Legal Secretary- Estates
3 days ago
Tunbridge Wells
We are looking for an experienced Legal Secretary to join our Estates team, supporting fee earners on probate and estate administration matters. This is a varied and detail-focused role, ideal for someone who enjoys providing high-quality support while working closely with clients during sensitive and often emotional times. The role You will play a key part in ensuring probate and estate administration matters progress smoothly, providing proactive administrative and legal support to solicitors and acting as a professional point of contact for clients, executors and beneficiaries. Key responsibilities • Providing comprehensive diary management for fee earners, including arranging meetings, calls and travel., • Acting as a first point of contact for clients, executors and beneficiaries, handling calls and correspondence with professionalism and discretion., • Liaising with third parties including HMRC, the Probate Registry, banks and the Land Registry., • Drafting standard correspondence, letters of authority and completing closure and encashment forms., • Preparing and processing accounts documentation, including payment and receipt forms, and assisting with basic estate financial administration., • Opening and closing probate files in line with firm procedures and regulatory requirements., • Collating and maintaining accurate client, beneficiary and estate information, including bank details and identification documentation., • Logging and tracking key documents such as wills and Grants of Probate, and managing key dates throughout the estate administration process., • Conducting bankruptcy searches and supporting due diligence requirements., • Uploading and managing documents using HighQ or similar document management systems., • Maintaining Excel spreadsheets, including estate account updates and tracking information., • Supporting fee earners with meeting preparation, document collation and business development activity where required. About you • You will have previous experience as a legal secretary, ideally within private client or probate work., • You are confident dealing with clients and third parties and understand the importance of sensitivity and confidentiality., • You are highly organised, accurate and comfortable managing multiple priorities., • You have strong IT skills, including Word and Excel, and are confident producing correspondence and spreadsheets., • You are a team player with a calm, professional approach and a strong client-service ethos. Why join us You’ll be part of a supportive and collaborative Private Wealth team, working on high-quality probate and estate administration matters and providing meaningful support to clients at important times in their lives.