Principal Legal Services Manager (24 Month FTC)

About You
Do you like shaping complex litigation records and disclosures, so our case teams move faster with confidence?
Can you turn intricate data protection requirements into clear, workable action for colleagues?

Will you create a calm, inclusive environment where everyone can do their best work?

If so, read on......

The Legal and Records team provides high‑quality, pragmatic advice across the organisation. In this fixed‑term role, you’ll support the Head of Legal and Records on key litigation projects—particularly the preparation and management of documents to be shared with courts and external legal advisors. You’ll lead and develop our legal support officers and records management team, ensuring reliable, compliant processes for data protection and document discovery.

You will succeed in this role if you:

• Bring public‑sector, in‑house experience. You’ve worked within an internal legal/records function and understand how public bodies manage risk, accountability, and disclosure.
• Own the disclosure lifecycle. You’re confident with data protection legislation (UK GDPR), eDiscovery/document review workflows, and the practical steps needed for court‑ready bundles.
• Coach with care. You’ve led teams or team leads; you set clear outcomes, remove blockers, and give timely feedback in a way that supports different thinking and working styles.
• Collaborate widely. You build positive relationships with colleagues, clients, counsel, and senior leaders—communicating clearly and adjusting your style for different audiences.
• Start well, stay steady. You can hit the ground running, prioritise calmly, and keep high‑stakes work moving without sacrificing quality or wellbeing.
• Value accessibility. You design processes and communication that are easy to follow (plain language, clear structure) and you welcome adjustments so people can contribute at their best.

Essential: previous experience in an in‑house legal and records team within the public sector.
Desirable: familiarity with case management systems, eDiscovery tools, and preparing court bundles; experience leading multi‑disciplinary support teams.

About The Role
Working in conjunction with the Head of Legal and Records, you’ll assist with the management and leadership of the support functions within the team, ensuring the delivery of high‑quality legal support. This includes taking a strategic overview of Records Management delivery and supporting high‑level litigation projects such as Gadget and Gleision. You’ll play a key role in planning, service delivery, and departmental leadership, helping us meet complex legal obligations.
What you’ll do

• Coordinate our response to major litigation matters, working closely with internal lawyers and external counsel.
• Lead and manage the legal support team to provide efficient, proactive support (hearings, arbitrations, legal meetings, and bundle preparation).
• Plan and prioritise capacity with the Head of Legal and Records; align objectives and monitor performance.
• Own our case management systems and maintain data integrity across matters and records.
• Track budgets and financial performance for the team; report clearly and early on risks and variances.
• Strengthen governance and improvement, contributing to risk management, business planning, and continuous improvement activities.
• Represent our values, customer service standards, and statutory responsibilities in everything you do.
  

We don’t expect candidates to meet every single desired qualification. If your experience looks a little different from what we've identified and you think you can bring value to the role, we'd love to learn more about you!

To find out more about the role, take a look at the job description.

Role location: Hybrid working (on average 2 days working out of our Mansfield office)

Schedule:

Application closing date: 12th January 2026
Sifting date: 13th January 2026
Interviews: w/c 19th January 2026
(If you are unavailable on these interview dates, please make us aware and we will look at alternative dates)
Security:
Successful candidates must pass basic security checks and will be subject to UK Immigration requirements.

About Mining Remediation Authority
Our benefits:

• A cutting-edge pension scheme with an impressive employer contribution rate of approximately 28.97%.
• Experience our values-based recognition scheme that celebrates your contributions.
• Flexibility in working patterns, whether it's full-time, part-time, or compressed hours.
• Embrace flexible working arrangements tailored to your needs.
• Enjoy a generous holiday allowance of 27.5 days annually, plus the flexibility to add 6 extra days to that, alongside 8 public holidays.
• Benefit from a comprehensive parental leave policy with 26 weeks of full pay (subject to eligibility).
• Get support to further your professional qualifications and payment for one annual professional subscription.
• Access a free, confidential Employee Assistance Programme to support your well-being.
• Unlock exclusive employee discounts
• Ensure your well-being with an annual health check and receive £15 monthly towards well-being activities.
• Enjoy the convenience of on-site free parking, along with complimentary tea, coffee, and soft drinks at our Mansfield office.

Working with us:
We offer different ways to work flexibly, and the following types of flexibility are usually possible: job share, flexible hours, working from home for part of the week and compressed hours. Please feel free to talk about what flexibility means to you at your interview.
With a genuine commitment to flexible working, we believe that work life balance is incredibly important.
Who we are:
Here at the Mining Remediation Authority, we really are a great team to work with. We’re united in our passion and commitment to make a better future for people and the environment in mining areas.
We carry out a wide variety of essential services from responding to coal mining hazards, to keeping everyone and everything safe from mine water pollution.
We are excited about what our future holds. Our work is helping to develop a new sustainable source of renewable energy for the UK. By harnessing the energy from mine water heat, we hope to play a key role towards helping the UK to meet net-zero emissions by 2050.
We truly are a supportive organisation where we all live and breathe our values. We are inclusive, trusted and progressive in everything that we do.
Equality, Diversity and Inclusion:
We’re proud to be an inclusive employer and are committed to building a workforce that reflects the diversity of the communities we serve. We welcome applications from individuals of all backgrounds and identities, and we actively promote equality of opportunity throughout our recruitment process.
As part of our commitment to inclusive recruitment, we offer a guaranteed interview to applicants who meet the minimum selection criteria and identify as disabled or from a minority ethnic background, this aligns with our values.
We recruit based on your skills, experience and potential not your ethnicity, background, gender identity, sexual orientation, or any other protected characteristic. To help ensure fairness, we anonymise applications by asking you to remove personally identifiable information before they are reviewed by hiring managers. This helps us reduce unconscious bias and focus solely on what matters, your ability to succeed in the role.
If you’re successful in joining us, it’s because we believe in your ability to make a meaningful contribution. By continuing to improve the diversity of our organisation, we strengthen our collective knowledge, creativity, innovation and living our values of being trusted, inclusive, and progressive every day.
If you require reasonable adjustments or an alternative format to apply, please contact us at [email protected] or call us on 01623 637000. We are happy to support you through the process.