Support Staff Lunchtime Series: Building Excellence and Resilience
Key to any successful organisation is their support staff. Gain the key tools, knowledge and skills required to take your legal support role to the next level. Examine how to manage expectations from management, communicate effectively, manage projects and ensure positive mental health & wellbeing. Learn as an exceptional panel share with you their expertise. WEB218N04
Description
Attend and earn 4 CPD units in Professional Skills*
This program is applicable to practitioners from all States & Territories
If you register for the full series as a live online product after the date of an individual session, you will be sent the recording for the sessions that have passed. Alternatively, you can register for individual sessions by following the links below.
*This seminar series is suitable for Junior Lawyers
Session 1
Thursday, 12 August 2021
You’ll identify how to manage the expectations of your managers and direct reports with expert practical tips and knowhow that you can used immediately. Take away how to deal with multiple tasks, competing priorities and the importance of honing your delegation skills. WEB218N04A
Chair: Lisa Gooneratne, Special Counsel, HWL Ebsworth
1.00pm to 2.00pm Managing the Expectations of your Managers and What’s Expected of a Legal Assistant
- Identifying the expectations
- Managing up, down and across
- How to make the most of your resources: dealing with multiple tasks at once
- How to ensure tasks are completed in the required timeframe
- How to add value and reduce solicitor workloads
- How to keep track of what matters your teams are working on
- Managing multiple tasks, deadlines and competing priorities
- Keeping the team informed about project timeframes
- Developing open and honest communication
- Importance of developing your delegation skills
- Common traps and tips
- Importance to follow up
- Tips on easing the administrative workload of your solicitors
- Service standards for excellence: basic KPIs
Presented by Pauline Murray, Legal Practice Administration Manger, Herbert Smith Freehills
Register here for Session 1 only
Session 2
Thursday, 2 September 2021
Takeaway new key skills on how to take your communication to the next level when dealing with your manager, workplace colleagues and clients. Learn how to strengthen your listening and written skills for written instructions, meeting notes and file notes. WEB219N04B
Chair: Lisa Gooneratne, Special Counsel, HWL Ebsworth
1.00pm to 2.00pm Developing Effective Communication, Listening and Written Skills
- How to communicate with managers and teams
- Communication with clients
- Taking written instructions and meeting notes
- Ensuring file notes are complete and accurate
- How to listen to take down accurate instructions?
- Building your business telephone manner
- How to ask the right questions to ensure you provide excellence
Presented by Angela Kurtz, Practice Manager, Marino Law
Register here for Session 2 only
Session 3
Thursday, 14 October 2021
Up skill yourself with simple but important project management tools that will ensure you meet those sharp deadlines, juggle tight priorities and implement structures to guarantee your success. WEB2110N04C
Chair: Lisa Gooneratne, Special Counsel, HWL Ebsworth
1.00pm to 2.00pm Simple Project Management
- How to put together a simple project outline
- Setting priorities and structures to ensure you win
- Time management to meet deadlines
- Effective project team communication
Presented by Sam Auty, Legal Project Manager, Ashurst
Register here for Session 3 only
Session 4
Thursday, 11 November 2021
Work through important and practical steps and strategies to effectively assess, monitor and ensure both you and your colleague’s wellbeing and mental health in these challenging times. WEB2111N04D
Chair: Lisa Gooneratne, Special Counsel, HWL Ebsworth
1.00pm to 2.00pm Ensuring Your Wellbeing and Mental Health in Challenging Times
- Managing optimum mental health when working flexibly
- Emotional regulation: managing your stress levels while mediating the stress levels of your managers and their clients
- Burnout: early warning signs and impact on productivity
- Exposure to distressing content: risks and protective factors
- Developing personal resiliency
Presented by Kirsty Dempster-Rivett, Clinical Psychologist, University of Waikato
Register here for Session 4 only
Presenters
Lisa Gooneratne
Lisa has extensive experience in personal injury insurance law, in a variety of areas. Lisa acts for both private insurers and Government agencies, in the areas of public liability, workers compensation, medical negligence, coronial inquests, medical disciplinary matters and motor vehicle accidents. Lisa also acts for a self-insurers, including a national airline and national banks, in relation to personal injury claims. Lisa is actively involved in the ACT legal community, being a former chair of the Young Lawyers Committee and currently a Commissioner and Board member of the ACT Legal Aid Commission.
Pauline Murray
Pauline Murray is a Legal Practice Administration Manager at Herbert Smith Freehills Sydney and has over 20 years’ experience in the legal industry. Starting out her career as an office junior, she entered a graduate program for legal assistants and then spent the next the next 12 years working across a number of firms in the areas of insurance litigation, competition and employment, industrial relations and safety. In mid-2011 Pauline moved into her current role as a Legal Practice Administration Manager.
Sam Auty
Sam Auty is a Legal Project Manager for Ashurst Advance, in the Ashurst Melbourne office, and is certified by the Project Management Institute as a Project Management Professional. Starting out her career at NewLaw firm, LegalVision, Sam moved from being a legal graduate to working across business development and leading internal strategic projects as part of the Growth and Innovation team. After moving to Melbourne, Sam joined Ashurst as a Legal Project Coordinator in Ashurst Advance, working with both Ashurst's legal teams and business services teams to apply project management tools and techniques to help them deliver matters more efficiently.
Kirsty Dempster-Rivett, Consultant Clinical Psychologist
Since graduating from the University of Waikato, Kirsty has accumulated a diverse range of experience as a Clinical Psychologist. This has involved multiple roles within government agencies such as The Department of Corrections, Waikato District Health Board, as well as community-based practice, especially in collaboration with Waikato schools and Non-Government Organisations. Specifically, her career has focused on working with young people who have experienced significant childhood trauma that go on to offend. Kirsty has been a Teaching Fellow at the University Of Waikato for the last three years convening undergraduate and graduate papers on mental health and wellbeing. She is currently undertaking doctoral research entitled: Exploring the mechanisms linking child maltreatment and the perpetration of family harm.
Angela Kurtz
Angela Kurtz is currently the Practice Manager at Marino Law on the Gold Coast. With over 25 years in legal professional services, Angela has extensive experience across a range of mid-tier and national roles in HR, management. learning & development and marketing/communications and also a number of business consultancy projects. She has particular expertise in people and performance. Angela has an interest in high performing teams, and is a long-standing member of various bodies including the Australian Legal Practice Management Association (former Qld Committee Member), the Australian Human Resources Institute and the Continuing Legal Education Association of Australasia (former President). Angela holds a Masters of Business majoring in Communication.