Trainee solicitor

Duncan Lewis is a progressive law firm with offices throughout England and Wales. Although well-known and established as the largest supplier of civil legal aid services in England and Wales the company also has a thriving private client base.

With over 700 employees and consultants, the Company is LEXCEL accredited and takes pride in being the first law firm to achieve GOLD status in Investors in People.

Duncan Lewis is now recruiting for 24 trainee solicitors to join its training programme in the following branches: - Birmingham, Cardiff, Dalston, Harrow, Leicester, Luton, Milton Keynes, New Cross, and Shepherds Bush.

We will be looking to recruit trainees in one of the following disciplines:- children law, crime, family, housing, immigration & human rights, mental health, prison law and personal injury and public law.

Duncan Lewis is fully dedicated to providing its trainee solicitors with a comprehensive and diverse foothold into the legal world. We provide high quality training across a range of specialist areas whilst developing your skills both personally and professionally.

Start dates

The start dates will be staggered over three months; 1 September 2016, 3 October 2016 and 1 November 2016.

What to expect

We aim to give all trainees the best commercial grounding by giving you the opportunity to spend eight months in each seat throughout various departments, focusing mainly on children law, crime, family, housing, immigration or public/administrative law to start with. Seat allocation is to be decided during the training contract which is dependent upon business needs and market trends.

Our trainees will gain a wide range of experience and develop their knowledge and skills, laying the foundation for a successful future career in law. Trainees will be given the opportunity to take on responsibility and be involved in a wide range of legal work. Our trainee solicitors are also encouraged to get fully involved with all aspects of the firm’s networking, professional and social responsibilities, and help advertise the firm’s commitment to providing a high quality service to all clients. Trainee solicitors may be required to work out of regional branches.

Upon qualification our trainees are given opportunities for career development and an excellent working environment. Retention of our trainees on qualification is high but this will depend on business needs.

Essential requirements for the role:

Our success is built on our people and we take our trainee solicitor recruitment very seriously. We are looking for enthusiastic individuals, who possess initiative, strong interpersonal skills, have good communication skills and an appetite for success.

The successful candidate must:-

• Be technically competent, and academically strong with a minimum of 2.1 in a Bachelors degree.
• Have a minimum of 300/26 in core subjects (2 As and a B grade)
• Possess team working skills and attention to detail is essential.
• Have business acumen
• Have excellent IT skills
• Have completed the Legal Practice Course. The company will also consider those candidates who have enrolled on a part time Legal Practice Course.

Previous legal experience is an advantage.                    

Preference will also be given to candidates who speak an additional European language fluently.

Equal Opportunities:

Duncan Lewis is committed to Equal Opportunities and embraces diversity of its staff. The company strives to ensure that our staff reflects the diversity of the communities we serve, which is reflective at all levels within our workforce.

We guarantee an interview for candidates that disclose a disability and meet the essential requirements for the post. Please provide additional details in your covering letter, if this applies.

If you are interested in applying for this vacancy, please visit our website www.duncanlewis.co.uk/careers.html and apply using our online application process.

APPLICATIONS SUBMITTED BY AGENCIES WILL NOT BE ACCEPTED FOR THE ABOVE VACANCIES

Offices: As stated

Interviews will be scheduled during September.