Defendant Fee Earner

We are looking for a Defendant Fee Earner for to join an established Merseyside based firm.

Purpose of the Job:

  • Deal with all aspects of litigated and non – litigated Defence personal injury claims, including RTA claims, and pursuing Part 20 claims on behalf of clients when appropriate.
  • Have a working knowledge and where appropriate advise on/progress claims involving technical arguments such as indemnity/RTA/Article 75 Insurer issues, resiling from admissions, and pursuing non-parties to litigation.
  • Prioritise urgent schedule entries and dealing with remainder of daily tasks on To Do list.
  • Achieve and exceed various targets set in relation to fee income, closures and issuing etc.
  • Instruct Counsel, to attend conferences, hearings and CMC’s etc.
  • Undertake telephone advocacy when appropriate e.g. allocation hearings and CMCs.
  • Take a pragmatic commercial approach to settlements and advising clients as to litigation/cost risks.
  • Have a good working knowledge of the CPR and/or and other relevant case law and/or legislation and progressing defences in a timely manner in accordance with the CPR.
  • Ensure any appropriate instructions are obtained from any relevant insurance clients.
  • Ensure any appropriate instructions are obtained from any relevant lay clients.

Principal Responsibilities

  • Build a rapport by speaking/meeting with clients when possible to ensure a consistency of service and to ensure insurers loyalty to the Firm
  • Check the authenticity and validity of claims by speaking with clients regularly on potentially difficult files
  • Build a relationship with clients to minimise the possibility of complaints and to enhance the reputation of the Firm and the service it provides
  • Ensure clients (lay and insurance) are kept informed and up to date on a regular basis throughout the life of the claim.
  • Ensure that any relevant insurer is kept updated and fully informed as to the progress of any claims to reduce any potential exposure/liability and to increase saving
  • Discuss liability and/or quantum offers with the relevant parties, making use of the telephone rather than letter whenever possible.
  • Consider, and advise clients on, issues of contributory negligence as and when they may arise.
  • Maintain pro- active communication with clients (lay and insurance) to ensure all heads of claim are discussed with the client at the outset and throughout the claim.
  • Obtain all relevant documentation from clients at the outset.
  • Prioritise incoming daily post/emails and dealing with anything needing urgent attention while the remainder of the post is dealt with expeditiously and in order of importance and productivity

Knowledge, Experience and Skills Required:

  • A Solicitor, ILEX qualified or file handler of at least 2 years’ experience in the personal injury field
  • The ability to liaise and build up a rapport by using effective communication with all external agencies during the life of a claim including medical agencies, investigators, barristers etc.
  • The ability to create and foster a “can do” culture to raise efficiency and productivity
  • Good IT skills with a sound working knowledge of Solcase or a similar case management system and essential MS Office knowledge.
  • A proven track record of running a successful fast and/or multi track caseload within a personal injury environment
  • Excellent client care and analytical skills, to include providing written and oral advice in a clear concise manner

For more information on this role, please contact [email protected]