Certificate in Legal Skills for Legal Secretaries

Programme overview

The course has been designed to give students a greater understanding of the key legal specialisations they are likely to encounter in legal firms. The focus of the certificate is to enhance the practical skills and knowledge of legal secretaries and others who wish to gain greater experience of the skills required to work in a legal office. The certificate will provide value for legal secretaries, but also for their employers. 

Lecturers will emphasise the practical aspects of working in a legal office, highlight the key documents that legal secretaries deal with on a day-to-day basis and set out the steps involved in various common types legal transactions. The course will also look at some of the main issues which legal secretaries encounter while working in a legal office, such as data protection issues, cyber risks and anti-money laundering. Finally, the Certificate will help students to develop their knowledge of the business of law and how to run a legal office.

Modules

The programme is based on the following module scheme and covers key themes as listed below:

Module 1: Introduction to the Irish legal system 

• Introduction to the Irish legal system
• Sources of law
• Irish Courts and the Court structure
• The role of solicitors and barristers 
• The role of the Law Society of Ireland 

Module 2: Litigation and Alternative Dispute Resolution

• Injuries Resolution Board
• Personal injury litigation – taking a case to court
• Personal injury litigation – preparing for court
• Preparing a brief 
• Dealing with Court Offices
• Criminal litigation and practice
• Introduction to ADR

Module 3: Conveyancing

• Introduction to conveyancing 
• Steps in a conveyancing transaction 
• Schedule of documents, title deeds 
• Landlord and Tenant law

Module 4: Employment Law

• Contract of employment
• Role of WRC
• Bringing a claim 

Module 5: Company Law

• Introduction to company structures
• Documents for company formations/charges
• Mergers & acquisitions 

Module 6: Option A* - Wills and Probate; Family Law

• Making a will
• The Probate application
• Separation, divorce, cohabitation
• Custody and access
• Domestic violence

Module 6: Option B* - Finance and Asset Management

• Commercial lending
• Commercial property leasing
• Aviation leasing  

Module 7: Compliance and the Regulatory Landscape 

• Data Protection at work
• Cyber awareness – common pitfalls and tips
• Artificial Intelligence – uses and limitations
• Anti-Money Laundering

Module 8: Running a Legal Office and Legal Skills

• Letters of engagement, section 150 letters, time recording, billing, accounting for law firms, maintaining records and registers
• Social media and marketing, the role of the office manager
• Verbal and written communication skills
• Note taking 

*Participants may elect to attend option A or option B of Module 6, or may attend both options.

Workshops

Workshops are a key feature of this course. These are designed to be interactive and involve working in groups on selected case-study problems and analysis, with an emphasis on the application of the law to common scenarios encountered in practice.