Legal Secretary

Birketts is a full service, UK Top 50 law firm. With a heritage spanning 160 years, we have more than 500 lawyers and legal professionals based in Cambridge, Chelmsford, Ipswich, London, Norwich and Sevenoaks. We advise businesses, government and public sector organisations and individuals in the UK and internationally across four principal practice groups: property, corporate services, litigation and private client advisory.

We are defined by our Next Level Law proposition. We work with our clients as a proactive partner, horizon scanning and thinking ahead to the changes, challenges or opportunities that they may face.

Next Level Law is also applied to our people. Our collegiate culture means everyone is encouraged to achieve their next level in everything they do.  RollOnFriday recently ranked us as the 5th best law firm to work at in 2024.

With our ambition to succeed, comes a strong desire to make a positive contribution to the communities we serve, and we are committed to delivering the objectives set out in our ESG strategy. Diversity plays an integral part in all that we do, with female partners comprising 40% of our partnership.

Our vibrant, energetic Corporate team boasts some of the best lawyers in the region specialising in all aspects of corporate law covering a wide variety of corporate transactions including M&A, private equity, reorganisations, company restructures and general corporate governance matters.

The team currently comprises over 60 specialist qualified corporate law solicitors, including 15 partners, making us one of the largest Corporate teams in the East of England.

The team in Cambridge consists of 10 corporate lawyers including 3 partners who work over a broad range of corporate transactions and clients.

• Proactively working with fee earners to ensure relevant documentation is produced to meet clients’ expectations and deadlines;
• To amend documentation and paperwork in relation to transactions and work undertaken by the fee earners;
• To produce, format and present documents in Birketts LLP house style;
• Proof read all work, checking for spelling and grammar;
• Understands a variety of software packages such as Microsoft Word, Outlook and Excel, to produce correspondence, documents and ensure relevant documentation is produced to a high standard to meet clients’ and fee earners’ expectations and deadlines;
• Manage diaries of allocated fee earners in Microsoft Outlook;
• Dealing with client and file inception through our firms client matter management database and software
• Accurately maintain and update client and other relevant contact details on our client database including AML requirements and other client on-boarding information;
• Manage and maintain on behalf of allocated fee earners our client relationship management data base;
• Ensure that all electronic filing is up to date and maintained at regular intervals;
• Respond to internal and external telephone enquiries professionally;
• Provide financial administrative support ensuring compliance with legal, firm wide and practice group specific policies and procedures; 
• Keeping accurate and up to date records of all debt, ensuring that items are followed up and escalated to the central credit control officer at the appropriate point in time and keeping the team leader up to date with any potential issyes with clients’ ability to settle bills;
• Carry out photocopying and scanning in accordance with the firm’s paper-lite and clear desk policies;
• Ability to communicate with a wide variety of different people from privately owned businesses to private equity and venture capital organisations;
• Show initiative when responding to queries and actively try to seek solutions to problems;
• Assist in maintaining compliant and accurate file management and office systems;
• Proactively support other members of the secretarial team and to provide cover as and when necessary to ensure that work is completed to a high standard and meets the required deadlines;
• Clarify instructions from fee earners should they be unclear or if deadlines are not made explicit.

You will have the ability to contribute at an operational level, with excellent communication skills and can demonstrate general skills in:

• Strong administration experience;
• Positive, enthusiastic and professional approach;
• Ability to work independently and prioritise work streams;
• Methodical approach to work and management of fee earners and team projects;
• Strong attention to detail, high level organisational skills and reliable;
• Self-motivated with an ability to use own initiative with a desire to learn;
• 50+ wpm typing speed;
• Solid understanding of key IT packages to include Outlook, Word, PowerPoint and Excel;
• A team player with a desire to succeed and grow;
• Good spelling and punctuation.

We are committed to recruiting individuals on merits of suitability for each role, on the basis of qualifications and experience. All applications are treated fairly and equally regardless of sexual orientation, race, disability, religious beliefs and any other protected characteristic, ensuring that there are equal opportunities at all stages of the recruitment process.

Core Benefits

One of the best things about joining Birketts is our rewards package. At Birketts we are appreciative of the people who work for us and our rewards package is reviewed regularly to reflect that. A competitive salary and benefits package is given but you can also expect a great team and supportive colleagues, a strong focus on diversity, inclusion and equal opportunities, a programme of wellbeing and mental health support and structured career development and study support.

• 25 days holiday (FTE) plus Bank Holidays;
• Long Service holiday award – 1 extra week every 10 years continuous service;
• Private Healthcare - BUPA (offered after probation is passed);
• Scottish Widows Pension Scheme (5% employer / 5% Employee);
• Staff Profit Share / Salary sacrifice (Pensions, Staff Profit Share);
• Life Assurance   - 4 x salary / Permanent Health Insurance;
• Paid ESG (Environmental, Social and Governance) day;
• Enhanced Maternity/Paternity Leave;
• Season Ticket Loan;
• Gym Flex membership;
• Electric car scheme;
• Dress for your Day Policy;
• Agile Working Policy.