Current vacancies

Main Responsibilities

Correspondence and Documents

The ideal candidate will be responsible for:

• Producing and proofreading all correspondence and documents, ensuring typing and grammatical errors have been corrected and enclosures are correctly attached to the letters before passing to a fee-earner for checking and signing.
• Dealing with e-mails received/sent to/from the fee earners in their absence by filing into the relevant electronic file.

Filing

The ideal candidate will be responsible for:

• File management responsibilities – opening and closing files including ensuring electronic filing systems are maintained accurately and up to date.
• Ensuring that any drafts of pleadings etc are filed correctly on the electronic file (and paper file) and organising files in the correct manner e.g. pleadings files.
• If working for a Partner being responsible for attending WIP meetings, raising bills, ensuring issued bills are sent out within the requisite timeframe.

Archiving

The ideal candidate will be responsible for:

• Ensuring that when a matter is to be closed and ready to be sent off-site, any account balances are clear and if there are outstanding time and/or disbursements, giving Accounts instructions as to whether these should be written off or a final bill drafted.
• Ensuring that original documents are returned to the Client and that any hardcopy documents are passed to the archivist, and that electronic files are archived.

Diary

The ideal candidate will be responsible for:

• Keeping the fee-earner’s electronic diary, checking there is no conflict of appointments and making sure that the fee-earner is aware of their appointments for the day.

Travel

The ideal candidate will be responsible for:

• Liaising with the fee-earner re travel arrangements and then liaising with facilities to book tickets/hotel etc and produce an itinerary.

Meetings and Boardrooms

The ideal candidate will be responsible for:

• Arranging meetings for fee earners and confirming these arrangements in writing where necessary and booking boardrooms for meetings through the office’s Services (requesting refreshments and lunch if appropriate). Ensuring that a diary entry is put in the fee earner’s calendar.

General

The ideal candidate will be responsible for:

• Maintaining confidentiality in all the fee-earner’s professional and private matters.
• Assisting with workload of PA team members within practice group and across the firm as required.
• Any additional ad hoc tasks as required.

Required Qualifications, Skills and Experience

The successful candidate will have:

Experience

• Previous experience working as a legal PA/secretary working in a law firm or other professional practice.
• Ideally have experience of billing within a law firm.
• A high level of IT proficiency with fast and accurate word processing and audio-typing skills.
• Professional telephone manner and the ability to accurately record and pass on messages.
• Sound technical skills in the following areas: Microsoft Office IT skills – Word, Excel, PowerPoint and Outlook.
• Proven experience of using a Client Relationship Management system.

Skills

• Be able to work in a busy open plan environment, sharing responsibilities with others, as well as working on their own.
• Excellent diary management, organisation and prioritisation skills.
• Be flexible and adaptable to deal with the ever-changing demands of a professional office environment.
• Good prioritising and organisational skills.

Excellent verbal and written communication skills.

About Beale & Co

Beale & Co provides specialist legal advice to the construction and insurance sectors. With lawyers spread across offices in London, Bristol, Glasgow, Dublin, Dubai and Toronto, the Firm has a long track record in successfully acting for clients all over the world. Our teams handle complex international arbitration; professional indemnity disputes; coverage; claims handling; corporate and commercial and contracts and projects advisory matters, with an emphasis on finding the best possible legal and commercial solutions to meet our clients’ needs.

Key Requirements:

The role will mainly focus on Billing with some E-Billing involved in the role.

Billing

Assisting with raising bills, write-off time and disbursements and to close files and ensure instructions are carried out.

• Using the firms accounting package to make general matter, invoice or credit note inquiries.
• Allocating VAT as applicable.
• Raising bills, draft bills and finalising bills on the firms accounting package.

Also, assisting with the submission of e-bills ensuring an accurate record of progress and ensuring deadlines are met in relation to appeals.

Experience

Our Revenue Assistant will demonstrate the below key skills and experience:

• Having relevant experience in Billing and E-Billing would be an advantage, however not essential as full training will be provided.

Skills:

• Excellent numerical accuracy skills.
• Excellent attention to detail skills.
• Excellent organisational skills with the ability to manage own workload.
• Excellent interpersonal skills with the ability to communicate confidently at all levels.
• Professional, persuasive and influential with a can-do attitude.
• Well organised with the ability to prioritise effectively.
• Ability to challenge.
• Collaborative and is a team player.
• Ability to relate impact of own role to wider firm

About Beale & Co

Beale & Co provides specialist legal advice to the construction and insurance sectors. With lawyers spread across offices in London, Bristol, Glasgow, Dublin, Dubai and Toronto, the Firm has a long track record in successfully acting for clients all over the world. Our teams handle complex international arbitration; professional indemnity disputes; coverage; claims handling; corporate and commercial and contracts and projects advisory matters, with an emphasis on finding the best possible legal and commercial solutions to meet our clients’ needs.

Key Requirements:

• Provide support to all functions of the Accounts team on a daily basis, and report into the Head of Accounts when required on any issues.
• Day to day supervision of the Accounts teams, delegating appropriate
• Assist with daily postings where required and cover when team members are absent or at busy intervals.
• Deal with general accounts queries and audit requests as required.
• Responsible for the monthly reconciliation of all Client Office and Business No Notice bank accounts, presenting a summary of all reconciliations to the Accounts
• Ensure that Balance Summary checks are performed, and that the VAT summary balances on a weekly
• Check on a weekly basis that client to office transfers have been actioned, and that professional disbursements have been paid out appropriately.
• In conjunction with the Revenue Supervisor, ensure that all monthly reports are accurate, balance and saved appropriately before the Head of Accounts runs month end.
• Propose system and process improvement solutions to the Head of Accounts, to continuously improve efficiency and effectiveness within the accounts
• Assist the Head of Accounts with maintaining an internal handbook of all accounting processes and procedures for use by the
• Maintain records and implement procedures to ensure full compliance with the Solicitors Accounts Rules’ (SARs). Report every breach to the Head of Accounts and
• Ensure that all members of the team are trained appropriately to perform all tasks accurately and efficiently. Ensure that team members are encouraged to develop their skills within the department.
• Assist the Firm’s Auditors, Head of Accounts and COO with the year end audit, including producing information and dealing with
• Be responsible for bringing to the attention of the Head of Accounts and COO any problems when dealing with the firms’
• Work in conjunction with the Revenue Supervisor when required, and assist the Head of Accounts during the Revenue Supervisors absence.
• On a quarterly basis prepare the client interest schedule. Calculate interest to split beneficiaries on matters where appropriate.
• Ensure that any client funds held that need to be donated to the SRA are done so in accordance with the SAR’s.
• Review funds held in the firm’s entire client accounts to ensure that they are held correctly and where necessary, return funds to clients. Produce a report for the Head of Accounts, showing balances held and the reason why the firm continues to hold these
• On a monthly basis, review unbilled disbursements and expenses and report to the Head of Accounts any issues.
• On a monthly basis, check all pro forma VAT has been converted correctly.
• In conjunction with the Revenue supervisor, maintain the firms rates when required.
• Responsible for supplying any management information to clients as

Experience

Our Accounts Supervisor will demonstrate the below key skills and experience:

• Previous demonstrable and relevant experience as an Accounts Supervisor within a law firm or legal business.
• Previous demonstrable and relevant experience of the tasks expected of the Accounts teams.
• Must be both capable of performing these tasks and of training others to complete
• Previous demonstrable and relevant experience of supervising a
• Excellent knowledge of the Solicitors Accounts Rules (SAR’s).
• Excellent numerical accuracy
• Excellent attention to detail
• Excellent organisational skills with the ability to manage own
• Excellent interpersonal skills with the ability to communicate confidently at all

Skills

• Demonstrable experience of dealing with insurer clients.
• Advanced Excel IT
• Demonstrable and relevant experience in training others to undertake an accounts role.

The Role

You will be responsible for:

• Advising professional clients and their insurers on case strategy, claim and cost reserves and insurance coverage matters.
• Handling high value and complex claims from policy response to conclusion.
• Preparing reports for Insurers with the ability to explain and advise succinctly on difficult and complex areas.
• Managing the Insurer/Insured relationship, being aware of potential conflicts.
• Monitoring critical dates and ensuring compliance with Insurer service level agreements.
• Preparing for Court cases at all levels.
• ADR, including negotiation and mediation.
• Adjudication.
• Identifying and advancing business development opportunities.
• The supervision of less experienced members of the team.

Essential Skills & Experience

The successful candidate will, therefore, have a minimum of 8 years PQE, ideally in Professional Indemnity, however we will consider candidates with Litigation experience and who display excellent legal ability and initiative, strong technical skills as well as confidence in managing and prioritising a full and varied caseload. You will be a strong communicator with good attention to detail.

In addition, you will have excellent academics and a willingness to learn and develop your legal knowledge.

In return, you will benefit from being part of an organisation that is genuinely committed to its people.

Our market leading team has an extensive portfolio of work and has advised on some of the biggest and most challenging and innovative projects across the globe. If you have experience of advising on procurement routes, engineering and construction documentation, joint venture agreements, PFI and PPP documentation and alliance agreements, please get in touch.

The team are proud to act for some of the foremost companies in this sector. We advise construction professionals, contractors, employers, operators, investors and their insurers, across a wide range of industry sectors, providing all aspects of project advice.

We’re looking for experience of advising on procurement routes, engineering and construction documentation (including consultants’ appointments, building contracts, collateral warranties, third party rights and security documentation), joint venture agreements, PFI and PPP documentation, alliance agreements etc. The role would suite those with private practice and/or in house experience.

We have an extensive portfolio of international work. Experience of advising on projects internationally, is preferred but is not essential. Ideally the candidates will have contacts within the construction industry to develop into clients.