Head Judicial Assistant

The Supreme Court of the United Kingdom

London SW1P 3BD, UK

On-Site

Expires: Expiring in less than 4 weeks

Legal

Full time

£60,694 - £81,133 per year

Job summary

This is a rare opportunity for a UK qualified lawyer to lead the team of Judicial Assistants to the Justices of the Supreme Court, to act as a Judicial Assistant to one of the Justices, and to contribute to the leadership and management of the Court. This provides the Head Judicial Assistant with a unique insight into judicial decision-making at the highest level.

The Supreme Court and JCPC hear many of the most important cases of the day. The appeals are very varied and generally raise an arguable point of law of general importance, so the work is both interesting and impactful.

The UKSC is a small non-ministerial department. The vision of the Court is to uphold the rule of law with independence, integrity and impartiality, serving the public transparently and accessibly, and the staff (known as the administration) support the Supreme Court Justices to deliver the highest quality judgments in a unique and high-profile location on Parliament Square, which is open to the public. We are a values driven organisation which puts our users at the heart of everything we do.

The Head Judicial Assistant also works closely with the Court’s Justices, Chief Executive and Registrars. This is a pivotal role for the Court, which requires a combination of excellent legal ability and strong organisational and leadership skills.

Job description

What you will get from the role:

The Court is an exciting place to work for any lawyer. It offers a rare vantage point at the apex of the judicial system. You won’t just be observing the law, you will be contributing to its development through complex legal research and drafting lectures and speeches for Justices. This work demands the highest intellectual rigour and offers an unparalleled opportunity to see the law through the eyes of those who interpret and develop it.

You will actively participate in the Court’s education and outreach programmes. This programme forms an important part of our diversity and inclusion strategy and will sharpen your ability to create engaging legal narratives to non legal audiences. You will also participate in the Court’s international programmes, with an opportunity to attend the annual Judicial Assistants’ exchange visit to Washington DC.

Beyond the technical legal expertise, this position provides an opportunity to develop your management and leadership skills. By managing a team of judicial assistants and contributing to the Court’s administration, you will hone your strategic and leadership skills essential for any future legal role. Working as a Judicial Assistant is regarded highly by law firms, chambers and other employers - Judicial Assistants typically go on to have successful careers at the Bar, top law firms, academia, the Government Legal Department or in policy.

Person specification

The Head Judicial Assistant is responsible for:

Legal work

Serving as Judicial Assistant to one of the Court’s Justices;
Drafting bench memos on applications for permission to appeal, conducting legal research, and drafting legally accurate, plain English press summaries of judgments; Preparing extra-judicial speeches and articles and preparing the Justices for international and other external engagements;
Keeping abreast of legal and policy developments affecting the operation of the Court and advising the Justices accordingly;
Generally assisting the Justices, the Chief Executive and the Registrars as required, including by providing legal advice to the Court where appropriate, conducting legal research, and drafting instructions to external legal advisers.

Management responsibilities

Recruiting, inducting and line-managing up to eleven Judicial Assistants each year;
Acting as a member of the Court’s Management Board, which is responsible for the strategic direction and day-to-day management of the Court

External engagement

Representing the Court at meetings with external stakeholders;
Supporting the Court’s educational and outreach activity, including the annual mooting, Debate Days, and Ask a Justice programmes;
Organising and leading the annual paid Bridging the Bar internship programme;
Managing and responding to information requests from international judicial and comparative law networks, including by acting as the UK’s Liaison Officer to the Venice Commission, an advisory body of the Council of Europe in the field of constitutional law;
Coordinating arrangements for the annual Judicial Assistants’ exchange visit to Washington DC.

Essential criteria required for the role:

Excellent academic record with a minimum of a 2.1 degree;
Qualified to practise in one of the UK jurisdictions as a solicitor, barrister or advocate;
Excellent legal research skills, including the ability to tackle unfamiliar areas of law;
Excellent communication skills both orally and in writing;
Strong leadership skills with the ability to lead and manage a team; and
Excellent planning and organisational skills with an ability to produce work independently to tight deadlines with good attention to detail whilst managing competing priorities.

Desirable criteria for the role:

Post-qualification experience working as a solicitor, barrister or advocate in one of the UK jurisdictions;
Previous management experience;
Previous experience as a Judicial Assistant or Research Assistant or other relevant legal research experience;
A track record of building trust demonstrated by excellent professional relationships with senior people as well as colleagues and external stakeholders at all levels; and
Good knowledge and experience of using MS Office suite including Outlook and SharePoint and experience of providing and presenting management information.

Behaviours

We'll assess you against these behaviours during the selection process:

Leadership
Communicating and Influencing
Delivering at Pace
Making Effective Decisions
Working Together

Benefits

Alongside your salary of £60,694, The Supreme Court of the United Kingdom contributes £17,583 towards you being a member of the Civil Service Defined Benefit Pension scheme. Find out what benefits a Civil Service Pension provides.

Learning and development tailored to your role
An environment with flexible working options
A culture encouraging inclusion and diversity
A Civil Service pension with an employer contribution of 28.97%
23 days annual leave rising to 25 days after 1 year and 30 days after 5 years’ service plus 9 ½ Public and Privilege days per year (pro rata for job-share or part-time appointments).
On-site café and discounts for staff.
Corporate membership to Benenden Health.
Employee discounts membership to My Lifestyle
Annual eyecare voucher
Cycle to work scheme

Things you need to know

Artificial intelligence

Artificial intelligence can be a useful tool to support your application, however, all examples and statements provided must be truthful, factually accurate and taken directly from your own experience. Where plagiarism has been identified (presenting the ideas and experiences of others, or generated by artificial intelligence, as your own) applications may be withdrawn and internal candidates may be subject to disciplinary action. Please see our candidate guidance (opens in a new window) for more information on appropriate and inappropriate use.

Selection process details

This vacancy is using Success Profiles (opens in a new window), and will assess your Behaviours.

Application Process

To apply for the position please email

A CV; and
A supporting statement of 1000 words to describe how your experience matches the essential criteria and competencies outlined below to HeadJArecruitment@supremecourt.uk

Closing date is 11.59pm on Sunday 7 June.

The sift is expected to take place in the week commencing 8 June.
First round interviews likely to be weeks commencing 15 June and 22 June.
Second round interviews likely to be on 2 and 3 July.
The first round interview will test civil service strengths and behaviour, as listed below, as well as legal and written skills. We will also ask you to complete a press summary of a Supreme Court judgment under timed conditions to test your written communication skills.
The first round will be led by the Registrars and one other member of the Court’s Management Board.
For those successful at the first round interview, there will be a second round interview to test legal aptitude, which will include a presentation and discussion of a Supreme Court judgment. The second round will be led by a panel including two Justices and the Chief Executive of the UK Supreme Court.

If you are interested in applying for this vacancy and would like to speak to the current holder of the role, please email HeadJArecruitment@supremecourt.uk and we will put you in contact.

Feedback will only be provided if you attend an interview or assessment.

Security

Successful candidates must meet the security requirements before they can be appointed. The level of security needed is counter-terrorist check (opens in a new window).

See our vetting charter (opens in a new window).People working with government assets must complete baseline personnel security standard (opens in new window) checks.

Nationality requirements

This job is broadly open to the following groups:

UK nationals
nationals of the Republic of Ireland
nationals of Commonwealth countries who have the right to work in the UK
nationals of the EU, Switzerland, Norway, Iceland or Liechtenstein and family members of those nationalities with settled or pre-settled status under the European Union Settlement Scheme (EUSS) (opens in a new window)
nationals of the EU, Switzerland, Norway, Iceland or Liechtenstein and family members of those nationalities who have made a valid application for settled or pre-settled status under the European Union Settlement Scheme (EUSS)
individuals with limited leave to remain or indefinite leave to remain who were eligible to apply for EUSS on or before 31 December 2020
Turkish nationals, and certain family members of Turkish nationals, who have accrued the right to work in the Civil Service

Further information on nationality requirements (opens in a new window)

Working for the Civil Service

The Civil Service Code (opens in a new window) sets out the standards of behaviour expected of civil servants.

We recruit by merit on the basis of fair and open competition, as outlined in the Civil Service Commission's recruitment principles (opens in a new window).The Civil Service embraces diversity and promotes equal opportunities. As such, we run a Disability Confident Scheme (DCS) for candidates with disabilities who meet the minimum selection criteria.

Diversity and Inclusion

The Civil Service is committed to attract, retain and invest in talent wherever it is found. To learn more please see theCivil Service People Plan (opens in a new window) and the Civil Service Diversity and Inclusion Strategy (opens in a new window).

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Salary range

£60,694 - £81,133 per year