Temporary Public Prosecutor (Legal Assistant) PPS Serious Crime Unit (SCU), 93 Chichester St Be[...] in Belfast

Salary: £24.53 per hour (£47,304 – under review) (37 hours a week)

Company: Public Prosecution Service NI (PPSNI)

Contract type: Up to 12 months with possible extension

ELIGIBILITY CRITERIA

Applicants will be required to provide evidence against the eligibility criteria on their application form. The Director will designate the successful applicants as Public Prosecutors in pursuance of section 29(5) of Justice (Northern Ireland) Act 2002. In order to be designated, the successful applicants, at the time of appointment, must be a Barrister or Solicitor who is entitled to practise either at the Bar of Northern Ireland or as a Solicitor of the Court of Judicature of Northern Ireland. Have at least two year’s post qualification experience.

Background

The PPSNI is the principal prosecuting authority in Northern Ireland. In addition to taking decisions as to prosecution in all cases initiated or investigated by the police, it also considers cases initiated or investigated by other statutory authorities, for example HM Revenue and Customs. The PPSNI sits at the heart of the criminal justice system. The PPSNI works in partnership with the Department of Justice; the Northern Ireland Courts and Tribunals Service; the Northern Ireland Prison Service; the Police Service of Northern Ireland; the Probation Board for Northern Ireland; and the Youth Justice Agency, as part of the Criminal Justice System Northern Ireland.

PPSNI Services

The primary role of the PPSNI is to reach decisions to prosecute or not to prosecute and to have responsibility for the conduct of criminal proceedings. Additional services are also available which have been designed to enhance the effectiveness of the PPSNI, including the provision of prosecutorial and pre-charge advice.

Organisational Structure

The PPSNI is a regionally based organisation. There are three regions: Belfast; Northern & Western; Southern & Eastern. Each region is headed by an Assistant Director (AD). The AD is responsible for working with the courts and the police to provide a high quality prosecution service in their area. The regions deal with a wide range of cases, from the less serious summary cases, which are heard in the Magistrates’ Courts, through to more serious indictable cases which are heard in the Crown Court.

SCU is a centralised legal team dealing with a range of serious cases submitted by police and other investigating agencies. The primary purpose of the SCU Casework Team Public Prosecutor is to undertake legal activities, duties and functions in support to Directing Officers making prosecutorial decisions on serious offences in the Serious Crime Unit. The role holder will apply PPS practice, procedures and time limits in respect of allocated caseloads and to keep up-to-date with developments in criminal law and the criminal justice system.

KEY RESPONSIBILITIES

• Undertaking all appropriate communication with Investigating Officers, Counsel and Defence under the direction of the SPP to seek clarity of information, updates on cases, DIRs and any other activities requiring liaison between the SPP and the PSNI IO, respond to Defence Statements and other Defence Correspondence, liaise with Prosecution Counsel to progress the prosecution of indictable cases.
• Drafting legal applications in indictable prosecution cases.
• Liaison and organisation of victim’s engagement, court personnel engagement and 3rd parties relating to disclosure, 3rd party requests etc.
• Engaging directly with the SCU Gateway team to highlight issues or areas of concern with standards of case files, quality of electronic evidence and noting trends.
• Review of past cases, researching precedent or any other legal requests from the SPP in order to case-build or support on direction or decision-making.
• Undertake case progress activities for SPPs when they are undertaking Duty Prosecutor activities or are absent.
• To provide advice and guidance where appropriate to PSNI and delivery partners on Disclosure and 3rd Party requests, including streamlining pathways to evidence DIRs/PDIRs.

The above list is not exhaustive but gives a good indication of the main duties of the post. The emphasis on particular duties will vary over time according to business needs.

Location

Belfast Chambers, 93 Chichester St Belfast BT1 3JR, however successful candidates may be required for business needs to work in any PPS location. There may be scope for hybrid working arrangements in agreement with line management once a period of training is successfully completed.

Hours of Work

The successful candidate will normally be required to work 37 hours each week and will be required to work outside normal working hours, when necessary to facilitate business needs. The successful candidates may be required to participate in a rota for attendance at court on Saturdays and Bank/Public Holidays which attracts the appropriate allowance.

Vetting

Successful applicants will be required to undertake several security checks including an Access NI Disclosure check and a further CTC check before commencement of role. Any information given will be treated in the strictest confidence.

Annual leave

Annual leave is accrued based on attendance. Flexible working hours can also be worked in accordance with current NI Civil Service policy. To be shortlisted for this role all applicants MUST meet the essential criteria. Please indicate your preferred office location.