The Weekend LSS will contribute to an inclusive working environment where all colleagues are treated with fairness and respect, applying the ‘Being Freshfields’ principles at all times. The Weekend LSS will contribute to the Hub’s culture of quality, striving for excellence in standard of output and being a positive role model within the team. The Weekend LSS will work as part of a team carrying out a range of tasks to support our global client needs. The Weekend LSS will have the opportunity to engage with fee earners from all fields, but will have specific focus on Global Transactions, Dispute Resolution and Anti-Trust Competition and Trade practice groups. With experience, there are opportunities to specialize in areas such as Capital Markets, International Arbitration and Financial Regulatory. We have a strong track record of placing LSS on secondments both within Firm practice groups and directly with clients. Location Overview: Manchester The Freshfields Global Centre provides both business and legal services to the firm. Our services are delivered in a way which supports the global nature of our firm and our clients, enables our fee earners to deliver exceptional service to our clients and to do that in a way which is efficient and effective. Function Overview The firm’s Client Delivery Group (CDG) brings together existing specialists in legal technology, project management and legal services to ensure the firm offers a ‘best in class’ package of support for our clients most challenging matters. As part of the CDG, the Freshfields Hub provides transactional support to the global firm, using established processes and procedures to ensure consistent and high-quality work. Together with its sister offices in Germany and Hong Kong, the Freshfields Hub in Manchester provides transactional support to the global firm, using established processes and procedures to ensure consistent and high-quality work. Role summary/purpose of job Core operational tasks to support client mandates include, but are not limited to: Due Diligence reviews; Document review for an investigation or at the disclosure stage of a litigation; Document cross-checking, making document amendments; Proofreading of documents including contracts, agreements and transcripts; Reviewing and marking up non-disclosure agreements; Document collation, version control and document review; Data Room management; Database entry/coding, database searching and database maintenance; Hard copy document management; Legal research (manual or electronic); and Creating and populating tables, schedules and agendas. This work will be carried out following established processes and using workflow and work allocation systems as required. The Weekend LSS will also contribute to the development and continuous improvement of the CDG by assisting with requirements gathering, process mapping, process evaluation and support documentation as required. The Weekend LSS will maintain a daily log of all activity and a record of time spent. They will establish and maintain effective working relationships with all levels of Freshfields staff. They will identify and escalate issues in a timely and effective manner. The Weekend Legal Solutions Specialist will have a four-day working week with standard hours as follows: Friday 9am – 6pm Saturday 9am – 6pm Sunday 9am – 6pm Monday 9am – 6pm The Weekend LSS will prioritize ad hoc tasks received towards the end of the traditional working week and over the UK weekend, providing support for global offices in different time zones. This will allow the Hub to respond to growing demand for out-of-hours working and short-notice requests. The overlap with LSS teams on Friday and Monday will also mean the opportunity to work on other long-term projects as part of a larger collaborative effort and allow for effective handover between teams. Key requirements Professional qualifications Candidates must hold an undergraduate degree, preferably in law, or equivalent. It is preferred that: candidates holding an undergraduate degree in an area other than law will have completed a recognized law conversion course: and candidates will have completed the LPC or BPTC or be overseas qualified or equivalent (preferred LPC electives for the role include Acquisitions, Banking and Capital Markets, Commercial Law, Corporate Finance, Intellectual Property Competition, and Commercial Disputes Resolution). Experience Previous corporate paralegal experience in a large law firm would be an advantage but is not essential. Technical requirements Essential Strong computer skills and experience in using MS Office tools (in particular Word, Excel, Outlook and Internet Explorer); Excellent attention to detail; The ability to work in accordance with established processes; The ability to complete work to tight deadlines when required; and The ability to work with large amounts of information. Preferred An understanding of project terminology and approaches; Experience of using a legal document management system; Knowledge of legal search engines such as Butterworths, LexisNexis, OJ online and Justis; Experience of using Legal Tech such as Kira and LexisDraft; Experience of using data and document review tools and systems such a Relativity; and Fluency in a second language with an ability to translate legal documents into English: key languages of interest are: Arabic; Cantonese; Mandarin; French; German; Italian; Spanish. Inclusion Freshfields is an equal opportunities employer and all applications received by the firm will be considered by the firm on the basis of their merit alone and we welcome applications from all suitably qualified individuals regardless of background. All offers of employment will be conditional on the candidate having/securing the right to work in the UK and providing the firm with evidence of that right (as required by the Immigration, Asylum and Nationality Act 2006) prior to employment commencing. Freshfields is a Ban the Box employer. We ask applicants to disclose criminal convictions only when a conditional job offer is made. A conviction does not automatically lead to withdrawal of the offer: we make decisions on a case by case basis and take a number of factors into account (eg the role you are applying for and the circumstances of the offence). You would have the opportunity to discuss the matter with us before we make a decision.