Legal Officer in London

This is a Full Time Permanent Position. The candidate would be working within the Property and Commercial Team providing assistance to Lawyers for more complex commercial works whilst also handling their own caseload and providing some supervision to Assistant Legal Officers. The Property and Commercial Team deal with a number of matters including procurement, contracts, grant agreements and other funding agreements. The team also covers Commercial Property matters such as Development Agreements for regeneration projects and commercial landlord and tenant matters.

Ideally, the candidate will be able to demonstrate practical experience within a legal team whether in the public sector or private sector background.

ROLE AND PURPOSE

To carry a complex caseload and give assistance to Lawyers dealing with property, planning, regeneration projects, debt collection, employment law, licensing and prosecutions e.g. for non-payment of council tax and parking fines, housing landlord, anti-social behaviour, education, civil litigation and associated litigation, child protection matters, vulnerable adults and Trading Standards, highways and transportation, food hygiene and other public protection matters. To ensure that a high quality legal service is provided to support the Council that ensures sound risk assessment of the legal issues, high standards of health and safety for the community and best value for the Council.

PRINCIPAL ACCOUNTABILITIES:

• Independently manage and effectively organise a legal caseload, sometimes complex, in order to meet client, Court or Tribunal timescales. Provide oral and written legal advice to officers seeking professional guidance in contentious and very possibly complex cases, working under pressure to strict deadlines. Undertake legal research to ensure correct advice is given and procedures followed.
• Receive instructions, sometimes on an emergency basis, request supporting information and/or evidence from the relevant Council departments and consider the appropriate course of action to be taken. Deal with claims by or against the Council and conduct and assist Lawyers in the conduct of County and High Court claims.
• Use own initiative when drafting, preparing, reviewing, and completing various legal documents. This documentation could comprise of routine and detailed letters. The documentation will also comprise Planning agreements and notices; traffic regulation orders; highways notices relating to creation, diversion or closure, whether permanent or temporarily, of highways; licenses and leases and property related documents which contribute to the management of the Council’s property portfolio; contracts to undertake works or provide services or supplies; licences for marriage ceremonies, tree preservation orders. Particulars of Claim or defences in respect of civil litigation matters; prepare complex statements for witnesses in respect of matters pertaining to civil litigation. The post holder will also need to examine and review expert medical evidence or reports.
• Contribute to committee reports, officer authorisations, decision records; briefings for Members and Officers. Provide advice and comment on prepared committee reports and decision records in relation to own area of expertise in liaison with lawyers or the team leader.
• Supervise work carried out by Assistant Legal Officers, provide guidance and assistance on various administrative and computerised systems to these staff and other colleagues. Ensure all documentation is accurate and filed in accordance with the Court timetable and at appropriate time arrange for witnesses to attend Court/Tribunal.
• Support and assist senior colleagues in complex and highly sensitive cases by providing organised methodical and current research. Support and work alongside them/deputise at necessary stages or independently, interview witnesses, draft documents, prepare court/tribunal bundles, attend on Counsel and attend court or enquiries to support witnesses and provide advocacy in less complex cases, attend meetings with the public and other professionals whether internal or external.
• Independently evaluate, draft and prepare all documents and to present cases in the court as required to do so. To appear in cases where the post holder has rights of audience or has been authorised to do so. This includes conducting interlocutory applications in the County Court and discharge orders in respect of child care matters in the Magistrates’ Court and County Court. Draft instructions to Counsel when external Barristers are brought in to represent the Council and instruct solicitors to act as agents on behalf of the Council in civil proceedings to achieve the best outcome for the clients and negotiate their fees.
• Negotiate, liaise and assess proposed settlements in order to resolve disputes to the satisfaction of the Council and achieve the best outcome for the client.
• Provide an advisory service to witnesses including professional witnesses in the preparation of witness statements to be placed before the court or tribunal and file these in accordance with the court or tribunal timetable. Liaise with the court or tribunal to ensure the cases are heard without undue delay and that emergency hearings are catered for.
• Use various Council record systems to research cases – for example use the Council’s housing database to prepare repossession proceedings. Examine legal documents to ensure accuracy of claims made against the Council. Examine legal records to check medical histories of children or vulnerable adults. Use the Council’s IT systems to research case law e.g. Lawtel and examine Government websites for legislation, guidance documents etc.
• The Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974 and associated legislation places responsibilities for health and safety on Hull City Council, as your employer and you as an employee of the council. In addition to the Councils overall duties, the post holder has personal responsibility for their own health & safety and that of other employees; additional and more specific responsibilities are identified in the Council’s Corporate H&S policy.

Benefits of Working of Hull City Council:

• A competitive salary
• An excellent pension through the Local Government Pension Scheme (LGPS)
• Initially 23 days annual leave depending on length of service. You will also get eight public holidays per year, and three additional days off, one in May/August and one during the Christmas/New year period
• Career development and learning experiences from a range of training courses and learning methods
• Supportive and forward-thinking culture
• Great career development opportunities

We are committed to increasing the diversity, equality, and inclusion within our workforce to represent the people we serve and build an environment in which everyone can feel like they belong. We encourage people from all backgrounds to apply.

We adopt a ‘name blind’ approach to shortlisting. Recruiting managers will not have access to personal information, including your name and contact details, until a shortlisting decision has been made. Equality monitoring information is not accessible by recruiting managers at any stage.

We reserve the right to amend the dates associated with this advert, which may include closing the advert early where required. The Council is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children, young people and vulnerable adults and expects all employees and volunteers to share this commitment.

Online searches, including social media, may be carried out as part of the recruitment process. We are committed to “our values” at the Council of People First, Respect, Learning, Ambition and Partnership. If these align with you then we welcome your application.