Professional Support Legal Assistant

Reports to: Professional Support Lawyers and Director of Professional Support 

Summary

The Professional Support Legal Assistant assists a team of five Professional Support Lawyers (PSLs) in transactional practices in the Americas (specifically M&A, Banking, Tax, EIPAF and Capital Markets). This position reports to the Director of Professional Support in London.

Responsibilities

• Provide support in respect of training programs and CLEs run by PSLs especially facilitating First Year Associate Program (including ensuring the smooth running of sessions on the day, coordinating with speakers, submitting materials to viLMS Learning Team, tracking attendance in conjunction with the central People Development team, liaising with other offices to set up video conference links and reminding speakers in advance of sessions);
• Conduct research on legal developments or new areas of law;
• Track post transactions Electronic Closing Binders (ECBs) and Matter Profile Questionnaires (MPQs);
• Assist in the maintenance of practice notes and standard forms;
• Provide direct support to individual practitioners to assist them with locating practice-related internal and external knowledge resources;
• Maintain the knowledge-related aspects of Americas resources on Connect (Firm’s Intranet);
• Assist PSLs in the evaluation of individual lawyer’s contributions to know-how and knowledge sharing through the know-how contributions scheme and update the list of contributions ahead of the monthly Group meetings;
• Participate in regular meetings of the Professional Support function and Knowledge Department and liaise with other PSLs/PSLAs to facilitate the sharing of best practice and knowledge;
• Provide other knowledge support to transactional attorneys;
• Assist with additions to Preferred Vendor Referral System and updated policies;
• Assist in the implementation of wider Knowledge Department and Professional Support initiatives and projects as required.

Essential Requirements

• Prior experience in a knowledge management/professional support team would be highly desirable but is not necessary.
• High professional standards;
• Strong attention to detail;
• Excellent drafting and research skills;
• Well-developed organizational and communication skills;
• Effective interpersonal skills and the ability to interact with people at all levels;
• Pragmatic, self-motivated, flexible and able to work both in team and individually as required;
• Willingness to take on additional tasks as and when required;
• Excellent IT skills, including proficiency in MS Office, ideally experience of iManage/document management systems.

Education/Qualifications

• Two years of experience in a Law Firm.
• Bachelor’s Degree.