Paralegal

We’re a national law firm with a local reach. Our philosophy is ‘Expert Hand, Human Touch’ – something you’ll find in the way we work with our clients and how we support our teams. But we’re more than just a law firm – we’re a team of people working together to help individuals and businesses navigate life’s ups and downs. Working here you’ll feel a part of our friendly and inclusive environment. We’ll value you for who you are and what you bring. We support each other and push boundaries to achieve incredible things and make a real difference to our clients and communities.

We are always looking to support our colleagues in working in a way that best works for them. Please do speak to one of our Talent Acquisition Team to find out more information about our flexible working policies, including working from home.

The Court of Protection is the judicial body responsible for making decisions relating to the management of finances and other affairs of those individuals who lack the mental capacity to do so themselves. As one of the UK’s leading firms of solicitors, we have a dedicated and experienced team who specialise in all matters relating to the Court of Protection. You’ll join Partner Damian Hodkinson who provides expert evidence to budget future deputyship support costs for clients and whose clients have received multi-million pound settlements as a result of serious injury or medical negligence. We help clients who are responsible for managing someone else’s affairs, those who are concerned about the ability of someone else to manage their own affairs or another person’s affairs and clients who may be concerned about their own ability to manage their affairs.

“There's nothing more rewarding than seeing the smile on a client's face when you've achieved a successful outcome for them.” – Damian Hodkinson

If you enjoy being part of a successful, friendly and high-performing team, then this is the job for you. You’ll be a key point of contact for our clients, many of whom have life-changing disabilities such as serious brain injuries, dementia and mental health illnesses, you’ll help these individuals to manage their financial affairs. You’ll work closely with the team’s Associates and Partners to make sure they have the right support at all times. This is a busy and fast-paced role, so you’ll need to be able to work quickly and accurately, building strong relationship with your team and our clients.

Our team based approach means we work with colleagues to combine legal expertise from financial management, planning, investment, taxation and returns to the Court.

Your role will involve but is not limited to:

• Taking instructions from clients and assist with the giving of legal advice, including obtaining evidence and, where appropriate, to achieve appropriate resolutions for the client.
• Achieve time recording and fee income targets to ensure profitable working.
• Attend and contribute to team/practice area meetings and comply with directions/decisions made to ensure team objectives achieved.
• Keep up to date with changes in relevant law and practice and attend appropriate training events to ensure up to date legal knowledge and best practice.

• Empathy and compassion to help guide our clients through challenging personal circumstances
• A friendly, enthusiastic, and can-do approach
• Previous Paralegal experience in a similar role

We’re proud of our values, and we’re looking for people who share them:

• To be pioneering with an imaginative outlook
• To be approachable and caring
• To be tenacious in the pursuit of our objectives
• To be efficient in the provision of our services
• To work with a foundation of integrity.

If this sounds like you, we’d love to receive your application.

• Flexible working options - Make work fit around your life, not the other way around
• 25 days holidays as standard - You can ‘buy’ up to 35hrs of extra holiday too
• Generous and flexible pension schemes
• Volunteering days - Two days of volunteering every year for a cause of your choice (fully paid!)
• Westfield Health membership, offering refunds on medical services alongside our Aviva Digital GP services.

We also offer a wide range of well-being initiatives to encourage positive mental health both in and out of the workplace and to make sure you’re fully supported to work in a way that best suits you. This includes our Flexible by Choice programme which gives our colleagues more choice over how they wish to work subject to role and client requirements. We have recently been ranked in the Best Workplaces for Wellbeing for Large Organisations for 2023!

Our responsible business programmes are fundamental to who we are and our purpose. We’re committed to being a diverse and inclusive workplace where our colleagues can flourish, and we have established a number of inclusion network groups across our business to support this aim. Our commitment to Social Responsibility, community investment activity and tackling climate change is a fundamental part of who we are. It’s made up of four strands: Our People, Our Community, Our Environment and Our Pro Bono

As part of the Irwin Mitchell Group’s on-boarding process all successful applicants are required to complete the group’s employment screening process. This process helps to ensure that all new employees meet our standards in relation to honesty and integrity therefore protecting the interests of the Group, existing employees, clients, partners and other stakeholders.

Depending on the role you apply for we may carry out checks that will establish your eligibility to work in the UK, and criminal record check and financial checks with a credit reference agency will also be undertaken.

The employment screening process will fully comply with Data Protection and other applicable laws.

Irwin Mitchell LLP is an equal opportunity employer.