Administrative Assistant

Watson Farley & Williams was established in London in 1982 and is an international law firm dedicated to client care, legal excellence and investment in its people.  The firm has offices in Athens, Bangkok, Dubai, London, Frankfurt, Hamburg, Hong Kong, Madrid, Milan, Munich, New York, Paris, Rome and Singapore.

The firm has seen rapid expansion in size and geography. Having started as a maritime law firm, in which it remains pre-eminent, the firm is today recognised for its specialist focus on five core sectors: Energy & Infrastructure, Maritime, Natural Resources, Real Estate and Transport in which it provides a full suite of services including finance, corporate, dispute resolution, tax, employment and regulatory.

This role will be reporting to the Assistant Revenue Managers within a busy Accounts department of 24 in London and 15 outside London. The role will support the billing and credit control teams on an administrative basis. This role will also include entering recharges and secretarial overtime etc. and the administration of non-billable matters.

• Ensuring that bills and write-offs are signed by the appropriate individuals within the firm

• Logging all bills for the London and international offices

• Forwarding emails to the appropriate individuals in the billing team from the group inbox

• Send out bills

• Dealing with time and disbursement transfers

• Processing write-offs, secretarial overtime, e-bibles and matter closures

• Running and printing CMS reports

• Chasing time sheets as requested by Revenue Manager

• Opening and distributing post for the accounts team

• General filing, copying, scanning and archiving

• Running reports for other team members when required

• Other ad hoc duties as required.

Previous work experience within a law firm environment is not necessary; however we do expect the incumbent of this position to be a great team player with strong organisational and time management skills.

The ideal candidate will have a flexible approach to their work. They will be required to have a positive outlook and professional attitude as they will be expected to liaise with staff of all levels, including partners. Attention to detail is essential. The ideal candidate should have a minimum of 5 GCSEs at grades A-C or equivalent, including Maths and English. Strong written and verbal communication and numeracy skills are required.

A basic understanding of some of the essential processes of other team members is necessary to ensure its smooth running during periods of absence whether due to illness or holiday leave.

This is a very busy and demanding role and there will be times where it will be necessary to work overtime. We are looking for a professional and confident applicant with good organisational and prioritising skills. Attention to detail, accuracy and good communication skills are essential.

It is an essential requirement of this role that you comply with all applicable legal and regulatory requirements including (but not limited to) current data privacy requirements, and in accordance with the firm’s policies and procedures, you notify any breaches and/or potential breaches of which you are/become aware.

This is a fixed term contract role with a duration of 12 months; however, there is potential for this to become permanent after this time period. Please be advised this is not guaranteed but is something that may be reviewed nearer the time. 

At Watson Farley & Williams we value diversity and promote a culture of respect for each individual. We encourage workforce diversity at all levels and in all aspects from recruitment and selection to appraisal and promotion. All decisions relating to employment practice will be objective and based on merit and ability.