Private Client Legal Assistant

Who we are
Listed in the prestigious Legal 500 Guide to the UK’s top legal practices, we are an established full service and progressive Essex legal firm, with experience and expertise in all areas of the law affecting you, your family and your business. Whatever stage you’re at in your life, our team are here to make your personal and professional lives fairer, smoother, less stressful and more rewarding whenever you need us. We’re not just for the here and now – we’re Lawyers for Life. We are an equal opportunities employer and currently have offices in Rayleigh, Leigh-on-Sea, and Southend.

The department
The Private Client Department is currently housed across two of our offices; BTMK Goodson in Leigh-on-Sea and BTMK Todmans in Rayleigh. We deal with Wills, probate and administration of estates, Powers of Attorney, trusts, estate planning and the Court of Protection. Our advice is clear and straightforward, and we are both sympathetic and empathetic to our clients’ needs. The team has a huge amount of experience within this area of law and approach each case enthusiastically, always striving to achieve a positive outcome. Each team is structured so that the fee earners are supported by private client legal assistants, who in turn are supported by junior legal administrators.

The job
Opportunities have arisen in our Leigh-on-Sea and Rayleigh offices for experienced candidates to work as part of our very busy Private Client teams to provide professional and pro-active support to the fee earners.

• To work under your own initiative having day to day conduct and administration of Wills and probate cases, including telephone and written correspondence with clients, beneficiaries, professional organisations and government agencies.
• Preparation of attendance notes and letters with the supervision of the fee earning staff
• Drafting legal documents, including Wills and probate applications
• Managing your own caseload and diary maintenance, including setting and monitoring diary notes and the critical dates diary

The candidate
This would ideally be someone with a logical mind, who is fully conversant with MS Office products (especially Outlook, Word, and Excel), who has an eye for detail and who is capable of working either unsupervised or with minimum supervision. They should be able to stay calm under pressure, have good spelling, punctuation and grammar, be self-motivated, able to use their own initiative, reliable and well organised. The role would suit an experienced Private Client secretary, with probate experience, who wants more autonomy, someone who works in a Private Client department already but not necessarily in a secretarial role, or a paralegal. Experience with the LEAP case management system would be an advantage but is not essential.

Core benefits
20 days holiday, gradually rising to 25, plus bank holidays.
Pension scheme
Discretionary quarterly performance bonus
Contribution towards gym membership
Agile working policy
“Dress for your day” policy
Death in service benefit

Full time, Mon-Fri, 9:00 – 5:15 (36.25h) – part time (minimum 4 days) also considered.

Location – Leigh-on-Sea and Rayleigh

Salary – Based on age, experience and qualifications. There is also a discretionary quarterly performance bonus paid after the completion of the probation period.