Associate - Real Estate Finance in Bedford

We are looking for a highly motivated, professional candidate with excellent academics (ideally 2:1) to join our Real Estate team based in our Bedford Row office. The successful candidate will be expected to demonstrate sound knowledge and experience of all commercial property work and commercial awareness. It is also essential for the candidate to be able to demonstrate that they can develop and maintain good client relationships.

The Real Estate team has an established reputation and broad experience over the entire sector and is seeking a Real Estate Finance Associate 2-5 PQE in our Bedford Row office. The Real Estate Finance team has had unprecedented growth, increasing in number from 2 to 10 in the past 18 months and as our reputation and workflow continues to grow, we need to add to the team again. Our reputation in the market is highly regarded, and this provides an excellent opportunity for the right candidate to join a growing team at a really exciting time.

We handle varied and high-quality work acting on behalf of bridging and high street lenders, as well as acting for borrowers. The successful candidate is likely to have had a broad experience in a Real Estate Finance/Real Estate seat and is ambitious, can demonstrate initiative, passion and commercial acumen and be a real team player. You can expect a broad range of property work in a supportive environment.

• Provide a high-quality legal service to all Russell-Cooke clients
• Develop and maintain good client relationship skills, gaining clients’ confidence and that of other professionals
• Receive requests for legal advice from current and potential clients and taking decisions on the most appropriate responses to make to these requests
• Establish what needs to be done to solve a client’s problems
• Offer advice on the law, legal procedures and a wide range of associated issues
• Attend and represent Russell-Cooke at client meetings

• Work and behave in a professional manner and to the highest standards of the profession
• Comply with procedures set out in the Office Manual, professional standards and any requirement set by the Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA)
• Participate in the growth and development of the department / firm
• Attract additional business from new and existing clients

• Have a clear understanding of what it would take to develop a career to the next level
• Support internal procedures and systems of Russell-Cooke including file / case management, time recording
• Keep up to date with law and practice
• Share information with colleagues
• Read journals and attend courses as part of continuing professional development (CPD) and keep track of CPD hours
• Maintain high standards of professional conduct while generating adequate practice income

LPC / BVC qualified essential.

• Acting on behalf of both lender and borrower clients
• Drafting security documents including mortgage deeds, debentures and facility agreements
• Obtaining and reviewing legal packs
• Reviewing title documents - both residential and commercial
• Raising enquiries on legal packs
• Drafting Reports on Title – including residential and commercial lease reports
• Working to very short time frames
• Liaising with and reporting to clients on a weekly basis
• Achieving billing and time recording targets

Russell-Cooke’s lawyers are rounded professional advisers with strong commercial awareness and a commitment to exceeding client expectations. All our lawyers benefit from our cohort based career development programme. We understand the importance of building an internal network and have developed this excellent cohort programme to allow our lawyers to work together across practice areas and share their knowledge, experiences and networks. At each stage of your career, and as you move through the cohorts, a bespoke training programme will be provided to support you with your development and progression.

Russell-Cooke offers an excellent opportunity to join a stimulating work environment working alongside friendly and supportive colleagues, pro-active and client-focused in its approach with career development opportunities.

We offer competitive salaries and generous benefits. For more information or to apply please follow the link on the portal. We welcome direct applications. If you would like any further information about the firm please contact a member of the HR team.

We have a diverse workforce and aim to attract high calibre applicants that reflect the demography of our geographical location and client base. Individuals will be employed solely on merit and the requirement of the position. No applicant or employee receives less favourable treatment on the grounds of sex, race, marital status, disability, age, sexual orientation, gender identity or religion. Reasonable adjustments will be made to eliminate or reduce disadvantage.