Here is a selection of vacancies from our Legal Secretary Jobs Board this month:

Part-Time Secretary – Bowers

Location: London

Salary: Competitive

A Secretary is required 3-4 days a week at assist in the area of education law (special educational needs) and court of protection work.

The successful candidate must have experience in  preparing legal documents , a good typing speed, administration skills and communication skills. The role will include taking dictation, case management and engaging with clients.

View the full job description here:           

https://www.institutelegalsecretaries.com/jobs/recruiter/job/173706/

Family Legal Secretary – Clayton Legal

Location: Finchley

Salary: £25,000 - £38,000

A specialist Family Law Firm based in North London is seeking to appoint a Legal Secretary with Matrimonial experience to support their friendly and supportive Family department.

The successful applicant will possess previous legal secretarial experience within Family Law, able to demonstrate excellent typing speed & accuracy, excellent communication skills and a friendly, bubbly, and approachable demeanour.

With the coronavirus pandemic still ongoing, it can be easy to believe that job hunting at the moment is an exercise in futility. In reality, however, many employers continued to hire throughout lockdown, and as businesses around the country reopen, the organisations that had put their recruitment drives on hold have resumed efforts to source new talent.

That being said, job hunting now looks very different than it did back in March, and competition for roles in the legal profession is fierce. With the number of vacancies on-site growing and confidence in the job market improving, we decided to put together this list of advice and tips for how to get hired during COVID-19.

Be patient

With staff on furlough, redundancies being made and many people still working from home, you may find that you end up waiting longer than usual to hear back about job applications and interviews during COVID-19. There’s no harm in a polite email enquiring about next steps if you haven’t heard anything in a week or so, but be prepared to be patient. Remember also that some email addresses and phone numbers may now be unmanned or unmonitored.

Ask for video interviews

With the Paralegal profession being acknowledged as the fastest growing within the legal services sector, it’s important to dispel some of the myths and incorrect assumptions that surround the profession.

All Paralegals are law graduates who wish to become Solicitors or Barristers

This premise is just wrong: many graduates still aspire to enter these conventional professions. However, not all graduates wish to become Solicitors or Barristers. Some may want to become career Paralegals or Paralegal practitioners. The cost of qualifying for the conventional professions is so prohibitive that many graduates see the Paralegal pathway as a viable career alternative.

Paralegals are just glorified Legal Secretaries

Not so. This may be true in the US, where the term “Paralegal” originated, but this is not the case in England. For the past 20 years, Paralegals have taken on a more vital role in the legal sector, not only as support staff in law firms but also in commerce and industry, in the public and private sectors and, more importantly, in recent years, as professional practitioners in their own right offering consumers access to justice at a reasonable cost.

A Personal Assistant (PA) is tasked with carrying out administrative and organisational duties on behalf of an executive in an organisation that may be private, public or non-profit.

Individuals also hire PAs to manage their busy schedules. PAs are required to be flexible and productive in the duties they are assigned, so they should stay motivated. When PAs self-motivate, they develop a drive from within that pushes them to focus on achieving both personal and organisational goals.

Following the outbreak of COVID-19, governments globally advised people to stay indoors. Many adapted a work-from-home model, including PAs. Quite a few, though, are recently back in the office. With these methods, this article advises on how to self-motivate as a PA while either working from home or in an office.

Setting Goals

We are looking for the brightest and most talented Legal PAs for the PA of the Year Awards 2020. If you work in a law firm and want to celebrate the achievements of a colleague, or if you’re a Legal PA yourself whose hard work deserves some recognition, then we want to hear from you.

If you aren’t quite convinced to submit a nomination yet, read on to find out first hand from Legal PA of the Year finalist Eleanor Lawson about her experience with the PA of the Year Awards 2019.

Hello, Eleanor. How did you become a Legal PA?

“After finishing my A levels, I decided I didn't want to go to university, so I applied for a job as an Apprentice Business Administrator at DWF Law LLP. After completing my apprenticeship, a vacancy for a Personal Assistant became available on the corporate team and I was offered the role and promoted.”

What do you love about being a Legal PA?

Technology has long played a role in making the workplace more efficient — and artificial intelligence (AI) is no different. Capable of automating time-consuming and mundane tasks, AI is designed to make operations easier. In fact, it's already making positive changes in the legal profession, with the DoNotPay chatbots in London and New York being prime examples. Regarded as the world's 'first robot lawyer', the chatbots have helped over 160,000 people contest parking fines for free, and are now being trialled in small-claims courts.

Those who have studied land law through an ILSPA course will already be familiar with the terms freehold and leasehold. These are legal definitions created by the Law of Property Act 1925 and relate to the extent of a person’s ownership of land. Another type of land ownership, commonhold, was introduced in 2002, but it struggled to establish itself and fewer than 20 commonhold developments have been built to date. This month, we are reporting on how this lack of interest in commonhold ownership may be about to change.

Many office support professionals in the early stages of their careers are actively seeking mentors to help them develop and advance in the world of work. However, these professional relationships are by no means one-sided, often offering a range of benefits to mentors and mentees alike.

Despite the gradual easing of lockdown restrictions, many Personal Assistants (PAs), Executive Assistants (EAs) and office support professionals are still working from home, meaning they may have a little more time on their hands than they’re used to. If you’re an experienced PA or EA with knowledge to pass on, advice to give and stories to tell, why not invest a few hours each week in the learning and development of an aspiring professional?

In this article, we will first define what mentoring is before going on to explore how these relationships can be beneficial to both parties and revealing what it takes to be a good mentor.

Should you seek out the help of a mentor? Are you at a stage where your advice could enhance the career of a less experienced colleague? Read on to find out more about the benefits of mentoring.

What is Mentoring?

Legal Secretaries and Paralegals are essential additions to any law firm. Both roles provide support for lawyers with preparing cases and general administrative work. But what’s the difference between a Paralegal and a Legal Secretary? This article will tackle that question and also provide you with insight into the similarities between a Legal Secretary and a Paralegal.

RESPONSIBILITIES

Legal Secretary

Legal Secretaries work in law firms to provide administrative support to lawyers. Daily tasks include producing legal documents, performing research, transcribing interviews, preparing legal forms, organising diaries and generally keeping the office running smoothly. Sometimes they also attend court, which can be interesting.

Paralegal

Paralegals are more involved in preparing cases, arguments and research for lawyers to present to clients. Their work entails more legal expertise than the work of Legal Secretaries. Paralegals are also required to interview witnesses and draft documents in layman’s terms so that clients can understand them more easily.

Read Our Free Guide: What is a Paralegal?

Here is a selection of vacancies from our Legal Secretary Jobs Board this month:

Family Legal Secretary – Clayton Legal  

Location: Finchley

Salary: £25,000 - £38,000

The ideal Family Legal Secretary will be responsible for; Dealing with incoming client queries, meeting and greeting clients, undertaking audio and copy typing on behalf of the Fee Earners and attending client meetings to provide secretarial support alongside reception duties.

The successful applicant will possess previous legal secretarial experience within Family Law, able to demonstrate excellent typing speed & accuracy, excellent communication skills and a friendly, bubbly, and approachable demeanour.

View the full job description here:           

https://www.institutelegalsecretaries.com/jobs/candidate/job/173512/

Legal Secretary – Eldwick Law

Location: Farringdon

Salary: Competitive