Solicitor

It’s the people at Shakespeare Martineau that make us so special. By understanding what our people want, giving them the support they need, recognising everyone’s contribution and realising the unique power of teams, together we win.   As a firm we are focused on proactively building and developing diverse teams, bringing different backgrounds, personalities and perspectives together. We play to our strengths, pushing ourselves to be consistently better than yesterday and deliver amazing solutions for our clients. We empower our teams with a high degree of individual responsibility; we self-manage and encourage everyone to be responsible for their own learning, knowing it makes us even better at what we do!    

We believe in trusting our people to make the right decisions for themselves, from when and where you work, to how you dress; we focus on outputs.  

Want to find more about our amazing benefits?

Our Litigation Services & Dispute Resolution group has long-standing experience of working with some of the most successful and influential businesses in the UK and also internationally. Our specialist teams combine expertise with a sound understanding of the commercial landscape to provide exceptional solutions for every aspect of our clients’ corporate requirements.

Our niche Insurance Business Solutions team represent a variety of blue-chip clients, insurers, intermediaries and self-insureds; advising in all matters of contention arising out of employer, public, property and motor liability claims. In addition to defending such claims we lead, often as part of the first response team, investigations into causation liaising with all relevant stakeholders. We are also known for representing household insurance names, often dealing with very complex and high value claims. We have a team of ambitious, self-driven individuals who support each other both in and out of work. Team work, respect and solidarity is at the forefront of the team ethos and our aim is to become the premium service provider of choice within the insurance market.

The role:

We are looking for an NQ-2 yr PQE Solicitor to join our Insurance Business Solutions team, part of our Litigation Services and Dispute Resolution group.

Your key duties will be:

• running your own caseload of RTA and EL/PL files, of mainly Fast and Multi-Track files
• assisting the Partners with their high value, catastrophic loss files
• investigating liability, causation and quantum on behalf of the insurer or self-insured client
• attending and running client meetings
• taking clients’ instructions
• giving clear advice in correspondence and in person
• drafting documents, letters and contracts tailored to the client’s individual needs
• attending and delivering internal and external training to clients
• negotiating with clients and other professionals to secure agreed objectives
• working in a team, sometimes referring cases to the head of department
• producing internal bulletins
• assisting and supervising more junior fee earners, delegating appropriate work to trainees and supporting more senior staff on large complex matters
• taking a proactive approach to business development

Skills and experience you will have:

• 0-2 years’ previous experience of Defendant Large Loss insurance work (for Newly Qualified candidates, relevant experience gained  in Insurance during your training contract is essential)
• experience of carrying out liability enquiries for RTA, and EL/PL files, investigations and reporting to client on a delegated and non-delegated basis
• experience of running your own files and a track record of achieving client expectations on time, every time
• experience of drafting documents

Key competencies you will need:

• a desire to specialise in this area of law
• a desire to enhance client relationships through day-to-day activity
• to be highly organised with flexibility during busy periods
• excellent attention to detail and accuracy
• a high degree of initiative and the ability to cope in a demanding environment

About you – you will be:

• highly motivated, willing to go the extra mile and be happy to go beyond the job description
• respectful towards others and have a positive, willing and ‘can do’ attitude
• keen to learn, interested in driving your own career progression and be proactive in taking ownership of this

We embrace agile working and offer a blended approach to where and how we work.

We appreciate that people have different needs and preferences and we’re keen to be flexible, after all, we value what you do, not where you do it.

We have hubs in Birmingham, Leicester, London, Milton Keynes, Nottingham, Solihull, Stratford-upon-Avon and Sheffield. This role will be based out of our Birmingham office with the option to work from home.

Please be aware, for some vacancies, where we receive high numbers of applications we may need to bring the close date forward.

Due to the nature of the work undertaken, confirmation of employment will be subject to a variety of checks which will be carried out once an offer of employment is accepted. Details of the checks can be found here.

Shakespeare Martineau is a committed equal opportunities employer. We seek to attract, develop and retain talented people from a diverse range of backgrounds and cultures. We value and respect individuality and encourage a culture within our business where people can be themselves and be valued for their strengths and experiences. Everyone who either applies to or works for the firm is treated equally, regardless of their gender, age, ethnic origin, nationality, marital status, sexual orientation or religious beliefs.