Knowledge & Information Services Assistant - Corporate Finance

Overview of the Function & Practice Area

This is an exciting opportunity for a candidate with an interest in the law to be part of a global knowledge team and develop an understanding of corporate financing techniques, in particular debt capital markets, structured finance and securitisation, and structured products and derivatives.

This role will support fee earners practising in corporate finance (with a particular focus on debt capital markets, structured finance and securitisation, and structured products and derivatives) across the Freshfields’ network. The Knowledge & Information Services Assistant plays a key role in collating and disseminating current awareness updates internally, with a significant focus on developments in both regulation and market practice. Another key role is collecting transaction insights from matters worked on by the team. The Knowledge & Information Services Assistant is central to the maintenance of our internal databases, including keeping the SharePoint site which we use to store our knowledge materials curated and up to date.

Freshfields’ global knowledge function connects people and knowledge to enable the firm’s lawyers to provide market-leading client service, to grow the business of the firm and strengthen client relationships, and to support the firm’s lawyers in developing their legal skills, while focusing on value, quality and efficiency. Our Knowledge & Information Services team plays a critical role in ensuring the firm’s lawyers have access to curated internal knowledge collections and external resources relevant to their work and support research activities and current awareness. 

Role summary/purpose of job

The Knowledge & Information Services Assistant will support the firm’s Knowledge Lawyers and the lawyers in the firm’s corporate finance practice directly. They will be responsible for capturing knowhow and developing our internal knowledge collections, managing our external resources (online and in print) and guiding users, responding to queries and supporting resources training.

The Knowledge & Information Services Assistant will be part of our global Knowledge & Information Services Team, which is led by the Head of Knowledge & Information Services. They will report to a Knowledge & Information Services Manager.  The role will principally support the London corporate finance practice area but, as a member of a global team, will also collaborate with colleagues on firmwide or cross-practice projects.

Key responsibilities and deliverables 

Knowledge & Insight capture: Ensuring knowledge insights and knowhow from client mandates are captured (e.g., alongside Knowledge Lawyers in line with relevant practice area processes).  

Current awareness (internal and external facing): supporting the creation and sharing of updates, insights and commentary on legal, regulatory and market developments – this may involve conducting research, collating materials, tracking cases, legislation or other developments or key topics (which may support the production of external facing content such as blogs, briefings and client presentations), drafting summaries and updates (incl. first drafts for external/client facing updates or Knowledge materials and internal updates) and maintaining topics pages on our Knowledge SharePoint.   

Knowledge collections management: Collating and maintaining our internal knowledge collections, including uploading knowhow and tagging (adhering to our global standards and governance protocols), creating and maintaining topics pages, reviewing and curating materials – this requires the ability to understand, extract and disseminate key information about the relevant knowhow (with guidance from relevant Knowledge Lawyers).  

Internal Knowledge products creation/updating: Supporting the Knowledge Lawyers and lawyers in the practice groups on the creation and updating of internal knowledge products (e.g. standard forms, templates and practice notes – including automating documents). 

Information on resources: Maintaining and updating information on relevant SharePoints and other tools used to house and disseminate information about our internal and external resources. 

External resource expertise: Developing a comprehensive understanding of the external online databases and resources relevant to the practice area, with the ability to search and retrieve content efficiently and effectively and guide others in doing so, guiding others in setting up alerts, and participating in trials of new products, occasional liaison with vendors on queries.

Resources training and guidance: Supporting resources training for lawyers and other business services colleagues on how to use the Knowledge SharePoints, other internal knowledge tools (e.g. Athena) and external resources in conjunction with other Knowledge & Information Services colleagues – including helping to develop e-learnings and guidance materials to support direct access.  

Research & signposting: Helping users orient their own searches, including directing them to specific internal or external resources, and responding to queries from lawyers in the practice groups or other business services colleagues; this will involve (where appropriate) researching and locating sources and commentary from internal and external resources (including confirming if sources are available), answering simpler queries outright and seeking guidance from Knowledge Lawyers or more senior members of the Knowledge & Information Services team on more complex requests as needed. Signposting users to relevant materials (incl. signposting to any user guides and password re-set guidance to access external materials).

External resource management: As part of the wider team, occasionally classifying and cataloguing new titles, and updating our online library system and relevant SharePoints as required. Occasional travel to London to support the management of physical libraries and hard copy resources in the London office. As part of wider team, conducting audits of books, journals and external databases, from time to time, to ensure relevance/value and to identify competitors as part of renewal process.

Compliance with policies: Being aware of copyright and compliance policies and adhering to them when disseminating materials.

Supporting external vendor management: Working with Global Procurement and other Knowledge & Information Services colleagues on contract renewals and new purchases of resources in line with our global subscriptions policy, including occasionally assisting with purchase orders and invoices for resources specific to the area.   

Key requirements

Highly Desirable

• Degree in law

• SharePoint skills, content publishing, database maintenance and ability to upload content to websites (full training will be available)

• Experience of working in a law firm (eg as a paralegal, knowledge assistant or in a library/research role) and/or understanding of legal products/services or professional services experience. 

Essential

• Degree educated

• Research skills

• Highly IT literate, including excellent command of Microsoft Office 365 (including Excel)

• Good commercial awareness

• Confident individual

• Strongly self-motivated with the ability to use their initiative and the ability to work on long term projects at the same time as day-to-day tasks

• Excellent communication skills

• Business proficiency in English (both oral and written)

• A team player capable of building good working relationships

• Organisational and administrative skills, with attention to detail

Inclusion

Freshfields is an equal opportunities employer and all applications received by the firm will be considered on the basis of their merit alone. We welcome applications from all suitably qualified individuals regardless of background. All offers of employment will be conditional on the candidate having/securing the right to work in the UK in the role in question and providing the firm with evidence of that right (as required by the Immigration, Asylum and Nationality Act 2006) prior to employment commencing.

Freshfields is a Ban the Box employer. We ask applicants to disclose criminal convictions only if and when a conditional job offer is made. A conviction does not automatically lead to withdrawal of the offer: we make decisions on a case-by-case basis and take a number of relevant factors into account (e.g. the role you are applying for and the circumstances of the offence). You would have the opportunity to discuss the matter with us before we make a decision.