Analyst – Library – Research Generalist
Role context and purpose
The Research Analyst position will focus on providing high quality research support as part of a team of four. Based on the West Coast, the individual will be the representative of the service to our offices in this location and work with colleagues to provide a seamless and efficient service.

To be successful in this role, the Research Analyst should have a deep understanding of legal research methodologies and strong analytical and critical thinking skills. They should also have a thorough understanding of litigation and corporate law, as well as the ability to work collaboratively with attorneys and other members of the legal team. Strong attention to detail, excellent communication skills, and the ability to work under tight deadlines are also essential for this position. The Research Analyst must have full understanding of public and commercial resources relevant to supporting attorneys in the US and most specifically, California.

The Research Analyst will be responsible for analyzing complex legal issues and presenting their findings to the firm's attorneys in a clear and concise manner.

Key relationships

• Senior Manager of the US Research Service
• Attorneys and Business Development staff from all jurisdictions
• Research & Library team (US)
• Strategic Research team (global)
• Global Head Research & Library
• The wider Research & Library community

Role and responsibilities
Research tasks:

• Providing quality legal, business and financial research support;
• Providing targeted complex SEC precedent research, with expertise in litigation, IP litigation and assignment research, and debt financing;
• Providing summaries of information from abstracts to short reports;
• Providing research support to external clients either on an ad hoc or project basis;
• Evaluating new products and making recommendations as and when required, and specifically on California resources;
• Promoting the Research & Library services to new joiners of the firm;
• Assist in training attorneys on legal databases to improve their legal research skills; and
• Ability to synthesize case law and provide targeted result sets.

Facilitating and contributing to projects including for example:

• Contributing to the growth of the service by front facing with attorneys
• Contribute to the development of training guides in using legal and business tools effectively
• Providing recommendations for the adoption of new products and services;
• Advising attorneys and colleagues in the use of new technologies;
• Advising on the development of practice area intranet portal sites
• Testing of new research tools
• Identifying opportunities for new research outputs and  promoting these to the firm; and
• Contributing expertise to projects run by other teams such as Know How and Business Development.

Contribution to the development of the Research Service:

• Building and maintaining productive relationships with users of the service, undertaking audits of user needs and recommending  responses to these;
• Providing and promoting institutional best practice in the  use of key products;
• Contributing to the planning and delivery of fee earner and support staff training;
• Promoting the Research & Library to the global firm;
• Contributing content to the Library Know How wiki and Library intranet; and
• Contribution to projects as and when required. 

Key requirements:
As the key representative of our service to our California offices, the successful applicant will contribute:

• Expertise in researching California legislation;
• Demonstrable knowledge of local, California legal and business resources;
• Expertise in databases such as Lexis, Westlaw, Bloomberg Law, Lex Machina, Intelligize, Patsnap, and PLC is desirable as is additional expertise in California specific resources, and in one or more of our areas of practice;
• Have demonstrable experience of collaborating and working within a team in multiple states;
• Be comfortable representing and promoting the service through delivering online training and presentations;
• Experience in IP/ M&A/ Litigation/ Finance/ Litigation and M&A strongly preferred; and
• Have a strong understanding of corporate structures and regulations, as well as relevant laws and regulations governing business operations.

Who we are looking for
The successful individual should demonstrate the following skills and attributes:

• Have at least 7 years’ experience in a senior research role within a law firm environment;
  • Competency and expertise in legal and business research;
  • Proactive and engaging approach to scoping and managing business development enquiries;
  • Strong commercial awareness and interest;
  • Excellent all round communication skills, both oral and written; and
  • Strong team player; able to both mentor and be mentored by colleagues.

The successful applicant will:

• Be a credible, capable professional who is able to build and maintain productive relationships with attorneys, key stakeholders and peers across the business;
• Be flexible in their working style and able to adapt quickly and contribute to our core systems, such as our workflow system; global library catalogue, and Know How wiki;
• Possess excellent all round communication skills, both oral and written;
• Be a proactive, positive person who really believes in the value that research can bring to the business;
• A resourceful, creative and solutions orientated person with a positive mind-set and the ability to challenge others constructively and be challenged with the focus on delivering the best outcomes for our business;
• A resilient yet adaptable character;
• A flexible approach to working hours;
• Team orientation at all levels; and
• Professional demeanor and behavior at all times, treating colleagues and clients with respect and courtesy at all times.