His Majesty’s Courts and Tribunals Service
Royal Courts of Justice Group, Legal Operations
Background
Her Majesty’s Courts and Tribunals Service (HMCTS) is responsible for the administration of the criminal, civil and family courts and tribunals in England and Wales and non-devolved tribunals in Scotland and Northern Ireland. It provides a fair, efficient and effective justice system delivered by an independent judiciary. HMCTS aims to ensure that all citizens receive timely access to justice according to their different needs, whether as victims or witnesses of crime, defendants accused of crime, consumers in debt, children at risk of harm, businesses involved in commercial disputes or as individuals asserting their employment rights or challenging the decisions of government bodies.
Consequently, there are high expectations of all staff regardless of the job they do, and high performance is expected from everybody. The organisation is continuously adopting new or better ways of working to ensure that it focuses on just that which is essential. HMCTS senior management expects all leaders to operate in a culture of openness and honesty, demonstrating a commitment to change through involvement and empowerment, and by delivering results.
The RCJ legal operations group includes all the lawyers working in the offices which support the Court of Appeal (criminal and civil divisions) and the High Court. It also includes lawyers working in the Upper Tribunal and the Employment Appeal Tribunal.
The RCJ legal operations group is recruiting a total of 6 lawyers, as follows:
Two lawyers in the Court of Appeal (Civil Division), based in the Royal Courts of Justice in London;
One lawyer in the Administrative Court, based in Royal Courts of Justice in London;
One lawyer in the Administrative Court to cover work across the Administrative Court Office in both the Cardiff and Manchester;
One Registrar in the Upper Tribunal (Administrative Appeals Chamber), based in the Rolls Building in London; and
One lawyer in the Employment Appeal Tribunal, based in the Rolls Building in London.
The job descriptions for each of these posts are set out below at pages 2 to 12 and information regarding the recruitment process for all the posts is provided at pages 13 to 15.
Job Title: Lawyer in the Court of Appeal (Civil Division)
Pay Span or equivalent: Grade 7
Pay range: £58,511 to £65,329
Contract type: Permanent
Number of hours per week: 37
Number of vacancies: 2 (both located at the Royal Courts of Justice, London)
Reserve List: Yes
Introduction
The Court of Appeal Civil Division hears appeals across all civil jurisdictions including commercial, intellectual property, housing, immigration and asylum, family, employment, planning and judicial review. In the majority of cases, it is the final appellate court. The Civil Appeals Office provides administrative and legal support to the Court of Appeal Civil Division.
The lawyer team perform the Court of Appeal’s judicial case management function (normally reserved to Judges in the lower courts), thus maximising judicial productivity and contributing to the Court’s ability to administer justice cost-effectively and consistently.
Each lawyer is responsible for the case management of all cases within a particular jurisdiction or jurisdictions, working with a team of administrative case managers, and is accountable to the Supervising Lord or Lady Justice in that area of work.
Key responsibilities and duties:
Case Management
Maintain responsibility for the oversight of proactive case progression from pre-issue to final decision, to ensure that cases are progressed consistently, efficiently and in accordance with the Civil Procedure Rules (overriding objective) and relevant Practice Directions, with a view to minimising delay and ensuring a quality service is provided at all stages. This includes the following:
Preparing accurate and concise legal head notes in all cases;
Checking the court has jurisdiction and that appeal notices are filed in time and relevant applications made;
Giving directions on a daily basis to case management teams as to how to deal with procedural and legal issues in correspondence and generally;
Determining applications for extensions of time; approving cases for the dismissal list and checking consent orders are compliant with the Civil Procedure Rules;
Exercising judicial authority delegated by the Master of the Rolls in relation to specified applications;
Identifying the urgency of cases and enabling the Court to deal with same day urgent cases by obtaining the required papers quickly, assimilating the issues at speed and explaining the issues to a Lord or Lady Justice orally where required;
Maintaining an accurate overview of all legal issues raised within a case group and identifying linked issues and appropriate test cases in order to ensure consistent Court of Appeal authority;
Identifying important and high-profile cases for inclusion in the flagged schedule considered by the Master of the Rolls;
Taking responsibility for the caseload as a whole including regularly checking the timely progress of all cases within the group.
Develop and apply legal skills
Maintain and develop specialist skills by keeping up to date with developments in the law relevant to the caseload area including new statutes, statutory instruments, relevant procedural rules and case law, with a strong focus on continuous learning.
Identify developing trends in the caseload area.
Respond to consultations as to proposed procedural or legal changes affecting the caseload. Anticipate the effect of new statutes or statutory instruments and devise and implement required changes in office practice as a result.
Attend in-house and external training courses to meet relevant continuous professional development requirements.
Keep stakeholders informed
Respond to legal and procedural questions and queries from solicitors, counsel, and litigants in person accurately and promptly.
Maintain an effective working relationship with, and respond to queries from, the judiciary.
Anticipate, identify and inform the Court and/or Supervising Lord or Lady Justice of pending issues of importance and any legal and practical difficulties within the caseload to ensure effective measures are put in place to achieve the best means of listing and managing cases;
Prepare a plenary report for the relevant Supervising Lord or Lady Justice three times a year, providing a full overview of the case group(s).
Where appropriate, maintain a dialogue and exchange of information with other stakeholders, for example the lower court, other agencies and legal representatives.
People management / working as a team
Communicate effectively and work collaboratively with the other lawyers in the team and relevant case managers.
Work closely with the administrative staff to progress cases.
Deal promptly with queries from staff in all sections of the Civil Appeals Office;
Work collaboratively across the Civil Appeals Office to continually develop more efficient ways of achieving the goals of the office.
Cover urgent work of other lawyers who are absent, as necessary.
Identify training needs, design and deliver training sessions for administrative colleagues on specific topic areas.
Other duties
The post holder is required to work in a flexible way and to undertake any other duties reasonably requested by line management which are commensurate with the grade and level of responsibility of this post.
Accountability
The post holder will report to the Masters of Civil Appeals.
Desired Experience
Post qualification experience with good working knowledge of public law principles, plus knowledge of the Civil Procedure Rules and Practice Directions (particularly Part 52) would be an advantage.
Job Title: Casework Lawyer, Administrative Court Office
Pay Span or equivalent: Grade 7
Pay range: £58,511 to £65,329
Contract type: Permanent
Number of hours per week: 37
Number of vacancies: 2 (one located in the Royal Courts of Justice, London, and the other covering work across the Administrative Court Office in Cardiff (3 days) and Manchester (2 days). The successful candidate can discuss with senior management their preferred base location).
Reserve List: Yes
Introduction
The work of Administrative Court Office (‘ACO’) supports the Administrative Court, part of the Queen’s Bench Division of the High Court, which exercises a supervisory administrative and public law jurisdiction for England and Wales, as well as a supervisory jurisdiction over lower courts and tribunals. This jurisdiction is exercised through the procedure of judicial review and statutory challenges.
The ACO and its staff are a part of HMCTS, which in turn is an executive agency of the Ministry of Justice (“MOJ"). There are ACOs in Birmingham Civil Justice Centre, Cardiff Civil Justice Centre, Leeds Combined Court Centre, Manchester Civil Justice Centre, and in the Royal Courts of Justice in London.
The office has responsibility for administration of: the Planning Court, which deals with all matters related to Town and Country Planning; extradition appeals; criminal judicial reviews and case stated appeals; applications for habeas corpus and contempt; appeals against decisions of disciplinary bodies and judicial review in wide variety of subjects including prisons, police, immigration, tax, education, community care, housing and armed forces.
The lawyers are authorised to exercise judicial functions under CPR 54.1A (judicial review) and CrimPR 2.6 (extradition). The role in London also includes providing legal support to the High Court Appeals Office in relation to appeals lodged in the Queen’s Bench Division of the High Court, with a particular focus on providing guidance to court users and administrative staff on jurisdictional and procedural matters.
Job Description
Administrative Court Office lawyers are responsible for pro-active case management of proceedings; they provide expert advice and assistance to the parties and the judiciary by overseeing the management of cases, advising on how and when they should be heard and by undertaking analysis and legal research.
Key responsibilities and duties:
Case management
Promote and practise proactive case management, to ensure that cases are progressed consistently, efficiently and in accordance with the Civil Procedure Rules (overriding objective) or other relevant rules with a view to minimising delay and reducing outstanding cases
Exercise judicial functions subject to authorisation by the Lord Chief Justice (LCJ) and President of the Queen's Bench Division (PQBD) to ensure that judicial resources are utilised efficiently
Prepare accurate and concise legal notes in all cases
Provide guidance on the procedural requirements of the relevant court to staff, professional court users and members of the public, in particular litigants in person
Maintain an accurate overview of all legal issues relevant to the jurisdiction, including identifying cases raising linked issues and test cases
Prioritise case load effectively in accordance changing business demands, adapting focus as necessary to ensure that urgent and/or high-profile matters are progressed appropriately
Identify important and high-profile cases for inclusion in the flagged cases schedule
Develop and apply legal skills
Maintain and develop specialist skills by keeping up to date with developments in public law generally, relevant procedural rules and case law with a strong focus on continuous learning
Identify developing trends in the caseload area
Attend in-house and external training courses to complete relevant continuous professional development requirements
Keep stakeholders informed
Respond to questions and queries from solicitors, counsel and litigants in person accurately and promptly
Maintain an effective working relationship with, and respond to queries from, the judiciary
Maintain a dialogue and exchange of information with other stakeholders, for example the lower court, other agencies and legal representatives
Other duties
The post holder is required to work in a flexible way and to undertake any other duties reasonably requested by line management which are commensurate with the grade and level of responsibility of this post.
Accountability
The post holder will report to the Senior Legal Managers.
Desired Experience
Post qualification experience with good working knowledge of public law principles and/or statutory appeals falling within the jurisdiction of the Administrative Court would be an advantage. Knowledge of the Civil Procedure Rules and Practice Directions (particularly Parts 52 and/or 54) would also be an advantage.
Job Title: Registrar, Upper Tribunal (Administrative Appeals Chamber)
Pay Span or equivalent: Grade 7
Pay range: £58,511 to £65,329
Contract type: Permanent
Number of hours per week: 37
Number of vacancies: 1
Reserve List: Yes
Introduction
The Upper Tribunal (Administrative Appeals Chamber) (“UTAAC") exercises a largely error of law jurisdiction deciding appeals from a range of First-tier Tribunals. The majority of UTAAC’s workload consists of appeals relating to social security benefits but it also considers appeals in other subject areas including child support, mental health, information rights, special educational needs, and transport licensing. UTAAC also exercises a judicial review jurisdiction.
A team of lawyers, known as Registrars, work with the Judges and administrative staff to deal with this work. The key purpose of the role of the Registrar is to support the judges of UTAAC in the efficient, just and expeditious disposal of cases. There are seven Registrars who support the work of UTAAC in England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland, six based in London (including the Senior Registrar) and one in Belfast. The UTAAC Registrar team also provides support to the EAT Registrar and Upper Tribunal (Lands) Registrar as required.
Key responsibilities and duties:
Case management
Providing ongoing high-quality casework throughout case progression, including to:
Promote and practise active case management, to ensure that cases are progressed consistently, efficiently and in accordance with the Tribunal Procedure (Upper Tribunal) Rules 2008 or other relevant rules with a view to minimising delay and reducing outstanding caseload.
Provide clear, prompt and accurate legal and procedural advice to judges giving weight to appropriate issues and key authorities.
Manage interlocutory and case management issues for the effective conduct of a case, either at the request of judges or on their own initiative, including the exercise of delegated judicial functions.
Provide appropriate advice on practice and procedure to the Chamber President, Upper Tribunal Judges and Tribunal users, including appellants and legal professionals.
Dealing with procedural and other issues raised by administrative staff.
Promote and practice proactive case management to ensure that cases are progressed consistently and efficiently in accordance with the overriding objective contained in the Tribunal Procedure (Upper Tribunal) Rules 2008 or other relevant rules with a view to minimising delay and reducing outstanding cases.
Maintain an accurate overview of all legal issues relevant to the work of the UTAAC, including identifying cases raising linked issues and test cases.
Legal Research
Carrying out efficient and proportionate legal and other research using relevant and up to date resources and taking into account applicable aspects of constitutional, public and human rights law
Keep the Customer / Tribunal / other stakeholders informed
Respond promptly to legal and procedural questions and queries from administrative staff, solicitors, counsel and litigants in person as appropriate.
Respond promptly to queries from the judiciary.
Maintain a dialogue and exchange of information with UTAAC Registrars, other stakeholders, other agencies and legal representatives.
Attending internal meetings with the President and Judiciary when requested.
Develop and apply legal skills
Use knowledge of the legal issues specific to the caseload to carry out effective case management.
Maintain and develop specialist knowledge in relevant areas of law and public law generally, the Tribunal Procedure (Upper Tribunal) Rules 2008, with a strong focus on continuous learning.
Identify developing trends in the caseload area.
Respond to consultations as to proposed procedural or legal changes affecting the work, where appropriate.
Attend in-house and external training courses to complete relevant continuous professional development requirements.
People management / working as a team.
Communicate effectively and work collaboratively with other lawyers and caseworkers.
Work closely with the administrative staff to progress cases.
Work collaboratively across the UTAAC to continually develop more efficient means of achieving the goals of the Office.
Cover urgent work of other lawyers who are absent and, by agreement, additional work on a reciprocal basis.
To identify training needs, design and deliver training sessions for administrative colleagues on specific topic areas.
The UTAAC Registrars also assist the EAT Registrar and Registrar for the Upper Tribunal (Lands Chamber) as required.
Other duties
The post holder is required to work in a flexible way and to undertake any other duties reasonably requested by line management which are commensurate with the grade and level of responsibility of this post.
Accountability
The post holder will report to the Senior Registrar, Upper Tribunal (Administrative Appeals Chamber).
Location of Post
Located at the Upper Tribunal (Administrative Appeals Chamber), 5th Floor, 7 Rolls Buildings, Fetter Lane, London, although regular and routine working from other locations may be expected.
Desired Experience
Post qualification experience with good working knowledge of public law principles, plus a good knowledge of social security law and procedure and/or other UTAAC jurisdictions will be an advantage.
Job Title: Employment Appeal Tribunal Lawyer
Pay Span or equivalent: Grade 7
Pay range: £58,511 to £65,329
Contract type: Permanent
Number of hours per week: 37
Number of vacancies: 1
Reserve List: Yes
Introduction
The Employment Appeal Tribunal (“EAT") determines appeals from Employment Tribunals. The EAT’s jurisdiction extends across England, Scotland and Wales, with the Tribunal sitting in London, Edinburgh and occasionally in Cardiff. It is a Superior Court of Record and has the same powers, rights, privileges and authority as the High Court in London and the Court of Session in Scotland.
A team of lawyers work with the Judges and administrative staff to deal with this work. The purpose of the role is to support the judges of the EAT in the efficient, just and expeditious disposal of cases in accordance with the EAT Rules and Practice Direction. The EAT lawyer team may also provide support to the Upper Tribunal (Lands) Registrar and Upper Tribunal (Administrative Appeals Chamber) Registrars as required.
Key responsibilities and duties:
Initial case assessment of new appeals and determining whether the EAT has jurisdiction, that the appeal is properly instituted and lodged in time, assessing urgency/priority and identifying any action the parties need to take, identifying the legal issues and determining what documents the EAT will require.
Case management, providing ongoing high-quality casework throughout case progression, including:
exercising delegated Registrar functions under the EAT Rules and Practice Direction, giving directions and making determinations, in accordance with legal authority, on interlocutory applications to the EAT;
dealing with procedural and other issues raised by administrative staff;
promoting and practising proactive case management to ensure that cases are progressed consistently and efficiently in accordance with the EAT Rules and Practice Direction, with a view to minimising delay and reducing outstanding cases
Legal Research as required and providing appropriate advice on practice and procedure to the President, judiciary and Tribunal users, including the parties and legal professionals.
Liaising with President and senior judiciary to exchange information, provide advice and support, as well as attending Judges’ Meetings, User Group and other jurisdictional meetings as required.
Maintaining specialist skills by keeping up to date with relevant law and EAT practice and procedure; fulfilling the relevant CPD requirements.
As a senior leader within HMCTS, an EAT lawyer is expected to act as a role model and to provide leadership and guidance to administrative support staff.
Other duties
The post holder is required to work in a flexible way and to undertake any other duties reasonably requested by line management which are commensurate with the grade and level of responsibility of this post.
Accountability
The post holder will report to the Senior Registrar, Upper Tribunal (Administrative Appeals Chamber).
Location of Post
Located at Employment Appeal Tribunal, 5th Floor, 7 Rolls Buildings, Fetter Lane, London although regular and routine working from other locations may be expected.
Desired Experience
Post qualification experience with good working knowledge of public law principles, plus a good knowledge of the EAT Rules, Rules of Employment Tribunals, the EAT Practice Directions and the Employment Tribunals Act is desirable.
Recruitment Process
Required Skills, Qualifications & Experience
Solicitor or barrister qualified to practise in England and Wales (i.e. having completed training contract or pupillage), or Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Legal Executives (eligible where (i) a Qualifying Law Degree (QLD) is held; or (ii) the GDL/CPE has been completed; or (iii) where exams have been passed (i.e. a score of 50% or above achieved) at CILEx Level 6*, in all of the seven foundation subjects in law).
An ability to produce and communicate sound legal analysis, using secure legal research, and to advise clearly, persuasively and constructively, both orally and in writing.
The ability to consider issues in their practical context and recognise the wider issues which a case may raise, suggesting viable solutions where appropriate and identifying advantages and disadvantages of different courses of action.
Excellent written skills are essential as well as excellent organisational skills and attention to detail.
Ability to work under pressure, possibly in the face of competing demands and short deadlines.
You will be required to provide evidence of the following behaviours:
Making Effective Decisions
Delivering at Pace
Managing a Quality Service
Communicating and Influencing
You will be asked to provide a CV during the application process in order to assess any demonstrable experience, career history and achievements that are relevant to the role.
Candidates invited to Interview
Please note that interviews will be carried out in person in London.
One day before the interview, each candidate will be provided with a Court of Appeal judgment which they should read in advance of the interview. Questions will be asked at the interview about the judgment.
Candidates invited to interview will also be required to undertake a situational legal skills written test immediately before the interview. The following legal professional skills will be assessed:
Produces sound analysis using secure legal research;
Maintains relevant and up to date legal knowledge and skills;
Has reliable legal judgement and understands legal risk.
The interview will assess both technical legal skills and behaviours and strengths from the Success Profiles framework.
You can refer to the Civil Service Strengths dictionary for more details: Success Profiles - Civil Service Strengths Dictionary (publishing.service.gov.uk)
All candidates will be asked at interview which role or roles they are applying for and if they are applying for more than one, what their order of preference is.
Interview dates will be confirmed.
Salary, Working Arrangements & Further Information
Some of the Ministry of Justice’s terms and conditions of service are changing as part of Civil Service reform. The changes will apply to staff joining MoJ who are new to the Civil Service. Staff joining MoJ from other civil service employers will transfer onto the new MoJ terms if they are already on 'modernised' terms in their current post or onto 'unmodernised' MoJ terms if they are on 'unmodernised' terms at their current post. Details will be available if an offer is made.
Starting Salary
The starting salary for each of the advertised posts is £58,511.
Flexible working hours
The Ministry of Justice offers a flexible working system in many offices.
Eligibility
Staff on fixed term appointments must have been recruited through fair and open competition.
The MoJ offers a range of Benefits:
Annual Leave
Generous allowances for paid holiday starting at 25 days per year and rising as your service increases. There is also a scheme to allow qualifying staff to buy or sell up to three days leave each year. Additional paid time off for public holidays and 1 privilege day. Leave for part-time and job share posts will be calculated on a pro-rata basis.
Pension
The Civil Service offers a choice of pension schemes, giving you the flexibility to choose the pension that suits you best.
Learning and development
The Ministry of Justice is committed to staff development and offers an extensive range of training and development opportunities.
Support
A range of ‘Family Friendly’ policies such as opportunities to work reduced hours or job share.
Access to flexible benefits such as salary sacrifice arrangements for childcare vouchers, and voluntary benefits such as retail vouchers and discounts on a range of goods and services.
Paid paternity, adoption and maternity leave.
Free annual sight tests for employees who use computer screens.
Networks
The opportunity to join employee-run networks that have been established to provide advice and support and to enable the views of employees from minority groups to be expressed direct to senior management. There are currently networks for employees of minority ethnic origin, employees with disabilities, employees with caring responsibilities, women employees, and lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender employees.
Civil Service Code
The Civil Service Code, first published in 1996, sets out the core Civil Service values and the standards of behaviour expected of all civil servants in upholding these values.
Integrity - putting the obligations of public service above personal interests.
Honesty - being truthful and open.
Objectivity - basing advice and decisions on rigorous analysis of the evidence.
Impartiality - acting solely according to the merits of the case and serving governments of different political parties equally well.
To review the Civil Service Code visit: http://www.civilservice.gov.uk/about/values.