About us
Birketts is a full service, UK Top 50 law firm. With a heritage spanning 160 years, we have more than 700 lawyers and legal professionals and over 600 staff based in Bristol, Cambridge, Chelmsford, Ipswich, London, Norwich and Sevenoaks. We advise businesses, government and public sector organisations and individuals in the UK and internationally across four principal practice groups: Real Estate, Corporate Services, Dispute Resolution and Private Client.
We are defined by our Next Level Law proposition. We work with our clients as a proactive partner, horizon scanning and thinking ahead to the changes, challenges or opportunities that they may face.
Next Level Law is also applied to our people. Our collegiate culture means everyone is encouraged to achieve their next level in everything they do. RollOnFriday recently ranked us as the 6th best law firm to work at in 2026.
With our ambition to succeed, comes a strong desire to make a positive contribution to the communities we serve, and we are committed to delivering the objectives set out in our ESG strategy. Diversity plays an integral part in all that we do, with female partners comprising 42% of our partnership.
The team you will join
The Birketts Commercial Real Estate Team is one of the best regarded and largest dedicated real estate teams within any firm outside of London, with over 200 lawyers across the firm as a whole.
Our property lawyers are particularly experienced in dealing with development (including strategic land) and investment, planning, secured lending and landlord and tenant matters. We are increasingly advising high value, high profile transactions and clients.
The work you will be doing
You will work as part of an administration team to provide professional, proactive, high level administrative support to an allocated group of fee earners and to the wider fee earning team.
Responsibilities will include:
*Produce and amend documents with speed and accuracy
*Assist in maintaining compliant and accurate file management
*Using office systems to onboard new clients and open new matters, and to liaise with Risk & Compliance regarding due diligence requirements
*Format, paginate, number and present documents in Birketts LLP ’house style’
*Ensure that all electronic filing is up to date and maintained at regular intervals
*Respond to both internal and external telephone enquiries and emails where appropriate
*Manage diaries in Outlook and make all necessary meeting room bookings
*Communicate with a wide variety of different stakeholders internally and externally
*Prepare and submit conveyancing related searches via online platforms and liaise with search providers
*Arrange for completed documents/deeds to be logged and sent to storage
*Process expense claims via Navan
*Processing team post
*Preparing Accounts forms and liaising with Client Finance Team
Please note that this job profile is not an exhaustive list of duties but merely an outline of the key components of the role. You may be required by your line manager to take on additional responsibilities when requested.
What we are looking for
We are seeking a highly organised and detail-oriented Legal Secretary to provide support to the team. Ideally you will have the following skills and experience:
*Strong administration experience
*Positive, enthusiastic and professional approach
*Strong attention to detail and high-level organisational skills
*Be an excellent communicator
*Excellent spelling, grammar and punctuation
*Self-motivated, positive attitude, ability to use initiative and provide pro-active support to fee-earners
*Ability to prioritise work when under pressure and meet strict deadlines
*Ability to work independently and as part of a team
*Prior experience working in a legal environment is preferred
*Ability to handle sensitive information with discretion and professionalism
Hybrid Working
During your probation period, there will be a requirement to be in the office full time whilst you are developing in the role. Once you have successfully passed probation, we will discuss phased arrangements into a hybrid working pattern. This will remain predominantly office-based, however up to 40% working from home per week will be considered.
We welcome applications from people looking for flexible, agile, and part-time roles and we are happy to explore your preferred working patterns as part of your application.
Benefits
As a Birketts colleague, you will be eligible to receive a wide range of benefits:
*25 days holiday (FTE) plus Bank Holidays
*Long Service holiday award – 1 extra week every 10 years continuous service
*Private Healthcare with BUPA (offered after probation is passed)
*Scottish Widows Pension Scheme (5% employer / 5% Employee)
*Staff Profit Share and Individual Performance Bonus Scheme
*Salary sacrifice (Pensions, Staff Profit Share)
*Life Assurance - 4 x salary / Permanent Health Insurance
*Paid CSR Day
*Enhanced Maternity/Paternity Leave
*Subsidised gym membership
*Electric car scheme
*Dress for your Day Policy
You can find out more on our website: https://recognition-reward-benefits/
Inclusivity and Culture
At Birketts, our culture is driven by ambition and a commitment to positively impact all the communities we serve. We are dedicated to the success, development, and wellbeing of our colleagues, helping them achieve their goals and seize the opportunities that come with our growth.
Birketts is committed to being an Equal Opportunity Employer. Our policy is unequivocal: we do not tolerate discrimination based on age, disability, sex, race, religion or belief, gender reassignment, marriage or civil partnership, pregnancy or maternity, or sexual orientation.
We pride ourselves on being an inclusive organisation that actively promotes equality of opportunity for all, valuing the right mix of talent, skills, and potential. We welcome applications from a diverse range of candidates, and selection for roles is based solely on individual merit.