Solicitor

Manchester / Hybrid

£Excellent + Exceptional Benefits

The opportunity:

We have an excellent opportunity for a Solicitor to join our Civil Litigation team in Manchester. l Our clients and business partners comprise businesses, high net worth individuals, and associations across a broad spectrum of industries.

We operate out of offices in Manchester, Leeds, London and Croydon and employ over 60 specialist solicitors. Our legal teams guide, support, defend and protect clients through a wide range of key legal services.

We are looking for a civil litigator (6-10 PQE) to join our legal expenses insurance Civil Litigation team in Manchester. At present the dedicated team comprises of 5 fee earners. The team forms part of the firm's wider Civil Litigation department, which currently comprises of 14 fee earners and 3 legal administrators.

The work is fast-moving, varied and challenging, and the successful candidate will receive full training in our internal practices and procedures.

What you'll be doing:

• Provide initial prospects opinions to insurers on a wide variety of civil disputes, EL/PL, including those relating to breach of contract, nuisance, property disputes, boundary disputes, professional negligence and construction
• Dealing with both claimant and defendant cases
• Managing a case load of your own, including recommending reserves and setting strategies under the supervision of senior fee earners.
• Work predominantly on cases that are funded under legal expenses insurance policies, but will also gain exposure to privately funded matters as well
• Embrace the challenge of expanding your knowledge into new areas of law
• Deliver clear, accurate and pragmatic advice based on both the legal and commercial realities of a client's position
• Provide our clients with in an efficient and courteous service at all times
• Deliver on billing and other key performance indicators
• Ensure all files are progressed and maintained within required standards and in line with relevant procedure
• An opportunity to develop your knowledge of the insurance industry and the contribution an insurance panel law firm can make to the success of a large insurance company

Our must haves:

• Have existing general commercial litigation experience
• Have a good understanding of the Civil Procedure Rules
• Previous experience dealing with insurance claims would be nice to have but not essential (in particular, legal expenses insurance claims) and may well come from an established insurance-focused firm or team
• Be accustomed to running their own caseload under supervision
• Demonstrate strong communication and organisational skills with the ability to prioritise workload
• Have good IT skills, certainly with experience in using Microsoft Office 2010 and case management systems (preferably Partner for Windows)
• Be able to work under pressure
• Deliver against set timeframes and display key time management skills when prioritising tasks to ensure compliance with these
• Have high attention to detail and accuracy in their work
• Demonstrate first-class client care and communication skills across all levels
• Demonstrate an ability to develop relationships with key internal and external partners
• Have excellent written communication skills
• Be an effective teammate, demonstrating a positive 'can do' demeanour and displaying co-operative interaction with team members

What's in it for you?

• A great starting salary plus annual bonus & strong benefits package…
• 25 days paid holiday plus Bank Holidays, with the opportunity to buy / sell extra leave
• Fantastic company pension scheme, private medical and dental cover, life assurance, travel insurance cover, income protection, season ticket loan as well as other great benefits on offer
• There are countless opportunities to learn new skills and develop in your career and we can provide the support needed to do just that!