Legal Support Secretary - Abu Dhabi

OverviewThe Middle East practice mainly comprises of Financial Markets Corporate Litigation and Real Estate Departments. The role of the Legal Support Secretary (LSS) is to provide a first-class professional support service to the Middle East Partners/Lawyers in the Abu Dhabi office.The Abu Dhabi Office Managing Partner (OMP) will be part of the successful candidates allocation.Key responsibilitiesThe LSS operates as part of a team with shared responsibilities and may refocus tasks and priorities periodically as required by the practice area. The LSS reports to the Office Manager and predominantly supports the Abu Dhabi Managing Partner as well as Associates in the wider GF team. The LSS is expected to build a positive working relationship with the fee earners and the team on a daily basis. Core areas of the support service include:Core servicesCalendar/Meeting Management — maintain and manage fee earner schedules and act as the key contact point for fee earners both internally and externally.Travel — organise complex travel bookings in liaison with the local travel agent; manage visa applications and transport bookings.Time & Expenses — oversee time entries and amendments for fee earners; timely submission of expense reports.Liaising with Reception for meeting and video conference set-up.Draft emails and letters; printing/copying/scanning updates to client contacts in InterAction.Submit annual mandatory training summary for Dubai fee earners on CLPD portal.Client Support — support client activities and requirements proactively.Team Support — collaborate with other LSS team members to provide a responsive and professional service; cover for team members during absences with some occasional Reception cover.Onboarding — assist with onboarding of new fee earners through scheduling of onboarding sessions with various departments, office introductions, practice area introduction, event explanations of matter lifecycle processes, time recording, expenses, and overview of LSS support.Practice support servicesClearance Risk and ComplianceHandle client conflict checks and clearance with the conflicts team based in London.Coordinate matter setup in liaison with Partner/fee earner to ensure minimum mandatory information has been provided; liaise with HR regarding client secondment setup.Follow-up with Partners/fee earners regarding compliance around engagement letters and MTM.Matter ManagementMatter project administration — organise client & matter team meetings, regular document archiving drives, create matter folders, upload documents to matter site, and create working parties lists.Monitor and recommend matters that would benefit from a project management resource or the use of certain Best Delivery tools to matter team.Notify Billing, Business Development and Best Delivery when a Partner instructs a matter to be closed.Matter Team SupportDocument Management/Production — manage document processing from beginning to end including edits, formatting, house styles, and proofreading; liaise with the Document Production Unit in London if required.Assist the originals team with the original process (soft & hard copies) when necessary.Liaise with the print room staff regarding printing of bibles and bundles and other bulk printing requests.Liaise with clients on behalf of the matter team when necessary.Attend practice area meetings or client calls, taking notes and providing other administrative support.Business DevelopmentUtilise PowerPoint skills to assist Business Development and Partners with creating and amending pitches.Coordinate updates to fee earner master CVs as per information received in Deal Updates.Monitor Live Pitch emails from Business Development and update all teams if there are any missing pitches/offers.Notify Business Development, Finance and Best Delivery of pitches that are won or lost if Business Development are not aware through their updates.FinanceUpdate and maintain all system information for fee earners and clients, including working with the local billing team to generate monthly bills, run matter financial reports, amend billing narratives and invoice mark-ups.Add phases, tasks, rates and debtors to matter financial information.Key working relationshipsAlong with all Secretarial Services staff, the LSSs success depends on positive and collaborative working relationships with colleagues in the Practice Area. Key relationships include:Fee earners to whom they provide first-line support and coverFee earners and clientsOffice ManagerLocal Finance, Business Development, Best Delivery and IT teamsLocal Offices Services team including other LSS and ReceptionLondon Document Production UnitQualificationsYour experienceMinimum typing speed of 60 wpmAdvanced knowledge of Microsoft Word, Excel and PowerPointPrevious work experience in a professional services environmentA-Level standard or equivalentExcellent communication skillsSelf-management and organisationProblem solving, judgment and decision making