Principal Property Lawyer
Surrey (Local Authority role)
Contract role
Hourly rate negotiable
37 hours per week
Role Purpose:
- Legal Services plays a key role in supporting Council’s strategic decision-making and provides legal support to all the Council’s services. The post requires a comprehensive knowledge base and sound judgement.
- The person will be required to provide effective leadership to Legal Services as part of the senior management team, facilitate service transformation and organisational change and ensure good joint working with other services in the County Council and with partners in Surrey and beyond.
- The role will need to engage colleagues across the Council and motivate Legal Services staff to effect changes and achieve improvements in services and value for money.
- They will provide overall management to a defined group of legal staff across a range of legal areas to support the Council’s objectives and priorities. They must be able to lead by example in modelling and embedding the council’s values to help build a sustainable highly effective organisation and develop its reputation as a successful council delivering great value for Surrey residents.
- The role requires strong negotiating, influencing and management skills, credibility and integrity. The post holder must also
have an up to date knowledge of local government issues and the political environment in which the Council operates. - They must be able to communicate legal concepts and complex ideas quickly and effectively.
- The post holder will be expected meet and contribute to the thinking of judges, magistrates, the police, the Coroner and other Heads of Legal Services/Monitoring Officers when necessary, in order to assist the work of Legal Services and SCC.
The post holder must, if required by the role, be available to work and attend proceedings and meetings at pre-arranged times (including out of core hours) and in locations away from their contractual base.
Work Context:
- Legal Services is expected to provide timely, clear and effective legal advice, representation and assistance to the County Council in order to enable the County Council to discharge their functions lawfully and effectively.
- Legal Services is developing a flexible and multi-disciplinary working environment to deliver fit for purpose legal service.
- Accordingly, you will be expected to develop and widen your experience in practising across the range of areas of law offered in the Service. We are a Lexcel accredited practice and all our work is carried out in accordance with Lexcel practice management standards
- Legal Services operates in a paper light environment, with minimal physical storage. The role holder will be required to manage and record their work contemporaneously using our electronic case management systems and keeping paper records to a minimum.
- We provide a flexible working environment with the opportunity to work remotely. Within our offices the role holder will be expected to hot desk.
If you have any questions about this role or wish to apply, please contact isobel@deekay.co.uk who will respond at the earliest convenience.
