identity or expression, ethnic origin, age, religion, sexual orientation, socio-economic status, political belief, disability or any other applicable protected characteristic.

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