Senior Paralegal Caseworker (Ref: 22608)

Job summary

Please refer to Job Description

Job description

Role: Senior Paralegal Caseworker

Business: Office of Public Guardian (OPG)

Location: Cross site: Hybrid working between home and either Embankment House, Nottingham or Victoria Square House, Birmingham. Some travel between either site may be required. Office attendance is required at 40%.

Grade: HEO

Salary: £35,335 - £37,847

Contract Type: Permanent

Minimum Hours: 29 hours

Organisational Overview

The Office of the Public Guardian (OPG) protects people in England and Wales who may not have the mental capacity to make certain decisions for themselves, such as about their health and finance. We are an Executive Agency of the Ministry of Justice (MoJ), set up in 2007 following the introduction of the Mental Capacity Act of 2005.

OPG is responsible for registering lasting powers of attorney (LPA) and enduring powers of attorney (EPA) and supervising deputies who are appointed by the Court of Protection.

OPG is a fantastic place to work offering a range of development opportunities. The OPG is a disability confident employer and is committed to developing a supportive and inclusive environment that reflects the diverse community we serve.

OPG is currently delivering an ambitious transformation programme. This will change the way we provide services and help us meet the growing needs of our users, partners and our stakeholders. It will make sure our users experience a better level of support and will help us to respond to the changing needs of society. Transformation will ensure we can better support adults at risk and create high-quality services that are accessible and affordable.

Team Overview

The team – comprising 70 to 80 staff members – is multidisciplinary in nature and aims to provide a high quality and efficient specialist legal service for OPG. We have Senior Lawyers, Lawyers, Senior Paralegals and Paralegals, a Legal Support team as well as an excellent team of legal operations specialists.

The team has two principal functions:

(1) to conduct litigation on behalf of the Public Guardian in the Court of Protection, managing the whole litigation process. This involves reviewing cases from colleagues in Operations, Investigations and Supervision, and making a decision as to whether to issue applications covering the following:
1. Determination of the lawfulness of certain provisions of LPAs and the severance of unlawful parts;
2. Removal of attorneys appointed on the ground they are not acting in accordance with their MCA obligations; and
3. Removal of non-compliant deputies.

(2) to provide legal advice across the organisation on a wide range of matters including policy, investigations, complaints and where litigation is threatened/brought against OPG.

The work is important, rewarding and challenging in ensuring timely action is taken to prevent abuse. Whilst being based across several different offices, the team works well together as a community, team members are well-supported and there is progression at all levels. For paralegals, there are potential opportunities for support with applications to qualify as lawyers.

We are committed to becoming a Government leader in the use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) to enhance legal operations and service delivery.

Duties and Responsibilities

The post holder will be an experienced Paralegal who is confident and capable of working on complex cases and carrying out certain legal tasks independently. The Senior Paralegal role models the behaviours expected of all Paralegals and will be a key link between Lawyers and Paralegals. They will be able to work with autonomy and flexibility whilst having the interpersonal skills to work as part of a team and crucially have the ability to troubleshoot.

The post holder will work closely with other peer Senior Paralegals, Lawyers and Legal Support staff in addition to Paralegals to maximise performance and will be line managed by Lawyers.

The role may include work that could be used as qualifying work experience for SQE candidates.

The scope of the role is flexible in nature, and so if there is a business need, the post holder may also be required to support operational colleagues in the team.

Duties and Responsibilities

• Leadership over own caseloads under Lawyer supervision – including less complex legal case reviews, reviewing statements, providing instructions to paralegals, drafting documents, and liaising with counsel, parties and respondents. This will require sound judgment, good understanding of risk and problem solving. The post holder should feel confident in their ability to deliver consistently quality work in a fast-paced environment.

• Litigation support – supporting Lawyers on their complex/multi cases, bundle creation and preparation of briefs to Counsel. Make confident decisions within authority and make well-reasoned recommendations to lawyers with conduct when appropriate.

• Lead or support training and guidance and process reviews for Paralegals as part of continuous improvement.
• Attend hearings on behalf of Lawyers if necessary to assist with minute taking, which may include travel.

• Undertake any other duties commensurate with the skillset required for this post and based on business need, which may include management of staff

Agreed Expectations

The successful candidate will be expected to work from their base location on a weekly basis in line with current Civil Service requirements, outside of any reasonable adjustments. Office attendance is required at 40%.

Occasional travel to other offices is required.

Skills & Qualifications

Essential Skills

• Experience of working in a legal team alongside Lawyers and legal support staff. Lead criteria.

• A proven track record as a Paralegal, with good drafting skills, assessment of risk, attention to detail and confidence in own decision making. Lead criteria.
• Willingness to take responsibility for cases and ability to work flexibly according to business need. Lead criteria.
• Collaborative approach to working with a range of colleagues – a true team player focused on good performance.

• An ability to work under pressure to deadlines with excellent written and verbal communication and prioritisation skills, and flexibility to meet changing demands and priorities.

• An ability to work independently or as part of an effective team on ad hoc tasks and projects.

• Proficient in the use of Microsoft Office 365 packages i.e. Word, Excel, Outlook, MS Teams, OneNote, Presentations and PowerPoint.

Desirable Skills

• Experience of working in the area of the Mental Capacity Act and Court of Protection

• Legal qualification, including but not limited to law degree, Graduate Diploma in Law, CILEx, LPC, BVC/BPTC.

Application process

This recruitment will follow the Civil Service Success Profile process. Candidates will be expected to provide an up-to-date CV together with a Personal Statement of Suitability of no more than 1000 words where you specifically set out how you meet the above essential and desirable criteria. In the event of a high number of applications, the lead criteria will be experience of working in a legal team, proven paralegal track record and willingness to take responsibility for cases and ability to work flexibly (please see essential criteria for full details). T