Paralegal in Newcastle upon Tyne

Practice Group / Department: Legal Services Management - Newcastle

We are seeking curious and enthusiastic individuals to join our Legal Services Team as a Paralegal. If successful, you will be based in the Newcastle Office on a hybrid basis supporting the firm’s thousands of lawyers across the globe and assisting us in delivering a full business law service to the world’s preeminent corporations and financial institutions.

Activities can range from assisting the lenders in respect of the financing of the world’s largest offshore wind farm, to being the first port of call for a corporation which has suffered a cyberattack. Joining us as a Paralegal offers opportunity to be immersed in the full breadth of work undertaken within a top 10 global law firm. You will be expected to make a valued contribution to the work of the myriad of teams we collaborate with and to be always curious, engaged, enthusiastic and proactive.

In turn, we seek to provide unrivalled paralegal experience and strongly believe that there are no limits to what work our Paralegals can get involved in, subject to providing the right training and supervision. The Newcastle office is our centre for legal innovation and technology, both of which feature in much of the work we do. This will give you the opportunity to get involved in cutting edge initiatives at the forefront of the commercial legal industry’s transformation.

As part of our commitment to innovation, we are increasingly integrating generative AI tools into our legal workflows. Our Paralegals are encouraged to develop awareness of how these technologies are shaping the legal industry and to engage with them thoughtfully and responsibly. Training and guidance will be provided to support this evolving area of practice.

The Role & Key Responsibilities

• Working under the day-to-day supervision of Supervising Paralegals, and qualified lawyers with and outside of the Legal Services Team, the role will include but not be limited to the following:

Corporate

• Assisting with a variety of private M&A transactions, initial public offerings and secondary share issues, all of which may involve tasks such as:

• Contract reviews and reviews of general corporate documentation.
• Coordinating multijurisdictional due diligence exercises.
• Verification of investor documentation.
• Drafting, reviewing and managing documentation such as shareholder circulars, board minutes and tender forms.
• General document management in virtual data rooms.

Disputes and Investigations

• Opportunities for Paralegals to be embedded within a case team and to assist with all manner of tasks, including:

• Taking notes of witness interviews and providing summaries of calls with counsel.
• Managing exhibits and fact checking.
• Managing disclosure logs and translation requirements.
• Building court bundles.

Banking

• Common tasks include:

• Drafting conditions precedent checklists.
• Drafting security documents and various ancillary documents, including corporate authorities, notices and acknowledgments, legal opinions, CP satisfaction letters, fee letters.
• Shepherding lender approvals and being the point of contact and coordination for all parties, including local counsel, in respect of the conditions precedent.

Aside from the key practice areas of banking, corporate and disputes, the team are involved in various transactions and projects in real estate, data protection, employment and IP, to name just a few.

Key Skills and Experience

Essential

• Has attained an undergraduate degree or is working towards one.
• Excellent communication skills.
• High levels of computer literacy, including an awareness of the role of generative AI in legal services, with a willingness to learn and apply emerging tools responsibly.
• High level of attention to detail.
• Strong organisational, prioritisation and time management skills, with the ability to work either autonomously, co-operatively or with direction.
• A commonsense approach to new challenges and a desire to be challenged, learn and take on responsibility.
• Strong interpersonal skills and ability to deal with people at all levels.
• Ability to work well within a team and to be adaptable to changing work environments and demands.

Desirable

• A graduate at 2:1 level or above.
• Fluency in a second language.
• Advanced IT skills (particularly in the context of working with structured data), including experience using or exploring generative AI tools in a legal or academic context.

Norton Rose Fulbright is a global law firm. We provide the world’s preeminent corporations and financial institutions with a full business law service. We have more than 4000 lawyers and other legal staff based in Europe, the United States, Canada, Latin America, Asia, Australia, Africa, the Middle East and Central Asia. Recognized for our industry focus, we are strong across all the key industry sectors: financial institutions; energy; infrastructure, mining and commodities; transport; technology and innovation; and life sciences and healthcare.