News/Events

ILSPA has partnered up with LegalEx as it makes its much-anticipated return as a live event this year.

LegalEx 2021, taking place on July 7 & 8 at ExCeL London, is the must-attend event to meet industry thought leaders, regulators at the forefront of legislation and code of conduct changes, and experts in client success, technology and business development.

Your FREE registration gives you access to two days of educational seminars from some of the world’s top legal experts, innovators and forward-thinking speakers. Criminal barrister and TV host Robert Rinder will be discussing why legal aid is in crisis and what we, the legal community, can do about it, while I. Stephanie Boyce, President of the Law Society, will be discussing diversity and inclusion within the legal sector and the role technology plays in terms of access to justice, digital engagement, mental health and the rule of law.

The UK’s only dedicated business support job board, SecsintheCity, has just opened nominations for its 10th annual PA of the Year Awards. If you’re a Personal Assistant (PA), Executive Assistant (EA), Legal PA or Office Manager, you could be the winner of one of these momentous accolades.

Nominations are now open for the 2021 PA of the Year Awards, an annual celebration of the essential support provided by PAs and EAs to the businesses and individuals they work for.

PA of the Year Award nominations will close on 10 September 2021, after which our judging panel will interview a shortlist of finalists to select a winner in each of the following categories:

• PA of the Year
• Legal PA of the Year
• Office Manager of the Year

Sarah EL-Doori, Marketing Director at SecsintheCity, said the awards are designed “to champion the profession. As the role continues to evolve, it’s vital that PAs and EAs recognise the value they bring to their managers, teams and organisations.”

Why nominate for the PA of the Year Awards 2021?

Winning a PA of the Year Award is the ultimate recognition of your hard work and achievements as a business support professional.

Technical skills are number three in the top 10 skills required for Legal Secretaries. Many Fee Earners expect their Legal Secretaries to be tech-savvy in order to ensure they can use the relevant legal technology to perform their tasks efficiently. ES Tech will feature two days of intensive training, workshops, keynotes, product focuses, case studies and networking opportunities guaranteed to upskill any Legal Secretary.

The online event will take place over 15 and 16 September 2021. It will include:

The Institute of Legal Secretaries and PAs is delighted to announce that Joelson will be offering mentoring to three lucky Students.

Founded in 1956 (as Joelson Wilson), Joelson is a top-ranked, multidisciplinary law firm providing first-class, partner-led services to their clients. Their services cover many sectors, including property, litigation, and corporate and commercial law. Joelson’s offices are based in Central London, although they act for clients internationally throughout Europe and all over the world. They have well-established relationships with firms throughout Europe, China and the US.

Many of Joelson’s lawyers and support staff have worked at the firm for many years, which has led to a family atmosphere. In turn, this has helped the firm provide an effective, friendly service and develop long-standing relationships with their clients. They are now looking to apply this inclusive and supportive approach to the mentoring scheme.

The mentoring will take place over a 12-month period and happen alongside ILSPA studies. It will include the following:

Our industry partner, Simply Law Jobs, has announced that the legal job site is undergoing the biggest transformation in its 18-year history.

Based on in-depth research into the industry, as well as extensive feedback and insights provided by Simply Law Jobs’ clients and jobseekers, the site will be relaunched with a brand-new look, new and exciting features, and old favourites that have been updated or revamped.

The job site has been optimised so jobseekers and recruiters can connect in the quickest and easiest way possible. This includes better search filters, enhanced candidate profiles, prompts to provide better job advert descriptions, and an improved candidate management system to manage job applications more efficiently. 

The relaunch also aims to eliminate common bugbears of jobseekers, such as excessive time spent applying for vacancies and not hearing back from employers after applying for jobs.

We want you to tell us how the legal profession has changed in the past year. Take part in TotallyLegal’s annual audience survey to have your say.

Last year was more chaotic and tumultuous than most others in recent history, with individuals and organisations across the world feeling unique and largely negative impacts from 2020’s many twists and turns.

TotallyLegal – the UK’s leading legal jobs board and a trusted partner of ILSPA – wants to learn and in turn share more with you about how the legal profession changed in 2020.

How has the job market shifted? What has been the impact on salaries and bonuses? How many legal professionals were put on furlough?

To answer these questions and many others, we are looking for Lawyers, Solicitors, Paralegals, In-House Counsel, Legal Secretaries and other legal professionals of all titles and levels to divulge the details of their working lives and the effect 2020 had on their careers.

We will also ask about recurring themes and trends identified in previous TotallyLegal audience surveys.

On Thursday 12 November 2020, SecsintheCity, the UK’s only dedicated job site for business support professionals, hosted its annual PA of the Year Awards. Now in its ninth consecutive year, the Awards are an iconic celebration of the essential role that Personal Assistants, Executive Assistants and Office Managers provide to the companies and individuals they work for. 

Sarah EL-Doori, Marketing Director of Reach Work and PA of the Year Awards judge, explains that “the aim of the Awards is to champion the profession and acknowledge the significant contribution that PAs and EAs make, especially in these immensely challenging times.” 

The Awards ceremony, which usually takes place at The Ivy in London, was held virtually, with finalists and their bosses fully embracing the event’s traditional black-tie dress code. 

SecsintheCity received over 600 nominations by and on behalf of PAs and EAs, which judges whittled down to 20 finalists across three categories: PA of the Year, Legal PA of the Year and Office Manager of the Year, and an Outstanding Achievement Award. 

As announced last year, ILSPA has partnered up with LegalEx as it makes its much-anticipated return, this time in a virtual platform on 2-3 December 2020, hosting the most comprehensive and all-encompassing event dedicated to facilitating business growth and professional development for legal professionals and firms.

Your FREE ticket will give you access to 100 cutting-edge exhibitors and two days of CPD-accredited educational seminars from some of the world’s top legal experts, innovators and forward-thinking speakers.

Seminars will span the entire legal spectrum from technology to marketing and everything in between.

Legal Secretaries who attend will be able to learn more about programmes and software used within their day-to-day roles from virtual exhibitors such as Clio, Osprey and DPS Software.

Browse the virtual exhibition including ILSPA partners TotallyLegal and Simply Law Jobs, and network with fellow Legal Secretaries and representatives from many law firms throughout the country in the virtual networking area.

The Institute of Legal Secretaries and PAs are delighted to be offering new live online classes, which start on Wednesday 27 January 2021. Online classes have become a very popular form of learning due to the growth of virtual communication during the current pandemic.

To celebrate the announcement of our new study method, we are offering an early bird discount of £100 to all Students who enrol before 30 November 2020.

ILSPA's Legal Secretaries Diploma course is equivalent to a Level 3 qualification. You will learn about the day-to-day tasks of a Legal Secretary, various areas of law, the legal profession and how the court system operates. The course also covers legal terminology, legal document production, how to complete legal forms and how to type professional correspondence. ILSPA’s qualification is recognised by law firms and legal recruiters.

SecsintheCity is looking for exceptional Legal PAs, EAs and Office Managers to be nominated for the PA of the Year Awards 2020. Could you be a winner?

Now in its ninth consecutive year, the PA of the Year Awards has become an iconic celebration of the essential support that Personal and Executive Assistants provide to the companies and individuals for whom they work.

The awards are hosted by SecsintheCity, the UK’s only job board dedicated to PAs, EAs and other office support professionals. The nominations are open from now until 14 September, after which an esteemed judging panel faces the challenge of choosing a winner in each of the following categories:

• PA of the Year
• Legal PA of the Year
• Office Manager of the Year