Legal Assistant - Managed Legal Services in Birmingham

Are you a proactive team player with a positive, can-do attitude? Do you pride yourself on your communication, organisation and customer service skills? Whether you already have experience in a legal role, or you’re looking for the opportunity to begin and develop a career in the legal industry, this could be the perfect next step for you.

We can offer you:

• The support and encouragement of a great team behind you and friendly partners who all want to help you thrive;
• Interesting and varied work with a focus on development of your skills;
• A competitive package with great benefits.

What you will be doing:

• Conducting initial interviews for new consumer client enquiries;
• Prioritising all inbound telephone calls and conducting follow up calls to maximise the level of client instructions;
• Corresponding to any new email/online enquiries within 15 minutes of receipt;
• Completing initial ‘conflict of interest’ and ID checks;
• Liaising with third-party suppliers, such as agents and experts providing pro-bono advice;
• Providing initial best costs advice to prospective clients, preparing retainer documentation and forms of authority following risk assessment and arranging cover where appropriate;
• Using a case management system to process and progress queries and workflows;
• Conducting ad hoc research to help understand the medical terms and procedures that may influence the risk assessment process;
• Managing the rejection process for enquiries that fail fundamental risk assessment measures, such as jurisdiction, limitation etc.;
• Recording and reporting on the present position for all enquiries and reasons for non-conversion;
• Producing (where appropriate) file rejection correspondence, such as advice on limitation, seeking alternative legal advice, etc.;
• Assisting with file closure procedures, such as archiving, collection of fees from ATE providers on failed cases etc.;
• Drafting own correspondence and documents;
• Having a clear understanding of the litigation process so that clients can attain an overview at the initial stages;
• Assisting with project work across our wider Managed Legal Services team;
• Taking telephone calls from debtors wishing to make payments to the firm;
• Responding to new enquiries received across a number of work streams being serviced by other brands within Ampa.

What you will need:

• Experience gained from within a sales, customer services, call centre, retail or administrative background would be advantageous;
• Experience, or confidence, in communicating effectively over the phone;
• Confidence with IT systems to include Microsoft Word and Excel;
• Although preferable, legal experience is not necessary for this position, as training will be provided. Applications are welcomed from candidates with non-legal backgrounds, candidates returning to work from career breaks, or those looking to change industry sector;
• A desire to work and progress within a law firm;
• The ability to multi-task and prioritise;
• The ability to produce a high standard of work, whilst maintaining accuracy and good attention to detail;
• Strong organisational skills whilst maintaining team processes and procedures.

About you – you will be:

• Highly enthusiastic, willing to go the extra mile and be happy to go beyond the job description;
• Respectful towards others and have a positive, willing and ‘can do’ attitude;
• Keen to learn, interested in driving your own career progression and be proactive in taking ownership of this.

Hours: We are committed to providing a service to our clients between the hours of 8am and 9pm Monday to Friday (including Bank Holidays), and 9am to 5.30pm on a Saturday and Sunday. Once training has been completed, you will work to shift patterns to accommodate these hours on a rota basis. We are keen to hear individuals who are looking for full time or part time employment. For this position, you must be able to work weekend shifts, as well as have some flexibility in the week. An ideal opportunity should you be looking for hours to fit around studies or family commitments.

Benefits, Agile Working and Additional information: We embrace agile working and offer a blended approach to where and how we work. We appreciate that people have different needs and preferences and we’re keen to be flexible, after all, we value what you do, not where you do it. We have the following hubs across the UK: Birmingham, Bristol, Edinburgh, Leeds, Leicester, Lincoln, London, Milton Keynes, Nottingham, Sheffield, Solihull, Stratford upon Avon & Tunbridge Wells.

Equal opportunities: Shakespeare Martineau is a committed equal opportunities employer. We seek to attract, develop and retain talented people from a diverse range of backgrounds and cultures. We value and respect individuality and encourage a culture within our business where people can be themselves and be valued for their strengths and experiences. Everyone who either applies to or works for the firm is treated equally, regardless of their gender, age, ethnic origin, nationality, marital status, sexual orientation or religious beliefs.