Risk & Compliance Solicitor

This is ideally a full time role, however we will also consider applications on a four day per week basis.

The role

This is a varied role that will be responsible for working as a key member of the Risk & Compliance team advising staff and partners across the business on the management of risk and ensuring best practice at all times.  Particular areas of responsibility will include claims and complaints, general risk advisory work and ISO accreditation activities.

The person

The role requires an experienced solicitor, who has an analytical approach and experience of managing and advising on often complex legal problems.  As the role deals with a variety of queries from across the firm, you will need to be people orientated and able to adapt your style and the way in which you give your guidance to accommodate this.  It is not expected that you will have experience of all areas of the role and training will be provided if required.

You will need to be comfortable being visible and accessible to teams and be available and willing to deal with a significant amount of ‘informal traffic’ within your day-to-day work, while seeking supervision where appropriate from Solicitors within the team.

The role additionally requires someone who:

• is self-managed and confident in setting and prioritising their own work agenda;
• has excellent written as well as verbal communication skills;
• is able to demonstrate that they can convey complex legal matters in a way that different audiences can understand;
• is confident and able to build sustainable relationships with internal colleagues;
• is organised and methodical in how they approach their work;
• is challenging, but not confrontational, with a clear sense of direction, but also with an understanding of the need to listen to the specific views of staff and partners;
• has excellent attention to detail;
• is a team player;
• is IT literate and who is familiar with MS Office;
• is willing to take on new responsibilities and challenges.

The activities

Risk management

• Provide risk management, best practice and ethics advice to partners, staff and business services teams on a broad range of issues (including advice relating to retainers, confidentiality, data protection, AML, tax evasion, conflicts, Persons with Significant Control (PSC), outsourcing, file management, supervision, anti-bribery and corruption, referral arrangements, fee sharing arrangements, and information barriers)
• Assist with maintenance of the firm’s risk register
• Maintain the firm’s breaches register
• Report to the COLP on breach statistics
• As part of incident management, make breach recommendations to the COLP
• Liaise with the COLP and COFA to ensure all correspondence with the SRA (in relation to the SRA Code of Conduct and Solicitors Accounts Rules) is recorded centrally by the Risk & Compliance team
• Draft, review and update risk management-related policies
• Maintain the firm’s Risk Management Intranet page which sets out risk-related policies and internal and external guidance for lawyers and staff

Insurance

• Deal with PI-related queries from clients
• Advise on coverage issues and liaise with brokers and insurers where appropriate
• Support with the annual renewal of policies

Regulatory queries and claims

• Manage the firm’s and its SRA-authorised subsidiaries’ mySRA accounts
• Prepare and assist management with the submission of the firm’s SRA bulk renewal application and the firm’s SRA-authorised subsidiaries’ SRA renewal
• Liaise with the SRA on regulatory matters
• Draft correspondence to the SRA on behalf of the COLP, Managing Partner and Senior Partner
• Support management with preparation for SRA Regulatory meetings
• Prepare new manager, change of COLP/COFA and new SRA-Approved Anti Money Laundering Officer SRA applications
• Advise HR and lawyers on mySRA and SRA authorisation matters
• Log and monitor incidents that are reportable to the regulators
• Assist with the more significant claims, complaints and regulatory incidents being forensic in your analysis of these regulatory issues

Contract related queries

• Provide commercial drafting input into client and supplier contracts
• Respond to risk related questions in tenders and existing client due diligence questionnaires

Ad hoc responsibilities

• Advise on ad hoc Anti Money Laundering (AML), conflict related claims passing on to relevant people if these are not within your remit
• Support the firm’s ISO 9001 certification with its external audit programme across its seven offices, liaising with senior management, lawyers and business services to meet with an external assessor
• Carrying out internal audits for ISO 9001 relating to document control and records management, file reviews and post-delivery activities
• As required, report on risk related data statistics including supporting of the management review reports twice a year
• Provide input into new business initiatives by providing risk and compliance input and expertise
• Delegate work to the Risk Paralegals as appropriate and support with their personal development
• Preparation of the firm’s Modern Slavery Statement each year to include gaining approval from the Board and publishing to the firm’s external website

Pre-employment screening

Please note that, in the event that we make an offer of employment, we will conduct pre-employment screening that includes checks relating to your professional and academic qualifications, references from previous employers, your eligibility to work in the UK and any disciplinary history recorded with the Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA). You will also be required to complete a self-declaration to access your character and suitability.

Disclosure and barring service check

This post is also subject to a satisfactory response from the Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) to check for any previous criminal convictions.

The Mills & Reeve Business Services career structure

We have a firm wide Business Services career structure and a published career progression framework.  Within the firm wide career structure there are five career levels.  For the purposes of the framework, this role is at a Manager level.  Further information on the firm’s Business Services career structure  will be available as part of the interview process.