Professional risk management

• Lead and develop a holistic and aligned professional risk management approach across the UK & EMEA, liaising with the Legal & Regulatory team leadership throughout to ensure the development of policy, guidance, process improvement, internal training and education to further develop the firm's global approach to professional risk standards and reputation.
• Ensure regulatory compliance and broader professional risk management objectives are addressed through appropriate and effective policy, procedure, training regime requirements and delivery and monitoring relevant developments and emerging areas of risk and associated reputation issues.
• Maintain and improve systems and processes, concerning records of circumstances, claims, complaints, renewal information, PI trawls, and other professional risk information.
• Support the firm's approach to professional risk review, identifying notification and claims trends across the business through comprehensive periodic and ad hoc review and analysis across sources of professional risk data including claims, complaints and circumstances, monitoring relevant developments, market trends and emerging areas of risk and associated reputation issues; this activity will include regularly meeting with Office Managing Partners, practice group leaders and other key stakeholders to ensure they understand the issues and trends and co-partnering with them in any change projects or initiatives which result.
• Integrate the above analysis and develop a holistic understanding of the Firm’s risk profile to inform the overall strategic priorities for the OGC risk management programme, working in close collaboration and liaising closely with the Directors and Associate Directors in the OGC team to further enhance sound, ethical decision-making.
• Benchmark our professional risk approach against industry best practice and leading market trends and data to drive continuous improvement.

Training

• Design, develop and deliver or support the Risk team in delivering, (the latter in conjunction with other OGC staff) relevant and inspiring OGC training and communications for lawyers and business support teams across the firm to learn from the professional errors and omissions made both within the Firm and the legal sector more generally to mitigate repeated errors and support a no blame culture across the Firm.
• Involvement in crisis resilience issues and scenario exercises as part of testing the effectiveness of our insurance programme.

Reporting

• Contribute to OGC quarterly reports to the Board and/or Audit and Risk Committee and monthly reports to the CFOO and appear as needed to present on relevant topics or to other relevant stakeholders as required, for example regulators or clients, whilst being mindful of all privilege issues accordingly.

Team management and supervision

• Responsibility for supervising more junior lawyers and trainees in the OGC to support management of claims, complaints and other professional risk management programme work.

Skill and Experience Required The successful candidate will have:

• A Bachelor’s or Master’s degree qualification (or equivalent) with a proven understanding and knowledge of issues arising within a commercial legal practice.
• Significant experience (likely 5 years’+) in managing contentious risk issues in an international commercial law environment and delivering legal advice to senior lawyers, with experience in insurance also helpful, alongside the ability to define and deliver strategic direction for the Firm, senior management and team.
• Excellent ability to manage internal and external stakeholders, mediating as required and driving action whilst challenging inaction and the skill to be able to influence others, build connections and work collaboratively across boundaries at all levels.
• Proactive and pragmatic thinker who has the ability to anticipate problems and develop commercially aligned solutions, seeking a good outcome for all involved whilst at all times maintaining a good service ethic, managing all issues with discretion and sensitivity.
• Technical expertise and experience in relevant legislative and regulatory regimes, including the SRA Code of Conduct for Solicitors, RELs and RFLs and for Firms, SRA Indemnity Insurance Rules 2013 and experience of dealing with complex professional indemnity issues in a professional services context in an international operating and cultural environment, insurance legislation and market and insurer practice.
• Excellent verbal and written communication skills including presentation development and delivery and the ability to communicate complex legal and commercial issues and risks to a variety of stakeholders.
• Experience leading/project managing or contributing to cross functional team to deliver strategic and functional level practice and cultural change as well as being a good trainer who is able to inspire and influence busy lawyers to engage with relevant training and scenarios.

Agencies: Please note that BCLP does not accept speculative or unsolicited resumes submitted directly to hiring managers, partners or other employees. Candidate submissions will only be accepted from agencies that have agreed terms of business with the Recruitment Team and are submitted via the approved recruitment portal. Any resumes submitted outside of this process will be treated as unsolicited, and BCLP reserves the right to engage such candidates without any obligation to the submitting agency, including the payment of any fees.

For further information, please contact resourcing.team@bclplaw.com

At BCLP we understand the value of a workforce with diverse perspectives and experiences, and we believe people perform at their best when they can truly be themselves at work. We aim to create an inclusive environment where all our employees are valued, motivated and able to be themselves. In order to provide the best possible service to our robust client base, we are committed to recruiting, retaining, rewarding and developing our people with regard to their abilities and contributions and without reference to their background, gender, gender identity or expression, ethnic origin, age, religion, sexual orientation, socio-economic status, political belief, disability or any other applicable protected characteristic.