• The role can be based in Brisbane, Melbourne, Perth or Sydney
• Full-time
• Ongoing – subject to the funding of the knowmore service

An opportunity for a diligent Principal Lawyer – State Teams has become available to join our legal team. This is an opportunity for the right candidate to be part of a reputable organisation with excellent professional development prospects. Attractive remuneration package and access to salary packaging. This role is full time and can be based in our Brisbane, Melbourne, Perth or Sydney office.

About knowmore and the Role

knowmore is a national and independent community legal centre providing free legal assistance and support to survivors of child abuse. The Principal Lawyer – State Teams provides leadership and management to knowmore’s national legal team of approximately 60 lawyers and paralegals in delivering high quality information, advice and referral services about clients’ options relating to compensation, redress and other legal issues. knowmore also represents survivors in applications made to the National Redress Scheme and the Territories Stolen Generation Redress Scheme. This key leadership role reports to the Executive Director – Integrated Service and works with the national managers of other disciplines who, together, ensure that a multidisciplinary, trauma informed service is delivered to our clients. The role also works closely with the Principal Lawyer – Projects in order to provide consistency in service delivery and legal risk management.

Duties and Responsibilities

Leadership 

• Lead knowmore’s national legal practice, with the responsibility for providing our business as usual legal services in all states and territories, in compliance with the requirements of relevant legal profession legislation, funding agreements and knowmore’s objectives, plans and policies. 
• In conjunction with the Executive Director – Integrated Practice, support knowmore’s law reform and advocacy efforts, identifying key issues and working with the Advocacy team to address them. 
• Oversee the efforts of the legal team to address injustice or poor outcomes associated with the redress schemes including judicial reviews. 
• Support the national legal practice’s contributions to the planning, development and delivery of outreach and community engagement activities, including targeted community legal education programs. 
• Identify service gaps and opportunities to improve on services to support survivors with justice making. 
• Establish and maintain collegiate working relationships with the community legal sector, stakeholders and partners to ensure cohesive and effective service delivery. 
• Represent knowmore in the community, ensuring that other services understand the role we can play across the legal sector and with survivors. 

Service Delivery and Risk Management 

• Support the Executive Director – Integrated Service to identify and manage risks associated with knowmore’s legal practice, to protect the interests of clients and comply with all statutory and professional obligations. In particular the focus of this risk assessment and mitigation is specific to each state and the work done by those practitioners. 
• Work with the Executive Director – Integrated Service and the Principal Lawyer – Projects to ensure effective and consistent risk management across the legal practice as required. 
• Create and foster strong and collegiate working relationships across knowmore. 
• Ensure legal services are delivered in an accessible, safe and trauma-informed way to all clients of the service, including through the delivery of culturally appropriate and safe services to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples and people from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds. 
• Ensure the timely collation, recording, reporting and evaluation of accurate data around knowmore’s legal service delivery and other relevant activities, in order to comply with funding and reporting requirements and to inform service delivery and planning. 
• Lead and contribute to specific projects and undertake other duties as required. 

Team Leadership and Management 

• Lead the State Based Teams in accordance with knowmore’s values, ensuring open, timely and transparent communication and throughout the teams 
• Provide effective leadership, direction and supervision to the State Based Managing Lawyers. 
• Manage performance and professional development of direct reports in line with knowmore’s policies and procedures. 
• Work closely with the State Based Managing Lawyers ensuring that their teams are being lead and managed, aligned with knowmore’s values and policies and procedures. 
• Implement legal practice policies and induction, training, professional development, wellbeing support and mentoring processes for the national legal team, including students and volunteers. 
• Lead and motivate the national legal team to work in a co-ordinated, collaborative and client-centred manner with other teams in knowmore’s multi-disciplinary service model, to ensure client needs are identified and met in all service responses and staff are appropriately supported. 
• Ensure appropriate systems and processes are in place so that resources can be appropriately allocated and monitored across the state based legal teams

Selection Criteria 

Qualifications

• Admission as an Australian Legal Practitioner 
• Current holder of, or eligible to immediately obtain, a principal practising certificate

Expertise & experience

• 5+ years post admission practising experience. 
• Experience practising as a principal or managing lawyer, including responsibility for the management of a legal practice, managing work priorities and providing supervision, motivation, support and mentoring to lawyers (ideally including where those lawyers may not be physically located in the same location). 
• Substantial experience practising in an area or areas of law relevant to knowmore’s services. 
• Substantial experience in delivering legal services to people who have experienced or are experiencing complex trauma. 
• Experience in providing culturally safe services to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples and demonstrated understanding of the issues affecting Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples • Experience in delivering legal services in a multidisciplinary service model. 
• Knowledge and understanding of the public legal assistance sector in Australia and a strong commitment to providing high quality client services.

Skills & attributes

• Highly motivated, ethical, and diligent. 
• Demonstrated ability to work collaboratively and flexibly in an environment of legal and non-legal staff and to co-ordinate service delivery across different sites and teams. 
• Excellent ability to engage respectfully and effectively with clients experiencing trauma and other circumstances of vulnerability. 
• Effective people-management skills, including the ability to actively engage and motivate staff and to drive change High level oral and written communication skills. 
• Ability to work with minimal supervision but to report and liaise appropriately.
• Computer literacy, including knowledge of the effective use of legal case management systems and databases

Organisational Obligations 

• Share our values and have a strong commitment to improving the lives of survivors of child abuse.
• First Nations cultural competency – to work in ways that recognise and counteract privilege and bias, and appreciate the values, traditions, belief systems, and experience of First Nations People.
• Demonstrate an active and dedicated commitment to knowmore’s Purpose, Vision and Values.
• Commitment to working within and supporting knowmore’s practice framework (trauma-informed culturally safe, person-centred).
• Comply with knowmore’s Policies and Procedures. 
• Observe all legal and legislative requirements. 
• Ensure a high level of confidentiality and integrity. 
• Assist in the development of, and participate in knowmore’s initiatives, projects and events. 
• Cultivate productive and collaborative working relationships and outcomes through open an inclusive planning, continuous improvement and transparent work practices.
• Liaise with others in a professional, respectful and constructive manner. 
• Take reasonable care to protect their health and safety and the health and safety of others. 
• To engage in professional supervision and other reflective practice opportunities as required. 

Qualifications and other Requirements

Hold or be eligible to immediately obtain a current unrestricted practising certificate in the relevant jurisdiction and, ideally, be eligible to obtain a principal’s practising certificate. 

Hold or be eligible to obtain a satisfactory National Police Records Check and a Working with Children Check. 

The role will involve intrastate and interstate travel, the ability and willingness to travel is essential and a current driver’s licence is desirable.

Benefits

A competitive salary commensurate with the not for profit sector is offered together with the availability of salary packaging to achieve a tax effective total salary package.  In addition to being a flexible workplace, knowmore offers 12% superannuation (0.5% above the SGC), a 37.5 hour working week and 4 weeks annual leave, including annual leave loading.

Employees have access to a training and development opportunities as well as our Employee Assistance Program.

Additionally, knowmore offers the ability to partially work from home to facilitate a balanced work life.

Meet Aunty Glendra

Aunty Glendra Stubbs is a Wiradjuri woman and an Elder in Residence at knowmore. She has been supporting Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander clients since knowmore began in 2013.  In this video, Aunty Glendra shares her story about working at knowmore and supporting her clients on their journey. Video Link www.youtu.be/Ib4Va2apySU.

Next steps

Further Information about knowmore is available at www.knowmore.org.au.

If this sounds like an opportunity you would be interested, please Apply Now.

A position description is attached.