Family Paralegal

UK Employer of the Year 2024: Silver (250+) - Investors in People Awards The Role Forbes Solicitors LLP are seeking a Paralegal to join our Family (Public Law) team at our Preston City Centre Office.
This role is full time, working 36.25 hours per week, Monday to Friday, 9am to 5pm.
This is a fantastic opportunity for someone to start/progress in their legal career as a Paralegal become part of a collaborative and professional team.
While the role demands the fast pace, customer focus, and high standards of a law firm, it also ensures a sustainable work-life balance, reflecting the regional area it serves.
This role will be supporting a Solicitor within the Public Family team and will have exposure to a varied caseload of legal aid family matters.
As a key member of our team, you will be responsible for achieving successful outcomes such as: Provide effective and efficient support to Advisors through chargeable (legal based) work that contributes to the delivery and completion of services for clients (e.g.
obtaining and reviewing evidence and statements, taking witness statements, preparing for court, collation of legal bundles).
Ensure timely and efficient day-to-day progress of matters, prioritising work, monitoring deadlines and actions needed and keeping clients informed.
Drafting and preparing legal documents that require further knowledge, consideration and input based on analysis and understanding of information gathered.
Providing legal advice, under the supervision of a qualified advisor, that resolves queries and advances clients' instructions and cases.
Assessing and understanding client queries and file notes to identify actions and advice required and manage and guide the progression of a client file.
Attend external meetings and events including but not limited to hearings, court appearances, client meetings and networking events.
Maintain, monitor and update the appropriate systems and documents with client and case information, data and file notes.
Carry out and deliver accurate and up-to-date legal research.
Write original high-quality articles and reports for internal and external publication.
Manage regular and up-to-date communications with clients and stakeholders, answering queries, managing expectations (including costs), providing updates and effectively chasing responses required and escalating appropriately.
The Person We will be progressing applicants to the next stage based on their demonstrated knowledge, experience, and skills in: hold CILEX qualification/Law Degree (or equivalent); hold the LPC/SQE (desirable but not essential); previous legal assistant/paralegal experience is desirable but not essential; previous experience with Family Law is desirable but not essential; aligns with the Firms values; have excellent attention to detail and organisational skills; have the ability to work as part of a team; have strong commercial awareness; have proven competence in their IT skills (Outlook, Word, and other systems experience); have good communication skills, both written and verbal; have an interest in long term development/progression in the department; If you are interested in this role or in joining Forbes Solicitors, please visit our website to learn more about us.
The Firm At Forbes Solicitors, we believe in creating a supportive and collaborative environment where our team members can thrive and develop themselves and others.
We offer a comprehensive range of legal services and have offices across the North, with deep roots in Lancashire.
Our team are known for its genuine, practical advice and passion for achieving the best results.
We are real people who listen to each other and work together to deliver exceptional service.
We are proud to have been awarded UK Employer of the Year: Silver (250+) at the Investors in People Awards 2024 and the Firm is ranked as a Legal 500 Top Tier Firm and a Chambers and Partners Leading Firm.
We are a values led Firm and are looking for people who embody our values: authenticity, striving for exceptional results, and unity in teamwork to join our award-winning Firm.
The Benefits We are dedicated to supporting our people and offer a range of benefits, including: 33 days annual leave, including bank holidays Annual leave purchase scheme (Subject to T&Cs) Celebration leave Ongoing professional development Progression opportunities Company pension Profit share scheme Long service awards Subsidised tuck shops Health care benefits (Health Cash Back Plan and Mental Health Counselling Services) BUPA (Solicitor positions only, for self, not dependents) Retailer and gym membership discounts Recruitment and legal department referrals (Subject to T&Cs) Annual Events Forbes is an equal opportunities and disability-confident employer, accredited by Investors in People and ISO 9001 quality management systems.
We are committed to equal opportunities in employment, service provision, and supplier engagement, and strive to maintain a workforce that reflects the local community.
We kindly remind all recruitment agencies to respect our policy which prohibits the acceptance of speculative CVs, and not submit candidates for a role that we advertise, unless explicitly instructed to do so.
Any candidates that are submitted on a speculative basis will not be considered an introduction.
Our dedication to this process is part of our commitment to equal opportunities for all applicants.