Immigration Level 2 Solicitor Director (x2) in Manchester

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Duncan Lewis Solicitors was founded in 1998 and is headquartered in the City of London (Fenchurch Street EC3M), with offices nationwide. We are recognised by the Legal 500 and Chambers & Partners UK independent legal directories as a top-tier law firm in all of our key practice areas. A paperless law firm with over 500 personnel that embraces hybrid-working, we service both corporate entities and private individuals in over 25 areas of law across 60 languages. We give people a voice - that is our ethos. Recognised among The Times 200 Best Law Firms, we have been awarded Law Firm of the Year at the 2024 Lexis Nexis Awards and 2023 Modern Law Awards, reflecting our dedication to legal expertise and client service. We hold Investors in People Gold Standard accreditation for over 15 years, showcasing our commitment to professional development. Duncan Lewis is also Law Society Lexcel, Cyber Essentials Plus, and ISO 27001 certified, ensuring excellence in practice management and data security.

We have one of the largest legal aid immigration law practices in the UK and are ranked and recommended as a top-tier practice by The Legal 500 directory for our services including business immigration, human rights, appeals and overstay. Our Immigration team offers a wide range of services to European Economic Area (EEA) and non-EEA individuals and families wishing to enter, remain, or settle in the UK. With over 160 specialist Immigration lawyers nationwide, we bring the highest level of expertise to all Immigration matters.

Main Responsibilities of the Role:

• Report directly to and collaborate with the Board to ensure performance targets are met.
• Responsible for all aspects of Immigration work including providing technical expertise and guidance to other team members.
• Ability to manage and supervise Solicitors, Trainee Solicitors and Caseworkers to manage appropriate caseload types and complexities.
• Assisting with delivery of appropriate training and development in the department.
• Variety of duties including dealing with a range of Immigration work including detained clients; victims of trafficking & torture; asylum work from initial applications through to Tribunal appeal and upper Court appeal matters; entry clearance applications and appeals and some judicial review work.
• Preparing and managing funding applications to the Legal Aid Agency.
• Preparing draft documents including witness statements and processing evidence.
• Preparing applications to meet Home Office requirements.
• Attending conferences and court.

You will have a professional pro-active approach, strong client care skills and be interested in Business Development and Marketing to supplement the substantial work volumes brought in by the company.

Key Skills Required:

• Must have a clean, valid Practising Certificate at the time of applying.
• Registered with the Law Society Immigration & Asylum Law Accreditation - level 2 membership.
• Be committed and highly driven to provide an excellent standard of service to our clients.
• Committed team player with ability to approach team concerns fairly, foster culture of positive change and encourage cross referrals.
• Previous proven supervisory experience and working to key performance indicators.
• Professional with a pro-active approach; excellent client care skills and ability to deal with vulnerable client matters in a sensitive manner.
• Excellent networking and communication skills with the ability to successfully market the Company and generate new business.
• Working knowledge of the publicly funded Immigration work and have the ability to service privately funded cases.
• Have extensive experience in dealing with all Immigration related work and some expertise on adoption matters.
• Experience in own advocacy is an advantage.
• Excellent IT Skills - familiar with Microsoft Office applications and document management skills.

What we offer:

• A fantastic supportive team.
• Excellent progression opportunities.
• Support for appropriate legal awards/recognition.

The recruitment process will fully comply with GDPR and other applicable laws. Background checks including CRB / DBS checks will establish your eligibility to work in the UK and suitability to the role. Duncan Lewis is committed to Equal Opportunities and embraces diversity of its staff.

If you are interested in applying for this vacancy, please visit our website and apply using our online process for your application to be considered. APPLICATIONS SUBMITTED BY AGENCIES WILL NOT BE ACCEPTED FOR THE ABOVE VACANCY.