Paralegal - Maternity Cover

Fieldfisher's highly regarded Employment, Pensions, Immigration and Compliance team has enjoyed significant success in the past five years and is quickly growing. The team, made up of leading Partners, Senior Associates, Solicitors and Apprentice Solicitors, are seeking to recruit an ambitious Paralegal to support its growing litigation practice. We are seeking an experienced Paralegal to join the team on a 12-month fixed-term contract. The successful candidate will provide support to several team members, including Partners and a sitting Employment Judge, with the opportunity for the successful candidates to take responsibility for case handling and management of all aspects of Employment Tribunal claims. The team's practice includes high-quality work for some of the UK's leading brands and with nationally recognised Lawyers and Barristers. This is a great opportunity to develop your experience and responsibility for case handling and client skills in a fast-growing, ambitious, supportive and collaborative team.

What You'll Do

• Reviewing Employment Tribunal claims
• Assessing litigation strategy
• Liaising with clients on disclosure obligations and collation of documents
• Drafting Employment Tribunal defences
• Preparation of early case assessments
• Managing disclosure exercises
• Preparation of trial bundles, including indexing and pagination
• Drafting agendas and documents for preliminary hearings, with potential advocacy opportunities
• Interviewing witnesses and drafting witness statements
• Assisting with witness preparation
• Attending hearings and conferences with Counsel
• Diary and internal tracker management
• Ad-hoc company searches, etc. in support of legal opinions or as part of case progression
• Proof reading documents
• Document management
• Working with legal technology tools
• E-Discovery
• Liaising closely with the Partner/Associate supervising the matter
• Attending team meetings and providing reporting as required
• Liaising with the client and third parties in both written and verbal format, including case progression updates and providing legal advice or advice on litigation strategy
• Communicating with third parties in both written and verbal format, including negotiating with adverse parties
• Legal research and other investigative tasks
• Providing essential support to the team
• Administrative tasks

What We're Looking For

• Experience of working as a Paralegal
• Strong educational background
• Previous experience in employment and/or litigation work is desirable but not essential
• Experience handling a varied and busy workload
• Excellent organisation and communication skills are essential
• Excellent research and analytical skills
• Commercial understanding allowing you to foresee upcoming needs and act proactively
• Team player
• Ability to work methodically and at pace, even when time pressured
• Reliable and professional
• Good written and strong communication skills
• Excellent IT skills
• Enthusiastic, keen and proactive
• Preparedness to exceed expectations and be fully committed to the role

Who are we looking for?

We don't have a type. We believe our differences are our strength; varied cultures, approaches and experiences can only benefit us.

What do we offer?

You can be yourself: It takes everyone to make us who we are. We’re a culture of diverse perspectives, with each of us making unique contributions that make us better together.

In the office or WFH? : We think the best balance is more time in the office than at home, so we operate a 60:40 rule.

Beyond salary : We offer plenty of benefits; private medical insurance, health cash plan, dental insurance, life assurance, critical illness insurance, matched pension contributions up to 7%, holiday trading, plus many more. Visit: Reward & Benefits ¦ Fieldfisher.

Come for the WOW views : Based on the 17th floor in No.1 Spinningfields, with views of the entire City.

Nurturing your talent: T ake a 'build a career' approach to your training. You'll be on a pathway but free to wander if you see something you'd like to study more closely.

Funnel your interests : You have a life outside work, and we can help it to flourish. Join clubs, affinity networks, inclusive events, and pro bono/charity initiatives.

Inclusion is not exclusive: If all our differences are highlighted, no one stands out for being different. At Fieldfisher, all our rich diversity is celebrated. We will provide the equipment to allow you to shine at the interview and beyond. Just let us know what you need.

For accessibility information on our Manchester office, visit: Accessing Fieldfisher Manchester ¦ Fieldfisher

What to do next: Click 'Apply Now', complete an online application and upload a CV. Successful applications will be invited to a 20–30-minute introductory call with a recruiter. Every role recruits differently. But we'll always let you know what to expect from the process, so you get no surprises. For hybrid opportunities, you'll be invited to visit our offices for a face-to-face meeting. We try to make sure the process takes around 2-3 weeks only, but we can't always promise that. We will work around everyone's availability. You can contact us at recruitmenthr@fieldfisher.com. We recruit on a rolling basis. Your application may be reviewed before the application deadline. We accept applications until we have filled the role.