Director of Legal Services

Job overview

University Hospitals Coventry and Warwickshire NHS Trust is looking for an exceptional legal leader to become our next Director of Legal Services. This is a rare opportunity to lead a highly respected in-house legal function, working alongside executive colleagues, clinicians and external partners to ensure the Trust receives outstanding legal advice while using learning from legal cases and inquests to improve the quality and safety of care.

This is far more than a traditional legal management role.

You'll be the Trust's principal legal expert, providing strategic advice to the Trust Board and senior leaders across a broad range of healthcare law. You'll lead our response to complex clinical negligence claims, represent the Trust at Coroners' Inquests, oversee High Court and Court of Protection applications as required, and build strong relationships with organisations including NHS Resolution, Coroners, external legal advisers and partner organisations.

Just as importantly, you'll lead a talented team and help shape the future of legal services within one of the country's largest NHS organisations. Using insight from claims, inquests and legal activity, you'll identify themes, influence organisational learning and help improve patient safety across the Trust.

Please note interviews are proposed for week commencing 28th September (date to be confirmed).

Main duties of the job

The post holder will be responsible for leading and managing all aspects of the Legal Services Department, ensuring that there is a high performing, effective legal service that delivers best practice Trust-wide and when engaging with external organisations. They will provide strategic leadership and direction for the team to maximise learning and quality improvement in line with the Trust’s long-term strategy. They will have overarching responsibility and accountability for all work carried out in the Legal Services Department.

We're looking for a qualified solicitor with significant senior-level experience, ideally within healthcare or another highly regulated environment. You'll bring outstanding technical legal expertise, excellent judgment and the credibility to advise at Board level on highly complex and sensitive issues. You'll also be an experienced leader, able to inspire your team, build influential relationships and drive continuous improvement.

At UHCW, improvement is part of who we are. We are committed to continually improving the quality of care we provide and the way we work. You'll play a key role in that journey.

If you're looking for a role where your legal expertise can genuinely influence organisational strategy, improve patient outcomes and make a lasting difference, we'd love to hear from you.

Detailed job description and main responsibilities

Strategic

• To work with, and advise the Executive Director of Governance and Assurance in respect to the long term strategic planning of Legal Services at the Trust, using specialist knowledge of the law and best practice.
• To deputise for the Executive Director of Governance and Assurance as required, including attendance and the provision of advice at Chief Officer Group, Trust Board and Board Committees.

Operational

• To have final professional and managerial responsibility for all advice given within the Legal Services Department.
• To act as the legal expert for the Trust, managing all aspects of the Legal Services Department, providing legal advice across a broad range of areas including clinical negligence, Coroner’s Inquests, Insurance, employer’s and public liability, consent, Powers of Attorney, Wills and other healthcare law issues.
• To ensure that the Legal Service provided is effective and provides value for money for the Trust.
• To monitor and scrutinise all legal activity and spend across the Trust to develop a clear understanding of the needs of the Trust and costs involved, making recommendations where necessary to rationalise services.
• To be responsible for the management of all claims and inquest within the Trust, receiving, monitoring and ensuring compliance with the reporting and handling of such matters; analysing complex and conflicting information and seeking clinical input into clinical negligence claims.
• To liaise with external stakeholders on legal matters, including formal negotiations to secure the most advantageous outcome for the Trust.
• To represent the Trust at court and Coroner’s Inquests, providing support and guidance to Trust staff that may be called to give evidence and analysing/interpreting evidence in order to make decisions on the management of the inquest.
• To act as a confident advocate, including the ability to examine and cross-examine witnesses, present evidence and make submissions/representations to the Coroner on relevant law, as necessary, in the Coroner’s Court and before a jury. To understand the medical complexities of each case in conjunction with senior clinicians and recognise potentially problematic areas, both clinically and legally, which may require further investigation and reporting for the purposes of the inquest.
• To be accountable for ensuring that the Trust makes an application to the High Court and Court of Protection in cases where legal protection is required for the Trust and its staff to avoid civil and criminal liability.
• To ensure that the Legal Services Department acts with the appropriate level of urgency, sensitivity and responsibility, in preparation of High Court/Court of Protection applications. This will involve analysis and interpretation of highly complex legal principles and application of these to complex factual matrices and negotiating and advising (involving comparison of a range of outcome options) on the resolution of these highly contentious matters, bearing in mind the desired outcome for the Trust.

For further details please see the attached job description.