Overview:
Location
London, Oxford, Manchester, Birmingham, Bristol, Liverpool, Leeds - This is a hybrid working role
Ridge is currently seeking an assistant legal counsel to join its Legal and Insurance Team, predominantly to provide contract support in relation to Ridge’s commercial agreements including professional service appointments.
The opportunity
This is a great opportunity for someone with construction industry knowledge, with experience in either private practice, in-house (with a consultant or consultancy division), or an insurance environment who is able to demonstrate a pragmatic, commercial approach to applying their legal training.
What We Can Offer
This role offers you an opportunity to learn and develop skills and qualifications as part of a dynamic team, we also offer;
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26 days holiday
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Company car allowance
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Hybrid working option
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Private Healthcare
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Life Assurance
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Standard 6% Ridge pension contribution
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Highly competitive salary
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Salary Sacrifice - Cycle to Work scheme
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Buying and selling annual leave
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Gym Membership Scheme
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Company car leasing scheme
Role and Responsibilities:
- Reviewing bespoke appointment contracts received with client instructions and tenders to identify risks to Ridge
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Negotiating and drafting of appointment contracts and their associated, collateral and downstream agreements
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Liaising closely with commercial teams to manage the process of contract review in compliance with internal protocols, through to signing
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Collating and updating precedent clauses and documents
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Evolving and updating standard terms and conditions of business in light of company policy, industry trends and changes in legislation
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Drafting and publishing internal best practice guides and advisories
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Giving ad hoc advice on issues that arise through the duration of a project
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Interpretation (both internally and externally) of Ridge’s insurance policies
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Contributing to internal CPD programmes and know-how for commercial colleagues
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Assisting with the drafting of company policy documents and QA compliance forms
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First instance “trouble-shooting” and supporting a position in evolving disputes
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First instance claims handling and defending money claims
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Liaising with external lawyers and Ridge’s insurance brokers
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Supporting business development in the legal sector for Ridge’s Expert Witness function
Experience and Skills Required:
- Preferred Qualifications: Solicitor (UK qualified)
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Ideally you will be a construction lawyer, probably non-contentious
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Assistant level experience
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Consideration will be given to other legal backgrounds and/or the requisite experience
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You will have strong technical legal knowledge, together with a commercial understanding of the construction industry and a successful track record either in a law firm, in an in-house position or with an insurer or insurance broker
You will have experience of reviewing bespoke appointment contracts for professional services and associated documents such as framework agreements, collateral warranties, letters of reliance, novation agreements, letters of intent, alliancing and partnering agreements, sub-contract / sub-consultant contracts, NDAs, guarantees and performance bonds etc, and possess the awareness to review all such documents in light of any relevant insurance policy terms, “main contract” terms and managing a business’s commercial exposure.
You will have a working knowledge of published forms such as JCT, NEC, RICS, RIBA etc and some familiarity with the Construction Act and building contracts. You will have a basic understanding of regulatory compliance issues including Data Protection and Subject Access Requests.
Excellent oral and written English communications skills, including excellent presentation, reviewing and drafting skills. You will have the ability to deal with a wide range of people across the business and the confidence to operate relatively autonomously in a highly commercial environment. You will use your judgement to manage a workload in order according to commercial importance to the business and to meet multiple and often prompt deadlines. You will be able to instinctively evaluate and apply the appropriate level of “legal” input to any given situation in order to achieve the optimum commercial outcome for the business. Some claims handling experience would be helpful. You will be keen to grow your career and enjoy the opportunities that Ridge has to offer.