Boomer mentality but at least you get paid. - Litigation Paralegal Express Solicitors Employee Review

2.0
5 Feb 2024
Recommend
CEO approval
Business outlook

Pros

Good training, growing company with a long-term future. Good team atmosphere and events. Some really great managers.

Cons

Marginally nicer than working in fast food, but if you're expecting a modern workplace look elsewhere. The roles are advertised as hybrid but no work from home is allowed until after first three months. No transparency about this in applications. Regressive HR policies and micromanagement from the CEO e.g. CCTV watching employees work. Very strange policies for parents- if your child is sick, you wouldn't be allowed to work from home as you wouldn't be giving your full attention to the employer. Witnessed some nasty treatment of disabled employees though people with mild conditions seemed to do alright. Progression is available but preferential treatment is given to UK nationals from the local area. Salary atrocious for early careers. Low risk of being replaced by a robot as CEO is allergic to technology. Overall, the firm is not a bad option for those who are local to Manchester and can keep their head down. My advice for graduates is to stomach it for 6-12 months and then move to a much better paid role with a competitor.

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Express Solicitors Response
2y
Thank you for leaving us a review, it’s great to know that our dedicated graduate scheme is providing the excellent training we want it to. We also want every to enjoy their work environment so that is great to hear too. In regards to the hybrid working, we do state on both the job advert and the job spec that this is available after probation. The job spec is provided at each step of the recruitment process and we do always allow people to ask questions during the interview process if anyone is unsure about this. We absolutely support all staff including parents and disabled people. Sometimes we can’t absolve people from, for example, the working from the office and working from home split because we believe in the shared model in order to learn, progress and grow the skills required of a litigator. We are an equal opportunities employer and we have many hundreds of examples of excellent support for our staff members. We are a responsive listening organisation and we care about those who work hard and contribute to our mission helping injured people. We give everyone the same opportunities for progression, regardless of their background. Progression is of course subject to business needs but it is primarily based on the individual’s performance. This does mean that some people do progress quicker than others, but that doesn’t mean that those who need a bit more time aren’t given further opportunities later. We are unclear what you mean about technology, as we use up to date systems and we employ dedicated IT developers to ensure that these are constantly being improved upon, ensuring that our lawyers are no overburdened with admin tasks. We do have polices in regards to AI software, but this is to ensure that all of our clients are given the individual dedicated help that they deserve. We don’t want to be a firm that just clicks through boxes to process a clients’ claims and we are proud of that.

Explore other reviews about Express Solicitors

1.0
16 Apr 2022
Anonymous employee
Recommend
CEO approval
Business outlook

Pros

The people I met, this is the only pro

Cons

I think the title says it all- constant bullying, micromanaging even the smalles things (like checking letters before they got sent out), employees being shouted at when they’re already overworked. NCT is a literal call centre with toxic management and even the office is depressing. Wages are low

5
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Express Solicitors Response
4y
Express Solicitors are sorry that you had an unhappy experience working for ourselves. We always appreciate feedback so we can look to see if there are areas in which we need to improve. If you have any additional concerns, please do email HR at ALLHR@expresssolicitors.co.uk Working in our NCT Team does involve a lot of talking to clients, as they deal with clients looking to engage our services. The work they do is key to our business. The level of call work, would have been explained to you in the interview process. We always try to be as open as we can as to what the role entails. We do expect high standards from our Team Members, as we want our clients to have the best experience from their very first interaction with us. This means at times, if we are working closely with a Team Member to improve the quality of their work, we will have their outgoing communication checked. That is however, to allow the individual to have the support they need to improve. We are sorry you didn’t find the working environment suitable as we do generally have a lot of employees staying with Express for long periods, either going on to progress into Team Leader roles within NCT or into other roles within the wider firm. The team also does socialise outside of work with a number of events being paid for by the company.
3.0
12 May 2026
Recommend
CEO approval
Business outlook

Pros

Preface - I have only worked in the New Client Team, so can only offer my perspective on NCT. Frankly the best company I have worked for (but the bar is on the ground). Express does foster a good work environment and the people I've worked with have been, for the most part, a delightful bunch. There's honest emphasis on taking care of their employees' wellbeing, they pay a living wage, hard work is recognised and rewarded and anyone struggling is supported. Commission in the pay structure means staff are monetarily rewarded for doing well. Diversity seems to be something they actually care about, rather than just pay lip service to.

Cons

The sickness policy is abysmal, offering 5 days a year of paid sick leave and beyond that unpaid/SSP if entitled to it (compared with my partner's workplace offering 13 weeks full pay and 13 weeks half pay) so if you have any disabilities or chronic health problems, expect to lose pay. Any time off needed for appointments must be made up working overtime, something I have not experienced in any other job. As a result I cannot in good faith recommend working here to anyone with chronic health issues. Working from home is a 50/50 split with everyone expected to still work in the office half the time, despite the fact that the job can be done fully remotely, for seemingly no reason beyond upper management doesn't want people working from home that much.

1
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Express Solicitors Response
2w
thank you for your 3* review and comments about the NCT Department. We are really pleased to hear you are happy working here and enjoy the working environment, this has grown throughout the business to be an open-door policy and we value our staff to make sure everyone is doing okay, we have just ran wellbeing sessions in the business (for example the recent free to attend PT Session & Pilates) to help staff. DEI is important, with regular sessions and active engagement, we want to encourage our staff to have a voice in the firm and show off what matters to them. Thank you for your comments on Sick Pay. We offer private healthcare to all staff with 2 years service and receive really excellent feedback about what a help this is. Working and speaking with colleagues face to face allows for better knowledge sharing, support, and coaching when someone is unsure, and better visibility to make sure everyone is doing okay. It also means that any training needs can be delivered quickly, we are a firm that works at helping injured people. We do think strongly about the pillars of wellbeing.
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