Job Title: Child Care Solicitor
Reporting to: Head of Child Care Team
Department: Care
Location: Manchester
Job Purpose:
- You will form an important part of our team, providing expertise to parents, grandparents, other family members, interveners and children directly or through their CAFCASS appointed Children’s Guardian
- Overseeing due diligence to legal aid applications and CCMS procedures
- Making preparations for court such as court bundles and instructing counsel
- Ensuring the Child Care team provides a quality , first class service
Performance Measures:
- Manager/client satisfaction
- Ability to multi-task and work under pressure to meet deadlines
- Running your own caseload with minimal supervision
- Quality of work drafted and completed
- Achieving time recording targets
- Achieving costs/fees targets
Job Description
- Covering all aspects of Child Care work, you will provide technical expertise and guidance to team members and external clients
- You will manage and supervise colleagues, i.e. solicitors, trainee solicitors and caseworkers/paralegals to manage appropriate caseload types and complexities
- Assisting with the delivery of appropriate training and development opportunities within the team
- Varied duties including dealing with a range of care work including: all Legal Aid/CCMS procedures, Care Orders, Interim Care Orders, Supervision Order, Interim Supervision Orders, Emergency Protection Orders, Police Protection Orders, Special Guardianship Orders, Placement Orders, Adoption Orders, International Adoption Orders, Pre Proceedings Meetings, Child protection case Conferences, Child protection review Conferences, defending allegations of injury, abuse or neglect, Child Arrangement Orders, Domestic abuse/violence cases, Prohibited Steps Orders and Specific Issue Orders. You will represent parents, grandparents, other family members and children directly or through their CAFCASS appointed Children’s Guardian.
- To develop the department and generate work and build upon exiting contacts
Responsibilities
Organisation:
Independently managing your own casework, liaising with clients, providing advice over the phone, by email and other mediums
Analysing large volumes of legal information at speed and with a high level of accuracy
Working to strict deadlines, logically and methodically with a meticulous eye for detail
Client care:
Taking a professional a proactive approach to work, with a strong client care focus
Dealing with vulnerable clients and children in a sensitive manner to resolve complicated matters surrounding Child Care cases
Drafting:
Preparing and drafting documents including witness statements and processing evidence
Preparing documents to meet legal requirements
Case types:
Managing a varied general Child Care caseload, including:
All Legal Aid, CCMS procedures, Care Orders, Interim Care Orders, Supervision Order, Interim Supervision Orders, Emergency Protection Orders, Police Protection Orders, Special Guardianship Orders, Placement Orders, Adoption Orders, International Adoption Orders, Pre Proceedings Meetings, Child protection case Conferences, Child protection review Conferences, defending allegations of injury, abuse or neglect, Child Arrangement Orders, Domestic abuse/violence cases, Prohibited Steps Orders and Specific Issue Orders. You will represent parents, grandparents, other family members and children directly or through their CAFCASS appointed Children’s Guardian.
Court:
Attending conferences and undertaking own advocacy at Court.
Growth:
Business development and marketing to support the work volumes brought in by the Firm
Demonstrating excellent networking and communication skills with the ability to promote the Firm to generate new business
Commerciality:
Ability to apply the Law with a degree of commerciality
Prepared to give your viewpoint to clients in a jargon-free manner
Understanding of other practice areas that may cross over into Child Care e.g. Family Law
Health and Safety:
Complying with the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974.
Taking responsibility for their own health and safety and that of others
Equality and Diversity:
Carrying out responsibilities in line with our Equal Opportunities Policy and Procedure and Equality & Diversity Policy
Confidentiality:
Maintaining confidentiality of information relating to clients, colleagues and other third parties in accordance with the Data Protection Act 2018 and GDPR, including outside of the work environment.
Person Specification
Skills, Knowledge & Experience
- You will be a Child Care Solicitor with at least 8 years PQE (there is no upper limit regarding the amount of experience and applications are invited from even the most experienced candidates)
- Ideally you will have experience of working in a multi-site, fast-paced legal business, having conducted all types of Child Care cases
- Demonstrates a positive, friendly, flexible, and capable manner, and can build relationships quickly with your team
- Works ethically and sensitively to drive the Firm’s values
- Has strong interpersonal, verbal, and written communication skills
- Has excellent time management, organisational and computer skills including Word, Excel, and PowerPoint as well as document management systems
- Is able to ensure a high level of service with existing clients in order to secure repeat business
- Works to ambitious targets with stretching KPI’s and complies and delivers within set deadlines
- A transferable client base and regional contacts to build the team is highly advantageous
- A Guardian following and your own networks across the geographical area would be highly advantageous
- You will have strong business development capabilities
- Experience of overseeing a team is desirable, however not essential
Education/qualification requirements
- Must be a Child Care Solicitor with significant PQE in the Child Care field
- Accredited with the Law Society - Children Panel Accreditation (desirable but not essential)
- Has ideally led a small team before
- Must have a clean, valid Practicing Certificate at time of application
Would suit someone who:
- Possesses strong management skills and can grow develop others
- Is analytical and possesses commercial acumen
- Looks to the future, observing trends and changes to the legal landscape
- Can work with little guidance and is driven to achieve
- Is a committed team player with the ability to approach team concerns fairly, fostering a culture of positive change
- Encourages cross-referrals and seeks collaboration before competition
- Has been in a Child Care Solicitor role elsewhere and is keen to bring their broad experience in a growing and ambitious team
- Is creative, and sees opportunities to do things better – will apply continuous improvement principles
- Wants to grow the business through networking and other business development activities
- Is keen to develop themselves with support from the Firm, i.e. putting themselves forward for appropriate legal awards/recognition
- Is genuinely passionate about Child Care and delivering a first class legal service
- Is emotionally intelligent and can get the best out of their team
If you meet the required skills and experience and would like to apply for the role, please email your cover letter and CV to recuitment@cartwrightking.co.uk with reference to the job role in the subject of the email.
