Legal Counsel

Legal Counsel Inquiry

Grade 3A

Contract Type: Fixed Term Contract - 12 Months

Location: Finsbury Dials, London
Reporting to: Senior Legal Counsel - Public Inquiry
Division: Public Inquiry, Historical Matters

The Purpose of the Role

Reporting into a Senior Legal Counsel – Public Inquiry, this role will work within the dedicated Inquiry team supporting all legal work relating to the Post Office Horizon IT Inquiry (“the Inquiry”). The postholder will support Senior Legal Counsels – Public Inquiry and the Head of Legal – Public Inquiry, who are overseen by the Public Inquiry and Historical Matters Legal Services Director as well as the broader Inquiry team.
The post holder will provide legal support on important matters during all stages of the Inquiry’s work, including preparatory work for the Inquiry’s phases of work, handling Rule 9 requests from the Inquiry, managing discovery and disclosure processes, helping to instruct and work with outside counsel, attending hearing sessions and reporting to the business. The postholder will be required to conduct legal research to help advise on a range of associated issues relating to Inquiry law and procedure as well as legal issues arising for Post Office as a result of the Inquiry including commercial sensitivity, privilege, funding and insurance.

Principal Accountabilities

• Supporting Senior Legal Counsel – Public Inquiry and the Head of Legal – Public Inquiry with all legal aspects of Post Office’s engagement with the Inquiry and the associated processes;
• Supporting Senior Legal Counsel – Public Inquiry with Post Office’s preparation for specific Phases of the Inquiry’s work;
• Contributing to the provision of high quality legal support to Post Office’s Inquiry team.
• Supporting relationships with external legal advisors to support Post Office’s response to the Inquiry;
• Undertaking legal research and preparing legal advice for senior stakeholders on a range of issues relating to the Inquiry.
• Working collaboratively with colleagues across the Inquiry team including project managers, document specialists, etc;
• Managing workstreams such as document review and disclosure exercises pro-actively and with minimal supervision;
• Managing and prioritising multiple contemporaneous workstreams.
  

Qualifications, Experience & Skills

• Qualified solicitor or barrister.
• Previous experience working in an in-house role or in private practice.
• Understanding of public law and ideally, experience working on public inquiries / contentious matters.
• Excellent organisational skills and ability to balance competing priorities and work to tight deadlines.
• Experience working on document disclosure exercises, including competency using document management systems.
• Strong communicator including giving advice to senior stakeholders.
• Proficient in legal research and providing clear advice on complex and novel issues.
• Strong experience of working collaboratively to deliver outcomes.
• Flexible, adaptable and “self-starter” approach with a willingness to provide support where needed.
  

About Post Office

The Post Office has thrived at the heart of high streets and local communities across the UK for over 370 years. As one of the country’s most trusted brands, we take our commitment to providing essential services to customers across the UK very seriously. We’re the UK’s largest retail network, as well as the largest financial services provider in the UK, with over 11,600 branches nationwide – more than all of the UK’s banks and building societies put together.

We know that the best way to provide a great service for customers is to evolve our business and adapt to their changing needs. That’s why we have a range of over 170 products and services, from personal financial services like banking, insurance, payments and travel money, to telecoms and, of course, mails. And we’re improving our online and in store experience for customers. We know that our customers never stop changing, so neither will we. We're here, in person, for the people who rely on us.

Our Ways of Working underpin everything we do, they are the “How” of our business strategy. They differentiate our business and aim to inspire great behaviours and align our colleagues around specific actions in order to be the organisation we want to be, and achieve our business goals.

By living the Ways of Working each day, you will help make that vision a reality and enable our cultural transformation. In short: Working in partnership, as one team, we deliver amazing results!

The Post Office embraces diversity and inclusion in the workplace and actively promote working without discrimination. We are also a Disability Confident Employer and are committed to interviewing disabled people who meet our minimum criteria for the job.