INTERMEDIATE SOLICITOR
Location – Moruya, NSW South Coast
Full-time | Permanent
SUMMARY
- Full time permanent role
- Located in Moruya – NSW South Coast. Coastal living
- $85,574 to $90.544 base per annum + super depending on experience
- Salary packaging and tax benefits
- Additional leave and study leave benefits, 24/7 Wellbeing support
ABOUT THE ROLE
The primary responsibility of the Intermediate Solicitor, Criminal Law Practice within the Moruya ALS Office is to:
- Manage the Committals Practice by taking direct carriage of at least 50% of the committal matters arising and allocating the remainder to the junior solicitor(s).
- Manage the District Court (Short Matters) Practice by allocating all District Court short matters and taking carriage of, and appearing in most short matters, especially sentence matters.
- Prepare and run complex Local Court (‘LC’) and Children’s Court (‘CC’) hearings and sentence matters and oversee the management of the LC/CC Practice.
- Manage the allocation of Local/Children’s Court Circuits to Solicitors and Field Officers.
ABOUT MORUYA
Moruya is located 305 km south of Sydney via the Princes Highway and 175km south east of Canberra.
Situated on the banks of the beautiful Moruya River, Moruya is a country town in the traditional style with an easy, relaxed lifestyle far removed from the pace of city life. Moruya has been a rural and commercial centre and has several historic buildings which gives Moruya special character on the Eurobodalla Coast. Moruya is home to the Eurobodalla council offices and other public institutions, such as the Moruya College of TAFE.
Moruya Heads is only about 10 kms to the east and boasts beautiful views north along the coast and west over the estuary of the Moruya River. Moruya Heads is also a great surfing beach which is patrolled in summer, and there are many other unspoiled beaches that are within a short drive from Moruya.
ABOUT THE ALS
Born out of a protest movement, the Aboriginal Legal Service (NSW/ACT) Limited is the primary legal service for Aboriginal people in NSW and the ACT. Our vision is to achieve social justice and equity for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people, families and communities.
We offer a diverse, inclusive and supportive work environment. We’re passionate about what we do and we work hard. The ALS values the health and wellbeing of our employees and we are proud to offer flexible work practices. Staff can choose to take advantage of benefits including salary packaging to maximise take-home pay.
MAJOR ROLE ACCOUNTABILITIES
- Develop and maintain stable, productive, professional and collaborative intra-office working relationships between all staff members.
- Assist with the planning and training of junior solicitors commencing work and with their program of Continuing Professional Development.
- Assist in the preparation of District Court short matters allocated to junior solicitors with permission to appear.
- Ensure high quality ‘culturally appropriate’ representation to ALS clients in all committal matters, and at first instance, promptly deal with any complaints by clients and/or family members.
- Maintain a ‘Strictly Indictable Table’, update and release to all office staff on a weekly basis and provide a monthly copy to the Deputy Principal Solicitor.
- Liaise with the Cluster Manager/Managing Solicitor and Deputy Principal Solicitor on any complex committal matters and seek approval to retain Counsel pre-committal.
- Responsible for the resolution of ethical issues/questions in consultation with solicitor in question (and the management where necessary) and for the resolution of conflict issues/determination.
- Responsible for the appropriate referral of clients to the LA NSW and other private practitioners/firms and briefing Counsel (to appear and advise).
- Maintain an up-to-date knowledge of relevant criminal law legislation, case law and court procedures.
- Ensure the lawful achievement of ALS core business objectives to the highest standards of probity and efficiency, and with due reference to the interests of all stakeholders.
- Provide considered, independent, balanced and professional criminal law advice.
WHAT YOU WILL BRING TO THE ROLE
To be successful in this position you will need to demonstrate:
- Knowledge and appreciation of the cultural and social needs of Aboriginal people combined with continuing respect and support for Aboriginal cultural practices in dealing with clients, their families, communities and staff.
- Legal qualifications and an NSW recognised Practicing Certificate with a minimum of 2 years’ experience in Criminal Law.
- In-depth knowledge of the Criminal Law, including practice and procedure.
- Proven capacity to provide a strong advocacy role in leading the District Court and Committal Practices, along with the Local Court/Children’s Court practice.
- Demonstrated management, supervisory and mentoring skills of a multidisciplinary team of staff.
- Capacity to provide high quality legal representation and advice to Aboriginal people and deal with any complaints by clients and/or family members.
- Excellent written and verbal communication skills and time management skills.
- Ability to meet deadlines, work without supervision and manage a diverse workload.
HOW TO APPLY
Please CLICK HERE to download the application package for this position. Please submit the completed application package to Sheri Misaghi, Regional Administration Coordinator, Central South-Eastern Region at [email protected].
Applications for this position close at midnight, Monday 29 August 2022.
