A THIRD OF YOUR #LIFE IS SPENT AT WORK...

 

 

Did you know that you will spend a third of your life at work? 

Are you in the Legal Profession but unhappy with the job you are in?

Take some time to think about career decisions

There are many more jobs you can apply for...

Check out JR Legal's Website - Medical Negligence, Employment Law, Civil Litigation, Commercial Law, Conveyance, Property Law, Personal Injury or Family Law.....

GOLDFISH - v - #JOB CANDIDATES...

Did you know that a Microsoft study showed that human attention spans lasts about eight seconds, whereas Goldfish have an attention span on nine seconds, according to scientists at MacEwan University.

WHERE DO THE WORLD'S HAPPIEST #WORKERS WORK?...

According to Indeed after they scrutinized their data they ranked 35 countries as well as major cities in the UK and Europe for overall job satisfaction.

London was placed second, much higher than the overall placing of the UK. Stockholm and Rome also rank higher than other countries.

For more details head over to Indeed's publication on their data.

JOB #INTERVIEW TIPS...

The interview starts the moment you walk through the potential employers door. So be polite to everyone including the receptionist.

Your body language says a lot about you so looking smart in the legal profession is expected.

Check your shoes and handbag (if you have one) for stains.

Research the company well before you go for the interview, that way you are prepared for any direct questions about the company.

Be punctual.

Know when to be quiet.

Make sure you let them know that you have the right skills for the job advertised.

Have some answers ready for the usual questions about why are you looking to move from your current employer. What do you enjoy or not enjoy about your current role. What are you looking for in your next role.

THREE SIMPLE TIPS TO OPTIMIZE YOUR #CV...

Three simple ways to optimize your CV are to firstly check, check and double check for spelling mistakes. Spelling mistakes make you look like a poor candidate. If you misspell just one word on your CV, it can prevent you from appearing in the search results.

Keep your CV simple, they say that the less fancy your CV is, the higher the chances are of your CV being seen correctly by your potential employer.

Finally, make sure you match your keywords on your CV to those listed on the job description.

YOUR #FACEBOOK PROFILE AND JOB PROSPECTS...

Did you know that according to an article in January's 'The Telegraph', your Facebook profile picture could increase your chances of securing an interview.

The reason being that your Facebook profile is a more honest picture of you than ones used on LinkedIn and other professional websites.

Speaking in 'The Telegraph', Professor Stijn Baert from Ghent University said " The candidate with the most favourable Facebook profile picture received approximately twenty one per cent more positive responses to his/her application, in comparison to the candidate with the least favourable profile picture", "the difference in the chance to be immediately invited to a job interview amounted to almost 40 per cent"!

According to the researchers, this is the first study ever undertaken to directly measure the impact of Facebook profiles on job opportunities, but it is not a surprise that employers use Facebook to screen prospective employees.

REALISE YOUR POTENTIAL - CHECK OUT OUR JOB LISTINGS...

Realise your potential and let us advise you on your next step on the career ladder. Check out our job listings and update your CV.

We are here to help you and have some exciting job opportunities currently available.

If you are interested in any then email your CV quoting the reference with the job listing to info@jrlegal.net 

CHECK OUT OUR #LATEST JOBS...

EAST MIDLANDS 
FAMILY LAWYER

Long established East Midlands Practice, with offices in Nottingham and Mansfield are seeking a Family Solicitor (matrimonial/children). This is an exciting opportunity to join their expanding team. Salary is negotiable dependent upon experience and qualification. Please e mail your CV to info@jrlegal.net quoting reference 140316001.

EAST MIDLANDS
PARALEGAL

Busy East Midlands Practice, with offices in Nottingham and Mansfield are seeking a Paralegal with some experience of working within a Family Department, to include matrimonial and children matters. Exciting opportunity to join a friendly and growing team. Opportunities for career development. Salary negotiable dependent upon experience. Please e mail your CV to info@jrlegal.netquoting reference 140316002.

THE LAW SOCIETY ACCREDITED PERSONAL INJURY, CLINICAL NEGLIGENCE AND DISEASE...

The Law Society's initial research has been undertaken with claimant and defendant practitioners to consider moving to a modular structure of accreditations, to reflect expertise held in specific aspects of personal injury.

They said they are also revising their entry, re-accreditation and assessment criteria to ensure that they are relevant to specialists who undertake this work.

The proposed new structure will accredit expertise against four modules: personal injury, catastrophic/serious injury, clinical negligence and disease.

We are also looking at an entity accreditation they said. The proposed structure and requirements for accreditation will be shared with all accredited individuals for their feedback before the end of December 2015.

THE LAW SOCIETY ACCREDITED FAMILY MEDIATION...

Work started in April 2015 to ensure that the accreditation remains compliant with the Family Mediation Council's  (FMC) updated Professional Standards and Self- Regulatory Framework.

The review was completed in early October 2015. Accredited individuals also became FMC accredited, can carry out Mediation Information and Assessment. Meetings and undertake publicly funded mediation work.

The Law Society stated that as a member organisation of the FMC, the accreditation must be compliant with the requirements of FMC's new framework.

The Law Society's representative on the FMC, the scheme's chief assessor and family law policy experts have been involved in the review. The initial application process now requires the completion of a portfolio, comprising three case commentaries, a reflective account and three case study questions.

A professional practice consultant must observe a mediation session and complete a statement. A new re accreditation process will ensure that practitioners have maintained the required levels of experience and practice.

ACCREDITED CRIMINAL LITIGATION...

According to the Law Society, ' solicitors currently undertaking publicly funded criminal defence work via the duty solicitor scheme need to hold the Criminal Litigation Accreditation.

While we have received feedback from some accredited members about changes that could be made to the scheme, we will not start any work until after the award of the new legal aid contracts.

Following the implementation of the new contracts in January 2016, we anticipate to start an initial consultation with accredited members to gain feedback on the structure and requirements for accreditation, including implications of the new two tier legal aid contract system.

#WILLS & INHERITANCE QUALITY ACCREDITED...

The Law Society stated that 'following the accreditation of the first batch of practices in February 2014, the number of accredited practices to the Wills and Inheritance Quality Scheme (WIQS) has gradually grown to just under 200.

Continued work for the forthcoming year will build awareness of the accreditation amongst consumers.

On average there are 5,300 unique monthly searches for wills and probate on Find A Solicitor - a healthy volume of traffic to promote WIQS to consumers searching online.

We're already investing in paid search campaigns to direct consumers to Find A Solicitor to view their nearest WIQS accredited practice.

Other planned targeted marketing spend includes working with the Alzheimer's Society and securing speaking opportunities and PR to increase understanding about WIQS amongst consumers.

#THE LAW SOCIETY'S UPDATE ON CIVIL & COMMERCIAL MEDIATION...

The Law Society stated that 'two phases of research were completed with accredited and non-accredited individuals in 2014 and 2015 to determine how it could be changed to better meet practitioners' needs.

The proposed changes will be shared with all accredited individuals for their feedback before the end of December 2015.

The research indicated that the accreditation in its current form does not provide a clear differentiation of expertise or generate significant new business enquiries.

To address this, it is proposed that the accreditation be re-structured to become a peer to peer referral scheme, to enable law firms to pass referrals to accredited practitioners.

Requirements for accreditation and assessment methodology will be reviews to ensure that they are relevant to specialists who undertake this work.

Post launch marketing activities will include raising awareness of the accreditation amongst all solicitors to help generate referrals to accredited individuals listed on Find A Solicitor.

FAMILY LAW AND FAMILY LAW ADVANCED ACCREDITATIONS...

The Law Society's update on Family Law and Family Law Advanced Accreditations commenced in January.

The consultation will review the required knowledge for accreditation, including referencing Welsh law and changes arising from the Children and Families Act 2014.

Requirements for initial, re-accreditation and assessment methodology will also be reviewed.

All accredited individuals will be contact to participate in the consultation process.

KEEP LOOKING, DON'T SETTLE...

 

 

Quotes that will change your life from Pop Sugar...

FIVE TOP THINGS YOU SHOULD NEVER SAY IN AN #INTERVIEW...

 

1. "Sorry the traffic was bad".

2. "How did you get your job?"

3. "I don't know".

4. "No, I don't have any questions".

5. " What is the salary for this position ?".

See more in-depth details on why these five points are something you should never say in an interview on LEVO career advice.  

FAMOUS #CHARLES DICKENS QUOTE...

LAWYERS FOR YOUR BUSINESS...

As a result of research with members in late 2014, a number of changes are being implemented to update the long-standing Lawyers For Your Business (LFYB) scheme and migrate it online.

The scheme is aimed at smaller firms and sole practitioners who would like help in generating new business enquiries from start-up, small and medium sized businesses.

The Law Society stated that they are currently migrating LFYB online into Find a Solicitor to display the logo on member firms profile pages and in search results pages. Search functionality is being upgraded to enable business owners to filter results to only display LFYB members or find their nearest LFYB member by searching against specific areas of practice.

Improved marketing will include paid search campaigns and extending work with third party referrers, for example Barclays Bank, who already introduce LFYB as part of their business start-up package'.

JUSTICE DENIED - EXTRAORDINARY MISCARRIAGES OF JUSTICE BOOK REVIEW..

An extraordinary book of extraordinary miscarriages of justice. 

What happens when forensic science fails, police slip up, witnesses lie and even judges pervert the course of justice? 

Some amazing real life facts in this Justice Denied by James Morton available from Amazon.

'This shocking 'manual of injustice' exposes convictions and acquittals as a result of the chicanery of some forensic scientist, over-zealous or negligent police officers under pressure to results, incompetent lawyers, lying witnesses, bribed juries, judicial blunders and feeble politicians.....'

LARGE INSURANCE FIRM UNVEILS LEGAL ARM...

According to an article in The Law Gazette, one of UK's biggest insurers has announced its entry into the legal services market. LV=Legal Services will offer advice on wills, power of attorney, probate, conveyancing, personal injury and employment law.

The insurer has entered a partnership with national firm Lyons Davidson, which already has joint ventures with insurers Admiral and the AA. LV=Legal Services will be accessible through an online quotation system, where consumers can enter their details and requirements, securing an upfront fixed quote for the service they require.

UPDATE ON CONVEYANCING QUALITY...

An update from The Law Society on Conveyancing Quality.

A consultation process with accredited practices and key stakeholders, including lenders and the Council of Mortgage Lenders was undertaken during 2015.

The review sought feedback on proposed changes to the accreditation in five areas, which will be implemented in stages in 2016.

Accreditation will still be awarded for 12 months, but will follow a three year assessment cycle to mirror Lexcel. Practices will submit a full application in year one and complete a reduced re-accreditation process in years two and three.

Mandatory training will be simplified - new starters will now only complete two modules and existing staff will continue to complete two update training modules per year. Desk based assessments will monitor and enforce adoption of the conveyancing protocol to help increase the level of quality and achieve more consistency amongst accredited practices. Best practice guidance will be provided to help firms improve levels of customer service and adhere to the clients service charter.

THE LAW SOCIETY'S ACCREDITED CHILDREN LAW UPDATE...

According to The Law Society's update on accreditations - a consultation process with accredited individuals was undertaken during 2015. The review sought feedback on proposed changes to the accreditation in four areas, which will be completed by the end of December 2015.

Pre-requisite knowledge for accreditation has been updated to reference Welsh law and changes arising from the Children and Families Act 2014. The same assessment process will now be used for local authority and private practitioner applicants.

Case reports at initial accreditation have been replaced by the drafting of a skeleton argument/position statement and a case study exercise at interview. Re- accreditation is now based on the completion of an unseen case study and submission of two case reports related to care proceedings.

Individuals who held the adult party accreditation will be transferred to the Family Law Advanced accreditation under transitional arrangements.