Paralegal

Shakespeare Martineau is a Top 50 law firm that combines creativity, commerciality and clarity. We work with blue-chip companies, leading organisations, high street brands and individuals across the country.

As enterprising and original thinkers, we’re driven to create exceptional experiences for our clients and our people. We handle personal and business-critical issues and game-changing deals across many dynamic sectors. It’s stimulating and rewarding.

We’re hardworking and deeply ambitious about creating opportunities for our employees; to move forward and achieve our ambition together. We provide an environment in which you’re supported to reach your potential.

Our people have a blend of excellent technical and business skills with the talent to do things differently.

Here you’ll find top quality work, cutting edge training, high profile clients, and supportive colleagues. We think it could be time you joined us.

Our multi-disciplinary Real Estate group is highly regarded by our clients and within the sector. It comprises not only lawyers but also town and country planners. We’ve brought experts into our services in planning, development, investment, landlord and tenant matters, social housing, construction and litigation with a particular emphasis on energy, housing, education, finance and investment funds.

Our Social Housing Sales team is one of the largest in the Midlands specialising in all aspects of property acquisition and disposal for more than 60 Registered Providers across the country. We lead our competitors in the delivery of extracare housing for people over the age of 55. In the last 12 months we have disposed of more than 250 void residential dwellings, 450 extracare properties and 300 shared ownership units.

The role:

We are looking for a Paralegal to join the vibrant Social Housing Sales team based in our Stratford-Upon-Avon office, part of the firm’s Real Estate group.

You will work with the team to provide a high quality legal service to Housing Association clients, dealing with a variety of sale transactions including shared ownership, ‘right to buy’, ‘Surrender’ and Plot Sales’ Transactions.

Your key duties will be:

• working to strict deadlines
• maintaining good file management
• providing legal transactional support to a large team
• dealing with Housing Association clients in a professional manner and maintaining close contact
• liaising regularly with Housing Associations, and providing regular updates within specific timeframes on progress with plot sales and updating weekly reports
• running a high volume and varied case load and handling queries and enquiries efficiently
• participating in group and team meetings in a positive and proactive manner

Key skills and experience you will have:

• a minimum of 12 months’ practical experience of property conveyancing transactional work (social housing experience preferred but not essential)
• previous responsibility dealing with shared ownership, ‘right to buy’, ‘Surrender’ and Plot Sales’ Transactions preferred but not essential
• strong IT skills

Key competencies you will need:

• a high degree of initiative and an ability to cope in a demanding environment
• to be tidy, well organised and motivated
• to be able to self-manage and take ownership of problems
• the ability to work well in a team and develop good working relationships with colleagues and others
• good communication skills with the confidence to liaise openly and clearly with colleagues and clients
• the ability to produce a high standard of work, sometimes under pressure, whilst maintaining accuracy and good attention to detail

About you – you will be:

• highly enthusiastic, 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

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.