Lawyer

Purpose of the post 

The Howard League’s legal team specialises in providing legal advice and assistance to children and young people in the criminal justice system, predominantly through the running of its legal advice line service, which is the country’s only dedicated advice line for children and young people in custody.

The legal team is also focused on human rights issues and executive overreach across the prison estate and is developing an impactful litigation portfolio to effect vital change for adult men and women, as well as children, in prison.

The legal team also works together with our campaigns team to drive forward work on the organisation’s strategic priority areas (currently IPP sentences, joint enterprise, remand and sentencing), and provide cross-organisational support on policy and communications work.

In this role, the Lawyer will deliver and develop the work of the legal team and the Howard League through:  

• providing high quality telephone and written advice to advice line users;
• managing a fee-earning caseload (legally aided work and free access to justice work);
• working with the Legal Director and Managing Solicitors on strategic public law and human rights challenges;
• identifying strategic issues and themes emerging from our legal work; and
• working as part of the legal team to further the aims of the charity. 

Job description 

The Lawyer’s main tasks are: 

Legal advice line service 

• To deal with queries from children and young people, other professionals and the public as part of the legal advice line service;
• To manage a fee-earning caseload (legally aided work and free access to justice work) arising from the legal advice line service, with supervisory support from the Managing Solicitors as appropriate;
• To maintain work and keep records to Legal Aid Agency and Specialist Quality Mark standards and generally to comply with the Legal Aid Agency and applicable regulatory standards;
• To provide management, supervision and support on administrative tasks, including in relation to post, file opening, file closing and billing, recording all work, monitoring costs and ensuring all appropriate applications for costs are made;
• To identify strategic issues and themes emerging from the legal advice line service. 

Strategic litigation 

• To work with the Legal Director and Managing Solicitors on developing a portfolio of strategic public law and human rights litigation.

Other 

• To engage in and support policy and participation work of the organisation, in particular in relation to the organisation’s priority thematic areas;
• To work with and support the campaigns team with policy and communications work as appropriate;
• To undertake legal research;
• To represent the organisation at external events and attend Howard League activities and functions as appropriate;
• To work as part of the whole office team. 

Note: Such other tasks as may be required from time to time for the competent performance of the role.

Conditions of service

The post is full time, or part time for the right candidate.

The terms and conditions are as laid out in the contract of employment and the office handbook and include 30 days’ paid leave plus statutory days and 10% contribution to the Howard League workplace pension scheme. You may choose to work in the office each day, or to work some days from home on agreement with management.

The Howard League encourages applications from suitable candidates with personal experience of the criminal justice system. 

As an inclusive employer, the Howard League also actively encourages applications from people from Black, Asian and ethnic minority backgrounds.  

How to apply 

To apply for this role, please fill in the application form and the equal opportunities monitoring form. If for any reason you cannot use the application form, please provide an up-to-date CV and supporting statement, giving evidence and examples of how you meet the criteria, and what you feel you would bring to the role.   

Please email the completed application to info@howardleague.org.

EXTENDED: The deadline for applications for this role is 5pm on Monday 23 September 2024.

First interviews will be held on Tuesday 1 and Wednesday 2 October 2024.