Knowledge Development Lawyer (Family)
We’re Forsters, a leading law firm renowned for our private wealth and real estate focus. Together with our strong corporate & commercial and dispute resolution teams, we work alongside individuals, families and businesses across a wide range of complex matters and situations. What makes us different is how we build closer connections with our clients to deliver exceptional results. We do it through creating genuine relationships, a sharp focus on what matters to them and the flexibility to adapt our advice to their situation. This means that life at Forsters is a bit different too. Exceptional advice and performance require dedication and commitment to succeed, and you’ll be challenged to grow in a supportive and respectful environment.
Job title
Knowledge Development Lawyer (Family)
Reports to
Head of Knowledge.
Dotted line reporting to Knowledge partner for Family group.
Liaising with Legal Group Head for Family and other Partners/Counsel responsible at group level for Knowledge, Business Development, Trainees, Sustainability initiatives and KDLs across the business.
Department
Knowledge
Hours
Normal office hours are 9.30am – 5.30pm (flexibility required)
3 days per week and in accordance with our agile working policy.
Job summary
We have a vacancy for a Knowledge Development Lawyer (KDL) on a permanent basis. We are looking for candidates with expertise in Family work.
This is a new role and will be central to the successful organisation and development of our growing Family team. You will collaborate with our other KDLs and the wider Knowledge team.
The role involves producing high value knowledge content for internal and external use, designed to ensure that we are providing a consistently high quality of service to our clients, helping them to achieve the best results and supporting our fee earners’ development, in terms of legal knowledge and best practice.
Main duties and responsibilities
Knowledge resources and precedents
- Establishing and maintaining a centralised precedent bank, with a particular focus on nuptial agreements. This would include liaising with business support functions as to precedent management and security and leading on the delivery of precedent automation, where appropriate.
- Keeping watching brief on developments in current law, best practice and trends and creating appropriate and engaging knowledge materials to assist the Family group in providing exceptional outcomes for clients, focused on the needs of each individual.
- Establishing and managing a practice group Knowledge Hub platform (hosted on Sharepoint), developing materials that are focused, relevant and stored in a methodical and consistent way to ensure they are easily accessible and shared with other practice groups as relevant.
- Assisting fee earners with technical legal and matter management queries and ensuring that the resulting know-how is captured and shared across the group.
- Developing a reputation as a go-to expert.
- Encouraging knowledge sharing to reduce duplication and improve consistency.
- Drafting and updating checklists and other resources designed to mitigate risk and establish consistent processes and practices across the group. Liaising with Library and Information Services on resources and other library issues impacting the group.
Legal training
- Chairing monthly know how meetings for the group, establishing agenda, liaising with speakers, contributing as necessary.
- Design and delivery of structured training programmes tailored to different levels of qualification (and for support staff where relevant) to support their continuing professional development and ensure that we are applying consistently high standards. This includes contributing proactively to training programmes across the wider firm.
- Identifying and working with appropriate internal and external speakers for specialist training delivery, including liaising with other legal groups to deliver appropriate training and promote relationship building.
Legal tech
- Proactively monitoring legal technology in the market, evaluating benefits as against cost, seeking out potential use cases to achieve efficiencies within the Family group and feeding back to Head of Knowledge and relevant partners.
Client and business development
- Working to promote the thought leadership of the group, including signposting potential areas of focus and providing support to partners on business development related activities including assisting with conference preparation, article writing, preparation for media opportunities.
- Liaising with BD&M in relation to the production of high quality knowledge-focused website and social media content of relevance to our clients.
- Proactively raising the external profile of knowledge at Forsters through attendance at, and participation in, relevant events and forums.
- Where required, liaising with the BD&M team on the preparation of client materials and directory submissions.
Firmwide knowledge sharing and managing risk
- Working together with the Head of Knowledge and other KDLs within the firm to ensure consistent approach being taken across practice areas, actively participating in and promoting the work of the Knowledge team across the firm.
- Liaising with Risk & Compliance in relation to SRA requirements and other matters requiring escalation/firmwide policy review.
- Assisting with firmwide knowledge and innovation projects as required. Supporting diversity and inclusion, CSR and pro bono activities.
Other
- Collecting regular feedback on knowledge function to inform future projects.
- Assisting with onboarding of new joiners and trainees and in the early years recruitment process as required.
- Structuring time and priorities in accordance with the Family group’s business plan and providing input into it.
Personal attributes and Skills
- Experienced, technically excellent lawyer.
- Clear understanding of how a law firm operates as a business.
- Focused on delivery of high quality service to colleagues and clients alike.
- Confident presenter with ability to think creatively to maximise audience engagement.
- Strong problem-solving, project management, risk management and mitigation skills.
- Excellent communication and interpersonal skills with people at all levels of seniority.
- Self-motivated individual with a proactive approach.
- Calm and efficient under pressure.
- Flexible as regards to time and duties.
- Good attention to detail and strong organisational skills.