Cardiff University

Job Title

Internal Applicants Only - Contracts Assistant (Paralegal)

School / Directorate

The Research Service

Advert

This post is currently open to employees of Cardiff University only. Please do not apply if you do not have a current contract of employment with the University.

Internal Applicants Only - Contracts Assistant (Paralegal)

The Research Service

The Research Service wishes to appoint a Contracts Assistant (Paralegal) to work as part of a team of Contracts Officers in its busy Research Contracts team. The Contracts Assistant will be required to undertake a range of contractual and administrative activities to support the University’s research operations.

The role will involve drafting, negotiating and completing a range of research and research related contracts such as confidentiality agreements, contract amendments, material and data transfer agreements and basic research collaboration agreements. In addition to managing a portfolio of contracts, the postholder will also be required to support with administrative tasks to enable the efficient operation of the Research Contacts team.

The postholder will work with academic and professional services colleagues across the University and external stakeholders. In addition to the necessary professional qualifications and knowledge, they will be required to demonstrate effective communication, diligence and sound organisational skills.

This is a full-time post (35 hours per week) supported by HEFCW’s Research Wales Innovation Fund. In the first instance the post will be fixed term until July 2028 [there is a possibility for a renewal subject to funding].

Salary: £33,951 - £36,636 per annum (Grade 5)

Closing date: Thursday, 11 December 2025

External applications are currently not being considered for this post. If the decision is made to open the post to external candidates, the strapline at the top will be removed and you will be given ample time to apply – please check back periodically for details.

Cardiff University is committed to supporting and promoting equality and diversity and to creating an inclusive working environment. We believe this can be achieved through attracting, developing, and retaining a diverse range of staff from many different backgrounds. We therefore welcome applicants from all sections of the community regardless of sex, ethnicity, disability, sexual orientation, trans identity, relationship status, religion or belief, caring responsibilities, or age. In supporting our employees to achieve a balance between their work and their personal lives, we will also consider proposals for flexible working or job share arrangements.

Applications may be submitted in Welsh, and an application submitted in Welsh will not be treated less favourably than an application submitted in English.

Post Reference Number

21107BR

Job Description

Duties and Responsibilities

Key Duties

• To independently select, populate and issue appropriate template agreements for a variety of research related activities (such as sharing of confidential information, material and/or data transfers and simple collaboration agreements) and to progress such agreements through negotiation to completion.
• To independently review / draft, negotiate and complete low risk, low complexity research contracts received from external third parties (such as funders and research collaborators).
• To effectively prioritise and independently manage a high volume of contracts which are required to be completed expediently, often within tight deadlines.
• To independently review and assess research contract requests to ensure receipt of all necessary information and to be proactive in seeking additional information where needed to enable contract allocation.
• To identify regulatory, process, and/or risk issues during contract review and negotiation; independently resolving those which are less complex and escalating those of greater complexity to senior personnel.
• To support research contracts work of senior colleagues as appropriate and directed.
• To establish good working relationships with internal and external stakeholders to facilitate the delivery of an effective and professional research contracts service.
• To undertake a variety of tasks to support the team’s administrative operations. This will include working within and outside the team’s contracts management system – for example, addressing queries through the central e-mail account and supporting contract signature and completion processes.
• To respond to communications, coordinate and manage all delegated queries in a professional timely manner.
• To support with the advancement and enactment of the team’s continuous improvement initiatives.

General Duties

• Ensure that an understanding of the importance of confidentiality is applied when undertaking all duties.
• Ensure compliance with legal and regulatory requirements including (without limitation) in respect of equality and diversity, health and safety, data protection, copyright and licensing, export control and security, trusted research, financial and other University policies, procedures and codes as appropriate.
• Perform other duties occasionally which are not included above, but which will be consistent with the role.

Salary Range Max.

36,636

Grade

Grade 5

Salary Range Min.

33,951

Job Category

Management & Executive

Additional Information

The Research Service

Cardiff is an ambitious and innovative university located in a beautiful and thriving capital city. Our world-leading research was ranked 5th for quality amongst UK universities in the 2014 Research Excellence Framework and we provide an educationally outstanding experience for our 30,000 students. With an annual budget in excess of £500 million and around 6,000 staff, Cardiff is a member of the Russell Group of the 24 leading UK research-intensive universities. The University has 24 academic schools grouped into three colleges: Biomedical & Life Sciences, Physical Sciences & Engineering and Arts, Humanities & Social Sciences.

The University’s ambition is to rank consistently among the top 100 universities in the world. Cardiff is also developing its Innovation System through a focused programme of investment in people and infrastructure. Research funding secured from competitive, external sources exceeds £100 million annually and the University aims to grow this further through winning grants from a wide range of national and global sources.

The Research Service supports the University’s research community in initiating and delivering research and innovation activities. Led by the Director, Vanessa Cuthill, we provides services via over 100 expert staff organised in five specialist teams: Research Grants Office; Research Integrity, Governance and Ethics; Research Development; Research Commercialisation and Impact; Research Strategy and Operations and Business Engagement and Partnerships. The Department works closely with academic and professional services staff from all areas of the institution.

Career Pathway

Managerial, Professional and Specialist Staff – MPSS

Person Specification

Important note: It is the University’s policy to use the person specification as a key tool for short-listing. Candidates should evidence that they meet ALL of the essential criteria as well as, where relevant, the desirable. As part of the application process you will be asked to provide this evidence via a supporting statement. Please ensure that the evidence you are providing corresponds with the numbered criteria outlined below. Your application will be considered based on the information you provide under each element.

When attaching the supporting statement to your application profile, please ensure that you name it with the vacancy reference number, e.g. Supporting Statement for XXXXBR.

Essential Criteria

Qualifications and Education

1. Law Degree/NVQ 4 or equivalent qualification comprising substantive legal education.

Knowledge, Skills and Experience

2. The ability to work efficiently and under pressure with excellent organisational and time management skills to ensure effective prioritisation of workload and adherence to deadlines.

3. Excellent working knowledge of contract law (England and Wales) with ability to independently manage contracts through a workflow (drafting/populating to completion) and sound understanding of contracts administration processes.

4. Excellent IT competency and skills, particularly in respect of Microsoft Office applications including Word, Outlook and Teams.

5. Evidenced ability to appropriately select and populate template agreements accurately and/or to review agreements diligently and thoroughly with excellent attention to detail.

Customer Service, Communication and Team Working

6. Excellent communication skills (written and oral) with proven ability to work and interact professionally with audience appropriate adaptation.

7. Evidence of ability to work well independently and as a part of a team and to establish and maintain good working relationships with a variety of internal and external stakeholders.

Planning, Analysis and Problem solving

8. Proven ability to independently and effectively manage a caseload of work using own initiative.

Other

9. Ability to work diligently and professionally and observe and maintain confidentiality and diplomacy.

10. Willingness to undertake further training and development and a keen interest in continuous improvement.

Desirable Criteria

1. Relevant Postgraduate/Professional qualification e.g. Legal Practice Course (LPC) or similar.

2. Previous experience working in a research support, higher education or legal office environment.

3. Experience of working with research / intellectual property / commercial contracts.

4. Knowledge of legal and regulatory issues pertinent to research.

5. Fluency in Welsh, written and oral.

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