Paralegal in North East

We’re Norton Rose Fulbright - a global law firm with over 50 offices and 7,000 employees worldwide. We provide the world’s preeminent corporations and financial institutions with a full business law service. As well as the relevant skills and experience, we’re looking for people who are innovative, commercial and value the work that they do. We celebrate multiple approaches and points of view and believe diversity drives innovation, so we’re building a culture where difference is valued.

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, including tasks such as contract reviews, coordinating multijurisdictional due diligence exercises, verification of investor documentation, drafting and managing documentation, and general document management in virtual data rooms.
• Disputes and Investigations: Opportunities to assist with tasks such as taking notes of witness interviews, providing summaries of calls with counsel, managing exhibits and fact checking, managing disclosure logs and translation requirements, and building court bundles.
• Banking: Integral members of transaction teams, involved in drafting conditions precedent checklists, security documents, and shepherding lender approvals.

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.
• High level of attention to detail.
• Strong organisational, prioritisation and time management skills.
• 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, 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.