JOB TITLE: Float Legal PA
GROUP: PA Float Team
REPORTING TO: Victoria Suarez, Support Team Leader
TERM: 12 month fixed-term contract
HOURS: Full-time, 9:30am – 5:30pm, Monday to Friday with one hour for lunch. A flexible approach to working hours is a must, overtime may be required at busy times.
We currently operate a hybrid working policy with at least 3 days office working per week. Our hybrid working policy is discretionary and may be subject to change.
ABOUT SHERIDANS
Sheridans is a leading London law Firm whose lawyers combine the in-depth legal knowledge and breadth of expertise and experience required to give unparalleled advice to their clients.
Since 1956, Sheridans has represented individuals and organisations across a wide variety of sectors, providing quality advice which is commercially focussed and personally delivered. Specialist lawyers in leisure, media and entertainment work closely alongside the Firm’s corporate finance, employment, real estate and dispute resolution groups to provide a truly bespoke service to its clients.
ABOUT THE OPPORTUNITY
This role will involve working across the whole of Sheridans within all its departments including a 5/6-month seat (estimate) and a potential future cover for a job share in the Disputes department.
The successful candidate will be expected to provide top quality support to relevant fee earners in the absence of their PA. There may also be instances where you are expected to help with the Reception team during times of absence and sickness. At times this might be at very short notice.
While you may not have had experience of every legal department, you will be expected to have enough initiative, common sense and willingness to learn so that a good level of cover is provided.
We are particularly keen to hear from individuals with real estate/property PA or secretary experience.
RESPONSIBILITIES
- Typing and amending correspondence and documents as required, using the Firm’s House Styles, as well as using track changes and versions
- Thoroughly checking and acting upon emails
- Diary management to include arranging client meetings and lunches, and reserving meeting rooms and scheduling conference calls, at all times communicating arrangements to relevant parties
- Organising travel and, where necessary, itineraries
- Using ChromeRiver to claim fee earner expenses
- Processing dictation (Bighand) in a timely fashion
- Organising and scanning documents into document management system (iManage)
- Initiating and completing (as far as cover permits) the setting up of new clients to include all onboarding processes
- Preparation and coordination of billing and accounting tasks
- Litigation work - preparation of all forms, documents counsel’s papers and bundles involved in court-related work, including photocopying, scanning and binding
- Property work – preparation of all forms, correspondence, searches, documents involved in property-related transactions, including photocopying, scanning and binding
- Working closely with other departmental PAs and business support departments, such as finance, IT, HR and Facilities
- Undertake relevant handover of work, both at the start and finish of a cover, using clear communication / instructions to relevant fee earners / PA(s)
The above is not an exhaustive list of duties, and you will be expected to perform different tasks as necessitated by your changing role within the Firm and the overall business needs.
SKILLS, EXPERIENCE & QUALIFICATIONS
The successful candidate will be able to demonstrate the following:
Skills & experience
- Demonstrated high level effective experience as a float PA, secretary or PA for senior partners working in a legal environment, particularly corporate, litigation and property sectors
- Intermediate to advanced skill level with the Microsoft suite (Outlook, Word, Excel and PowerPoint)
- Ability to adapt swiftly to pace and culture of each department
- Appreciation of fee earner frustrations and needs in the absence of their PA
- Proactive and motivated to seek work and be helpful
- Familiarity with GDPR and proven ability to adhere to confidentiality / compliance demands
- Highly responsible, professional and forward-thinking attitude, in particular towards ending and beginning new cover
- Highly concerned for reputation of self, the Float team and Sheridans
- Robust, calm under pressure, adaptable, flexible and patient in nature
- Effective at building relationships with people both internally and externally to the firm
- Proven ability to act with discretion, maintaining privacy and confidentiality
- Proven high level organisational and time management skills
- Strong attention to detail with good judgement and problem-solving skills
- Team player with a positive and ‘can-do’ attitude and robust nature
- Friendly, professional, reliable, enthusiastic and willing to learn
- Comfortable sharing knowledge with other team members, upskilling and supporting other and more junior team members when necessary
- Proactivity and ability to take ownership of matters and tasks, even when not directly asked
- Being a collaborative team player and fostering an attitude that promotes comradery, creativity and innovation
- Ability to liaise with, persuade and influence colleagues at all levels
- Ability to remain organised, prioritise and multi-task particularly when managing a large workload under pressure and to tight deadlines
- Flexibility towards working out of regular hours at busy times
Qualifications
- Accomplished academic background – i.e. strong GCSE results
- Qualifications such as CILEx Level 3 Diploma for Legal Secretaries are desired, but not essential
EQUAL OPPORTUNITIES
Our aim is for all staff to feel welcomed at Sheridans and ultimately be their true self at work. We are proud to promote inclusion & diversity among clients, candidates, and staff as an equal opportunities employer. It is our policy to support people who hold Protected Characteristics (under the Equality Act 2010) both internally and externally through supporting practices based solely upon merit.
HOW TO APPLY
If you would like to apply, please email us using [email protected]. Please reference where you found our vacancy advertised and include the following to allow us to consider your application:
- An up-to-date copy of your CV
- A covering letter
- Any details in relation to nationality and visa requirements, if relevant
- Your salary expectations
- Your notice period and availability to commence a role with Sheridans