Description
Legal Assistant North London | Hybrid working
Six-month contract with a strong possibility of extension
£21.59 PAYE / £28.56 Umbrella
We are looking for an experienced Legal Assistant to join the legal team of a major housing organisation in North London.
This is a hands-on role supporting operational teams with housing management legal matters, particularly escalated rent and service charge arrears. You will manage your own caseload, help pursue effective recovery through legal action and ensure residents remain at the centre of each decision.
The initial contract is for six months, with a strong possibility of extension. The team is currently undergoing consultation.
The role Your caseload will mainly consist of escalated arrears matters referred by operational teams. You will lead on rent and service charge recovery cases, working towards effective resolutions and helping to maximise income for the organisation.
You will work closely with local officers, housing management colleagues, tenancy sustainment teams and safeguarding teams. A key part of the role is ensuring that reasonable support and engagement options have been exhausted before cases move to legal escalation.
Your responsibilities will include:
- Managing rent and service charge recovery cases and other allocated housing legal matters
- Supporting cases involving tenancy and lease breaches, including matters connected with disrepair
- Preparing legal documents, evidence, witness statements and court bundles
- Representing the organisation at court, mediation sessions, multi-agency meetings, local authority meetings and casework panels
- Working with panel solicitors where external legal involvement is required
- Advising operational teams on legal risk, recovery action and appropriate mitigation
- Updating case management systems and reconciling information from different sources
- Monitoring caseload performance, identifying risks and escalating concerns appropriately
- Helping to deliver training, guidance, legal surgeries and advice sessions
- Providing administrative support, including inbox management, record keeping and document handling
About you No specific legal qualification is required, but you must have relevant experience of income and debt recovery work gained within a legal department or practice, housing association or a similar environment.
You will also need:
- Familiarity with the Civil Procedure Rules, particularly debt recovery action
- Legal drafting and research skills
- Experience using legal databases and Microsoft Office
- Strong spoken and written English
- Excellent communication, organisation and attention to detail
- The ability to manage your workload independently in a fast-paced environment
- Sound judgement and discretion, including the ability to identify and flag risk
- The ability to build effective relationships with legal colleagues, operational teams and external stakeholders
Pending legislative changes, the role may require a qualification demonstrating professional competence. Where somebody is not already qualified, there may be an expectation to study towards a relevant qualification.
Working arrangement This is a hybrid role based in North London. Attendance on Tuesdays and Wednesdays is mandatory, although court attendance will count as an office day. The role also involves attendance at court and other external meetings when required.
If you have relevant legal income or debt recovery experience and would like to play a central role in resolving housing-related arrears cases, please apply with your latest CV.