Costs draftsperson/advocate Full Time

The client must be at the heart of everything we do. Identifying and meeting the needs of our clients is, therefore, of paramount importance.

All employees must manage themselves and their workload efficiently and conduct their duties proactively to ensure that the objectives of the business and the needs of the clients are met quickly and with maximum effect.

The role would suit a hard-working, self-motivated person with a high level of attention to detail who is happy to work on cases alone and who can work to deadlines and meet targets. In time, there will be the possibility of running a small team or looking after a dedicated client account.

Job Outline:

In any contentious case, there is usually an agreement or court order at the end the case where the losing party will pay the legal costs of the successful party. As a Legal Costs Negotiator, when acting for the successful party, we are responsible for negotiating and settling our client’s claim for legal costs. This will involve dealing with all aspects of legal work and interaction with Solicitors and the Court.

Duties of the role:

• Drafting bills of costs for various types of cases including PI claims, industrial disease claims, commercial matters, clinical negligence claim, and credit claims – this is not an exhaustive list.
• Drafting schedules of costs and preparing statements for trial.
• Provide cost advice to the client in writing or by telephone in relation to settlement recovery or technical issues arising from the bills/schedules.
• Drafting Cost Budgets, reviewing and negotiating Cost Budgets, and preparing documentation for the CCMC.
• Attending CCMC/CMC hearings to deal with advocacy regarding the Cost Budget and/or directions.
• Undertake regular reviews of files and use the task list in Proclaim to ensure matters are progressed and dealt with in a timely manner.
• Meet agreed performance targets (daily chargeable time targets and yearly billing targets set by a manager).

You will need to conduct your work in accordance with the highest possible professional standards and with reference to the professional codes of practice, money laundering regulations, and regulatory requirements.

You will need to work consistently under protocols, systems, and procedures across the firm, utilising Proclaim (a case management system) and Costs Master (cost drafting software) as required.