Your Role and What You'll Be DoingThe Practice Development Lawyer (PDL) role leads Knowledge Management initiatives and projects within their practice area, ensuring relevant and up-to-date legal knowledge is easily available to support the team in its day-to-day legal work, client/relationship retention and business winning activity, including market intelligence and horizon scanning and to support the ongoing technical development of the practice area.
Additionally, this role contributes to firm-wide KM activities, playing a key role in the implementation of the KM strategy and working collaboratively across the business to support KM initiatives to ensure consistency across all practice areas.You will be responsible for undertaking horizon scanning to keep abreast of the latest legal developments and understand the impact on the practice area and on other areas of the firmMaintaining the internal knowledge bank and implementing initiatives to continually review and improve the knowledge bank.
Embedding consistent processes, ensuring high levels of quality to mitigate risk and delivering in line with the current and future needs of the practice area.
You will act as an expert user of relevant resources so that investment by the firm is realised through their optimal use.Provide technical and legal support to fee earners on client matters.Provide expert legal analysis and work with other areas of the business to support the creation and delivery of legal technical updates.You will organise regular team training, including the production and the deliverance of online and face-to-face training sessions.Participating in Client / Sector / Key Account Team / Work Source Provider activities including pitches, key account management and client/relationship meetings, showcasing the firm's position as a thought leader and legal expert.You will actively contribute to the setting of the KM strategy, supporting the Head of Knowledge Management in its execution.Collaborate to develop knowledge processes, approaches and best practices which can be applied consistently across all teams.Representing the firm at KM forums and other relevant platforms for PDLs.About YouProven ability to manage knowledge and information capture and sharing, in a way that would support the practice area, sectors and the development and promotion of firm-wide knowledge.Ability to conduct legal and business research and analysis, delivering high quality and targeted results to internal and external clients.Experience in delivering training and awareness and facilitating knowledge sharing activities within teams.Ability to demonstrate legal expertise and its application to support client service / relationship outcomes.Demonstrative legal expertise and experience working at the appropriate level in the practice area, including client facing / relationship work and legal drafting experience.Proven experience to effectively communicate and collaborate with a diverse range of people and job functionsExcellent verbal, written and listening skills and the ability to articulate positions/opinions clearly, effectively and objectively.
Ability to manage own workload with flexibility to adapt to changing responsibilities and competing priorities.Holding a current Practising Certificate is essential to this role.Our Benefits - What We Can Offer You25 days holidays as standard plus bank holidays - You can 'buy' up to 35hrs of extra holiday too.Generous and flexible pension schemes.Volunteering days – Two days of volunteering every year for a cause of your choice (fully paid)Westfield Health membership, offering refunds on medical services alongside our Aviva Digital GP services.
We also offer a wide range of well-being initiatives to encourage positive mental health both in and out of the workplace and to make sure you're fully supported.
This includes our Flexible by Choice programme which gives our colleagues more choice over a hybrid way of working subject to role, team and client requirements.We have been ranked in the Best Workplaces for Wellbeing for Large Organisations for 2024!Our responsible business programmes are fundamental to who we are and our purpose.
We're committed to being a diverse and inclusive workplace where our colleagues can flourish, and we have established a number of inclusion network groups across our business to support this aim.
Our commitment to Social Responsibility, community investment activity and tackling climate change is a fundamental part of who we are.
It's made up of four strands: Our People, Our Community, Our Environment and Our Pro Bono.