Principal Property Lawyer
London Borough of Barking and Dagenham
About this job
Directly accountable to the Head of Legal, the Principal Lawyer will be responsible for the delivery of proactive legal advice and decisions on complex casework in the area of property law within the Barking and Dagenham Legal Practice.
The post holder will be accountable for the management of Lawyers, Legal Assistants, and other relevant staff and to ensure the quality of work, work allocation and provision of guidance and to support the development of the legal staff within the practice.
The post holder will provide expert research and advice on legal issues and policy to drive and influence the legal practice within the context of overarching Council priorities.
Special requirements for this post
You will manage the Property and Planning team and will report directly to the Head of Legal, Monitoring Officer within the Legal Practice.
You will be responsible for delivery of legal advice and casework in the area of Property Law within the Barking and Dagenham Legal Practice.
About you
We need a suitably qualified lawyer (a solicitor, barrister, or fellow of CILEx), experience in UK Property Law and drafting various public-sector agreements for works, services and supplies is essential. You will provide advice to a range of internal and external clients, including the Council’s trading companies, and other public bodies.
As the Principal Property Lawyer, you will be accountable for the supervision of lawyers and other relevant staff. You will be responsible for ensuring the quality of work within the team, work allocation and provision of guidance as well as supporting the development of the legal staff within the practice. You will provide expert research and advice on legal issues and policy, and will contribute to the development of the legal practice within the context of the overarching Council priorities.
You will have access to and advise senior officers of the Council, and our client organisations. Therefore, the ability to work collaboratively and build positive working relationships with team members, peers and senior client officers at all levels is essential as your influence will extend beyond the possibilities of a traditional in-house service.
As the leader of the Property and Planning team you must be self-motivated and have the ability to direct and allocate work and monitor performance delivery. You must have experience of providing oral and written legal advice at the required level and have experience of managing a busy team caseload. You will need to ensure that all the teams work is in line with Barking and Dagenham’s Legal Practice Standards Manual including conducting file reviews, one to one supervision and Performance, Feedback and Development (PFD) with the team.
About us
Our vision is to be a Legal Service that is recognised nationally as best practice in the public sector.
We have a track record of helping team members develop their professional expertise. You would be joining a well established Legal Practice.
As an LBBD employee you’ll have access to high street savings, supermarkets, cashback incentives travel and holiday discounts; discounts at restaurants and cinemas; local, national, and seasonal offers; and a wide range of better-than-public deals through our Wider Wallet scheme. You’ll also have access to an Employee Assistance Programme; this offers a little extra support to manage life’s everyday challenges; both work and personal. The EAP is available 24 hours a day, 365 days a year and provides free, impartial, confidential information and support to help you gain a better work-life balance.
Flexible working
The role is open to flexible working unless there is a practical or operational reason that you must work set hours and times, you would need to discuss this with your manager before anything is agreed.
Other key benefits include:
Local Government Pension Scheme (LGPS)
As a member of the LGPS you will get a pension paid to you when you retire as well as being entitled to other benefits such as life insurance cover, a pension for your family if you die whilst employed by the council, payments if you have to retire due to ill-health.
Diversity and Inclusivity
To deliver our commitment to equality of opportunity in the provision of services, all staff are expected to promote equality in the workplace and in the services we deliver. As such we value diversity and welcome applications from all backgrounds including from the LGBTQ+ community, genders, ages, disabilities, faiths/beliefs and candidates from Black, Asian, and ethnic minority backgrounds.