The Role

McCann FitzGerald is one of Ireland’s premier law firms employing over 600 people. We provide the highest quality legal advice and representation to Irish and overseas clients. Our clients are principally in the corporate, financial and business sectors and we also advise government entities and many state bodies, pension funds, and educational institutions.

We currently seek to recruit an experienced Legal Secretary/PA. The successful incumbent will be responsible for providing secretarial and administrative support to two busy Partners and their teams and to assist them in providing a professional service to the client. In addition, the Legal Secretary/PA may be asked to cover for other secretaries in their teams/groups and to provide relief assistance to any department in the firm. This is a permanent, full time position and we can offer hybrid working for the right person. 

Key Responsibilities

Responsibilities for this role include:

• Creating, amending, preparing legal documents.
• Schedule meetings and managing calendars.
• Billing: Drafting narratives from Work In Progress Reports (Aderant Expert) and computing figures. Follow up with relevant Fee Earners to ensure all time is captured. Processing signed off bills with Accounts.
• Preparing Transaction bills to clients’ specifications.
• Coordinate events and speaking engagements when required.
• Administrative support to fee-earners as required, ensuring that documentation and correspondence are produced to a high standard, in accordance with house style and to tight deadlines.
• Dealing with telephone queries and ensuring that such queries are handled in a professional, courteous and prompt manner.
• Plan travel, including flights, accommodation and ground transportation.
• Ensuring electronic and hard copy filing is up to date.
• Scanning documents to finalise post-closing process on projects.
• Drafting letters to clients for signing of documents.
• Other secretarial and administrative tasks and ad hoc projects as requested

Experience, Knowledge & Skills

The successful candidate will have:

• A minimum of 5 year’s relevant experience.
• Excellent organisational and prioritisation skills; the ability to manage a busy workload and meet client needs on a consistent basis.
• Billing process experience; drafting narratives from Work In Progress Reports and computing figures.
• A very high level of accuracy and attention to detail.
• Excellent MS Office skills; strong efficiency working with Microsoft Excel.
• 65+ wpm typing speeds.
• Strong interpersonal and communications skills.
• Ability to exercise sound judgement and decision making.
• Ability to work in pressurised situations.

Education

The successful candidate will have:

• Secretarial or Legal/Admin course qualification

Applications

Applications are made through email and should be accompanied with full curriculum vitae and sent to Denise.Ohare@McCannFitzGerald.com.

The Opportunity

At McCann FitzGerald, we go beyond delivering legal advice to create real-world impact and advantage for our clients. With a team of over 600 driven individuals, we work as one, committed to delivering excellent analysis, advice and transaction support for our clients. As a learning and knowledge-led firm that strives for excellence in everything that we do, we understand that knowledge management is integral to the delivery of high-quality client and legal services while maintaining operational excellence. Against this background, we are now looking for a talented Director of Knowledge Management to join our senior leadership team. The role will report to the Managing Partner and the Policy Committee.

Although taking up an established role, the successful candidate will have scope and support to further develop knowledge services in the Firm in innovative and valueadding ways, particularly through the enhanced use of our existing tech stack, AI, and the deployment of new technology. The Firm also anticipates further growth in personnel and resources in the knowledge team.

This successful candidate will take the lead in developing and implementing the firm's Knowledge Management strategy, advising key stakeholders on knowledge management and innovation and overseeing the management of legal and regulatory information across the Firm. This is an exciting opportunity to shape and influence the delivery of knowledge management and innovation across the Firm.

Role & Responsibilities

Some of the key responsibilities will include but are not limited to:

1. Strategy

(a) Providing a strategic view on the further development of knowledge management systems and technology (including AI) to ensure they work in an integrated way to support effective and efficient knowledge sharing and development across the Firm.

(b) Managing the growth and direction of the knowledge team, including Library Services.

2. Cross-Firm Collaboration

(a) Developing and maintaining strong ties with practice group leadership to ensure appropriate development and provision of relevant knowledge; educating and training practice groups on key legal developments, new and innovative solutions and encouraging momentum for fee earners to increase their usage of efficient tools.

(b) Contributing to the ongoing delivery of the Firm’s already established training programme including the advanced electives within the Law Society Trainee Programme.

(c) Leading our cross-Firm knowledge community by facilitating communication and collaboration between knowledge management lawyers, Library, HR, Learning and Development, Project Services, Responsible Business and Business Development teams as well as Heads of Department.

3. Leadership

(a) Ensuring the ongoing development of the knowledge management team, and encouraging continuing education and expansion of their industry knowledge.

(b) Line management responsibility for knowledge lawyers, knowledge executives and the library team.

(c) Acting as an ambassador and figurehead for knowledge within the Firm.

(d) Ensuring the Firm’s brand and values are reflected in all knowledge programmes.

(e) Promoting a knowledge sharing culture.

(f) Actively communicating the value of knowledge at all levels and creating positive engagement, through contribution, support and use of the materials and tools deployed.

4. Growth & External Profile

(a) Actively identifying opportunities for cross-functional collaboration with other business services functions to drive efficiency. This includes working closely with the Marketing & Communications, and Clients and Business Development functions to spot opportunities such as client-facing content and training, producing thought leadership pieces and assessing value to clients.

(b) Leading our client Knowledge Network Programme, in collaboration with practice groups, Business Development and Learning & Development.

(c) Building an external profile with clients and other knowledge leaders in the legal sector to deliver the knowledge objectives and goals of the firm.

Skills and Experience

The successful candidate will possess many of the following:

• proven leadership skills, a passion for knowledge and a can-do attitude;
• an innovative and strategic mindset and approach to knowledge generation, management and dissemination and a commercial mindset for the practical application of legal and regulatory principles;
• excellent drafting, presentation, communications (written and verbal) and interpersonal skills and a strong interest in developing the profile of knowledge services in the Firm;
• experience in the use of technology in knowledge management and will be familiar with the potential that AI and other technology offers for current and future improvements in these services;
• an ability to build strong relationships quickly with a wide range of people, with confidence, credibility and gravitas to work with very senior people across the Firm;
• an understanding of law firms, their needs and their general methods of operation;
• excellent organisational and prioritisation skills, an ability to exercise sound judgement and a pragmatic decision-maker;
• a track-record of managing projects successfully and pushing them through to completion.

Education

The successful candidate will have a strong degree in law, or in law with another discipline.

It will be an advantage if an applicant has law firm practice management experience and/or is a solicitor or a barrister.

Applications

Applications are made through email and should be accompanied by a full curriculum vitae and sent to Denise O'Hare, Executive Recruiter, or for a confidential discussion about the role, please phone Denise on +353 1 607 1227.

*Both internal and external candidates are encouraged to apply.