Band 6 Legal Officer

University Hospitals Birmingham NHS Foundation Trust (UHB) is an incredibly rewarding place to work, offering a working environment with an inclusive culture that looks after and values our people and creates a sense of belonging.

The Legal Services Team are responsible for a portfolio of clinical negligence and public/employer liability claims, Inquests and the provision of healthcare advice. The scope of the work is wide and the workload is busy making this a challenging but satisfying and rewarding role.

We are expanding our team and are looking for talented, enthusiastic and experienced claims handlers to join our team as a legal officer. You will be knowledgeable in litigation and coronial processes with excellent communication and time management/prioritisation skills working calmly and confidently under pressure. The post holder will also be someone resilient who is able to manage, on occasion, emotionally challenging Inquests and legal claims.

The role involves collaboration with both internal and external stakeholders and requires regular analysis and interpretation of complex information, contributing to a strategy for the resolution of individual claims, including providing feedback on lessons to be learned, making a positive impact to clinical governance and patient safety teams.

For an informal discussion, please contact Gill Hedges, Senior Legal Officer on 07468 756046.

The successful candidate will have experience of managing a busy and mixed caseload of clinical negligence/employer/public liability claims in accordance with Civil Procedure Rules and NHSR Resolution/Trust policies and guidelines alongside Coroner investigations and Inquests. This will require frequent prioritisation to meet changing deadlines. Excellent communication skills are required with the ability to review complex information, consider strategy, and share this with a wide range of people including clinical and non-clinical colleagues. There will also be regular communication with external legal advisors, third party solicitors, NHS Resolution, the Coroner's office and on occasion patients representing themselves.

University Hospitals Birmingham NHS Foundation Trust strives to have an inclusive culture where everyone feels like they belong, can thrive, knows that they add value and feels valued. We do this by developing compassionate and culturally competent leaders, being values driven in all that we do and by creating a welcoming and inclusive workplace that thrives on the diversity of our people. As such we want to attract and recruit talented individuals from all backgrounds, and for each of you to feel supported for the diversity you bring, to achieve your full potential. For those staff with a disability, including physical disability, long term health condition, mental health or neurodiverse condition, this also means being committed to making reasonable adjustments needed for you to carry out your role.

*Please Note : For a detailed job description for this vacancy, please see attached Job Description*

*Please Note : For a detailed job description for this vacancy, please see attached Job Description*

• *Degree or equivalent qualification
• *Legal professional qualification at post-graduate level

• *Previous clinical negligence/employer/public liability claims experience
• *Previous Coronial/Inquest management experience
• *Proven ability to work to tight deadlines
• *Able to demonstrate a clear understanding of CPR, the claims process and HMC Rules & Regulations
• *Strong technical knowledge in areas relevant to legal healthcare practice
• *Good understanding of the principles of investigation management, root cause analysis techniques and Clinical Governance
• *Experience of working within or with the NHS in the handling of claims
• *Experience of quality management processes and quality improvement mechanisms

Additional Criteria

• *Strong problem solving ability and capacity to recognise alternative solutions where necessary
• *Strong work load management skills
• *Ability to interpret national policy and guidance, identify local implications and apply implementation to a local setting
• *Critical appraisal of wide ranging documents to facilitate assessment of risk and to ensure appropriate and sensitive communication/management of claims/inquests
• *Ability to manage, prioritise and deliver a number of projects and work programmes within timescales
• *Ability to work well under pressure
• *Good standard of computer literacy including word processing, spreadsheets and databases
• *Competent with gathering, collating and analysing data and information from a variety of sources effectively
• *Data manipulation including identification, accessing and downloading of data, design set up and development of data entry systems including automation as appropriate
• *Makes clear recommendations indicating benefits/consequences and identify risks
• *Analyses and uses complex information from a variety of sources and formats and undertakes information analysis
• *Strong interpersonal skills
• *Good communicator at all levels
• *Written -- experience of drafting letters and technical reports with clarity and awareness. Excellent writing skills. Ability to prepare written material presenting complex matters in a logical way using the appropriate style, content and language for the audience
• *Oral -- Communicate clearly with appropriate groups.
• *Experience of trends analysis
• *Ability to assess and advise on the appropriateness and suitability of investigation techniques and standards

• *Degree or equivalent qualification
• *Legal professional qualification at post-graduate level

• *Previous clinical negligence/employer/public liability claims experience
• *Previous Coronial/Inquest management experience
• *Proven ability to work to tight deadlines
• *Able to demonstrate a clear understanding of CPR, the claims process and HMC Rules & Regulations
• *Strong technical knowledge in areas relevant to legal healthcare practice
• *Good understanding of the principles of investigation management, root cause analysis techniques and Clinical Governance
• *Experience of working within or with the NHS in the handling of claims
• *Experience of quality management processes and quality improvement mechanisms

Additional Criteria

• *Strong problem solving ability and capacity to recognise alternative solutions where necessary
• *Strong work load management skills
• *Ability to interpret national policy and guidance, identify local implications and apply implementation to a local setting
• *Critical appraisal of wide ranging documents to facilitate assessment of risk and to ensure appropriate and sensitive communication/management of claims/inquests
• *Ability to manage, prioritise and deliver a number of projects and work programmes within timescales
• *Ability to work well under pressure
• *Good standard of computer literacy including word processing, spreadsheets and databases
• *Competent with gathering, collating and analysing data and information from a variety of sources effectively
• *Data manipulation including identification, accessing and downloading of data, design set up and development of data entry systems including automation as appropriate
• *Makes clear recommendations indicating benefits/consequences and identify risks
• *Analyses and uses complex information from a variety of sources and formats and undertakes information analysis
• *Strong interpersonal skills
• *Good communicator at all levels
• *Written -- experience of drafting letters and technical reports with clarity and awareness. Excellent writing skills. Ability to prepare written material presenting complex matters in a logical way using the appropriate style, content and language for the audience
• *Oral -- Communicate clearly with appropriate groups.
• *Experience of trends analysis
• *Ability to assess and advise on the appropriateness and suitability of investigation techniques and standards

Disclosure and Barring Service Check

This post is subject to the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act (Exceptions Order) 1975 and as such it will be necessary for a submission for Disclosure to be made to the Disclosure and Barring Service (formerly known as CRB) to check for any previous criminal convictions.

Employer name

University Hospitals Birmingham NHS Foundation Trust

Address

Heartlands Hospital

Bordesley Green E

Birmingham

West Midlands

B9 5SS

United Kingdom

Employer's website

https://www.uhb.nhs.uk/jobs.htm (Opens in a new tab)

Employer name

University Hospitals Birmingham NHS Foundation Trust

Address

Heartlands Hospital

Bordesley Green E

Birmingham

West Midlands

B9 5SS

United Kingdom

Employer's website

https://www.uhb.nhs.uk/jobs.htm (Opens in a new tab)