Litigation Solicitor Director – Manchester

Job Description: Duncan Lewis Solicitors (Ltd):

Regulated by the Solicitor’s Regulation Authority, Duncan Lewis Solicitors was founded in 1998 and is headquartered in the City of London (Fenchurch Street EC3M), with offices nationwide. We are recognised by the Legal 500 and Chambers & Partners UK independent legal directories as a top-tier law firm in all of our key practice areas – “a diligent and professional team that is prepared to go the extra mile for its clients”. A paperless law firm with over 500 personnel that embraces hybrid-working, we service both corporate entities and private individuals in over 25 areas of law across 60 languages. We give people a voice - that is our ethos.

Recognised among The Times 200 Best Law Firms, we have been awarded Law Firm of the Year at the 2024 Lexis Nexis Awards and 2023 Modern Law Awards, reflecting our dedication to legal expertise and client service. We hold Investors in People Gold Standard accreditation for over 15 years, showcasing our commitment to professional development. Duncan Lewis is also Law Society Lexcel, Cyber Essentials Plus, and ISO 27001 certified, ensuring excellence in practice management and data security.

We are committed to recruiting dedicated and talented professionals and welcome applications from exceptional candidates. At Duncan Lewis, we value training and diversity, and we take pride in our inclusive workforce.

Litigation Department Background:

Our litigation teams are ranked and recommended by The Legal 500 UK Directory for their excellence in Commercial Litigation, Professional Negligence, Contentious Probate and General Litigation work across the South East. Viewed as a “stand out” team it has extensive experience in acting for both claimants and defendants, representing individuals, companies, charities or those involved in group litigation, in complex and high value civil / commercial litigation matters, including:

• Bankruptcy and Insolvency
• Building Disputes
• Civil Fraud
• Consumer/ Commercial Disputes
• Contract Disputes
• Debt
• Interim Applications
• International Cross Border Disputes
• Contentious Probate Disputes
• Professional Negligence
• Residential Property Disputes

Our lawyers offer advice and assistance in dispute resolution and litigated cases and regularly acts in reported cases in the High Court and the Court of Appeal. The Litigation team is equipped to take swift action to protect our client’s interests and offer the best representation for any court action.

Main Responsibilities of the Role:

• Report directly to and collaborating with the Board to ensure performance targets are met
• Responsible for all aspects of Litigation work including providing technical expertise and guidance to other team members
• Ability to manage and supervise Solicitors, Trainee Solicitors and Caseworkers to manage appropriate caseload types and complexities
• Assisting with delivery of appropriate training and development in the department
• Ability to manage appropriate caseload types and complexities
• Variety of duties including dealing with a range of Litigation cases including: ADR/mediation; Banking and financial disputes; Bankruptcy and insolvency; Breach of contract disputes; Civil fraud; Commercial property/company disputes; Debt recovery and enforcement claims; Intellectual property infringement disputes; Interim applications as well as undertaking your own advocacy.
• Dealing with emergency cases, and identifying and carrying out strategic litigation.
• Preparing draft documents including witness statements and processing evidence
• You will have a professional proactive approach, strong client care skills and be interested in Business Development and Marketing to supplement the substantial work volumes brought in by the company

Key Skills Required:

• 3 Years+ PQE with proven experience of various Litigation work, including court representation (essential)
• Experience in own advocacy
• Must have a clean, valid Practising Certificate at the time of applying
• Strong management skills and able to lead a team
• Committed team player with ability to approach team concerns fairly, foster culture of positive change and encourage cross referrals
• Previous proven supervisory experience and working to key performance indicators
• Professional with a pro-active approach; excellent client care skills and ability to deal with client matters in a sensitive manner and resolve complicated practicalities involved
• Excellent networking and communication skills with the ability to successfully market the Company and generate new business
• Excellent IT Skills - familiar with Microsoft Office applications and document management skills

What we offer

• Competitive Salary
• Hybrid working options available in accordance with company policy.
• A fantastic supportive team
• Excellent progression opportunities
• Support for appropriate legal awards/recognition