Legal Researcher in London

Position within HM Courts & Tribunals Service (HMCTS), Civil Service Grade HEO, Full Time, Permanent, allocated on a reserve list for 12 months. Salary £40,014–£42,859.

Eligibility: Only existing Civil Servant employees and employees of accredited NDPBs. Staff on fixed‑term appointments must be recruited through fair competition.

Key Responsibilities:

• Research and monitor developments in UK, ECHR, EU jurisprudence and legislation.
• Research, write and produce materials for publication for the IAC judiciary.
• Write summaries of immigration and asylum cases from UK and EU courts.
• Write headnotes for the Immigration Appeal Reports in consultation with senior Upper Tribunal judiciary.
• Monitor case law and legislative developments, including Immigration Rules, to contribute to LRU publications, judicial resources and training events.
• Support the SEO Lawyer in case‑management of Country Guidance decisions of the Upper Tribunal.
• Support the SEO Lawyer in case‑management of permission‑to‑appeal decisions from the Court of Appeal.
• Work across jurisdictions to provide legal research and case‑management services to other tribunals when necessary.
• Produce and oversee maintenance of legal research resources, especially the LRU Electronic Library on eJudiciary and other judicial websites.
• Liaise with content managers for internal and external public websites to ensure materials are relevant and up‑to‑date.
• Deliver training to IAC judiciary on legal research methodologies and using electronic legal and country information databases.
• Respond to research requests from IAC judiciary regarding recent case law, legislation and country information.
• Provide research materials for judicial training events.
• Provide accurate, relevant and prompt research responses to IAC judiciary.
• Provide prompt responses to requests for information from members of the public.
• Ensure all LRU publications meet the high standards required for internal and external subscribers.
• Liaise with Judicial Office and Court of Appeal to maintain resources on external websites and permission‑to‑appeal tracker.
• Represent the LRU at internal and external meetings, workshops and committees, including at a senior level.
• Provide secretariat services for judicial committees such as UTIAC Reporting Committee, Country Guidance Advisory Group and Editorial Board.
• Contribute to managing and training a small team of staff.

Knowledge, Skills and Experience Expected:

• Undergraduate Law Degree or equivalent legal work experience.
• Knowledge of the legal and administrative functions of the Tribunal system and the relevant Chamber.
• Knowledge of relevant law and methodologies of legal research.
• Ability to acquire new specialist knowledge rapidly.
• Excellent legal reasoning, research and writing skills.
• Effective communication at all levels, both verbally and in writing.
• High interpersonal skills to develop and maintain effective relationships with staff and stakeholders.
• Excellent organisational skills and attention to detail.
• Ability to analyse problems and situations quickly and effectively.
• Competent use of IT and legal resource material.
• Knowledge and experience of immigration law is desirable.

Benefits:

• Annual leave of 25 days on appointment, increasing to 30 after five years of service; additional paid time off for public holidays and a privilege day.
• Pension – the Civil Service offers a choice of pension schemes.
• Training – extensive range of training and development opportunities.
• Employee‑run networks for minority groups, disabled, caring responsibilities, women, LGBTQ+.
• Family‑friendly policies, flexible benefits, etc.

Working Arrangements & Further Information:

• Hybrid Working arrangements available where business need allows; minimum 60 % of working time in office. Flexible working policy applies. All applications for part‑time, flexible and job‑sharing working patterns will be considered.

Eligibility:

• UK nationals, national of the Republic of Ireland, national of Commonwealth countries with right to work in the UK, national of EU, Switzerland, Norway, Iceland or Liechtenstein (with settled/status) and certain family members, Turkish nationals and certain family members, etc.
• For full detail see URL provided.
• Staff on fixed‑term appointments must be recruited through fair open competition.
• Vacancies advertised cross‑government are open to all Civil Service employees and accredited NDPB employees appointed on merit.

Reserve List: May be held for up to 12 months from which further appointments may be made for the same or similar roles.

Contact Information:

• MoJ: 0345 241 5359 (Mon‑Fri 8 am‑6 pm) – quote job reference 13397.
• HMPPS: 0345 241 5358 – quote job reference 13397.
• For more information see attached Job Description Attachment.