Specialist Prosecutor

Specialist prosecutors work with criminal justice partners in the UK and internationally to confiscate money and assets obtained through crime. You review evidence in line with our Code for Crown Prosecutors, advise investigative agencies, and conduct cases in enforcement courts. Your expertise helps us to disrupt offending and prevent ill-gotten gains from being reinvested into further criminal activity.
Your work makes a real difference to society and the communities we serve, ensuring proceeds of crime are recovered and reinvested into tackling offending and compensating victims of crime.

Person specification
+ To provide legal and practical advice to police officers and financial investigators in money laundering investigations and prosecutions, restraint, confiscation, enforcement.
+ To provide advice, guidance and support to prosecutors and caseworkers.
+ To undertake assigned investigations and casework.
+ To develop, co-ordinate and provide training on the Proceeds of Crime Act and Money Laundering Regulations.
+ To support advocates in all asset recovery hearings, by drafting applications, legal arguments, and other documentation.
+ To conduct cases in enforcement courts, and conduct contested and non-contested confiscations hearings if you have Higher Court Advocacy qualifications.
+ To prepare Letters of Request to foreign jurisdictions to ensure assets outside of the UK are located, restrained or enforced.
+ To draft and oversee the management of receivership applications, including the selection of receivers from a panel., We'll assess you against these behaviours during the selection process:
+ Making Effective Decisions
+ Communicating and Influencing
+ Managing a Quality Service, CPS is passionate about ensuring that we are a top performing organisation and a great place to work. We are committed to be an equal opportunities employer and creating a culture where everyone can bring their whole self to work and individuality is truly appreciated.
We want to ensure all our employees can thrive at work and home and offer a range of support to achieve a balance. This includes where possible, flexibility of working hours, flexibility to support caring responsibilities and a flexible approach to deployment, which means that where you work (i.e. a court, an office, or a remote setting such as your home) will be based on the kind of work you are undertaking.
This culture of inclusion is underpinned by our staff networks covering Disability, Faith and Belief, LGBTQI+, Race, Social Mobility alongside our Mental Health First Aiders Programme and Wellbeing Sessions.
CPS commits to offer its employees the following experience
+ Impactful, purposeful work – making a difference to your local communities
+ The ability to learn and grow, with access to the right opportunities and resources
+ To care about your wellbeing
+ To feel valued, trusted and included
We also offer the following range of benefits:
+ Civil Service Pension
+ Access to employee savings
+ Cycle2Work scheme
+ 25 days leave, rising to 30 days after 5 years’ service.
+ 1 extra privilege day entitlement to mark the King’s Birthday.
+ Competitive maternity, paternity and parental leave
+ Flexible working and a family friendly approach to work.
+ Childcare vouchers unless already registered with the Government Tax Free Childcare Scheme
Diversity at the Crown Prosecution Service is about inclusion, embracing differences and ensuring our workforce truly reflects the communities we serve. We want you to feel that you belong and can thrive, whatever your background, identity or culture. As a Disability Confident employer, we're happy to support requests for reasonable adjustments and improve your recruitment experience. If you'd like any reasonable adjustments made to our recruitment process, let us know within your application or contact jonathan.fairclough@cps.gov.uk.
We want to ensure our employees can thrive at work and home, and offer a range of support to achieve a balance. This includes flexibility of working hours, flexibility to support caring responsibilities and a flexible approach to deployment. We offer a hybrid working policy. From September 2024, you must spend at least 40% of your contracted hours over a four-week period at court, in an office or another official workplace depending on business need and the kind of work you're doing.

Things you need to know

Selection process details
This vacancy is using Success Profiles (opens in a new window), and will assess your Behaviours, Strengths and Experience.
The recruitment process will consist of an online application, interview and assessment which are expected to take place on:
Assessment - 22 January 2025
Interview - 03 February 2025
Your interview and assessment will be conducted online via Microsoft Teams. A member of our recruitment team will be in touch with further guidance. If you have any queries about this please contact stephen.oneill@cps.gov.uk.
Assessment
You will be asked to undertake an assessment as part of the recruitment process for this role, details of which will be provided near the time.
Behaviours
You will also be asked to complete a statement of no more than 250 words per behaviour setting out how you consider your personal skills, qualities, experience, match the specified behaviours and requirements as detailed in the job description. In addition you will need to demonstrate the CPS or Civil Service Values.
1. Making effective decisions (lead behaviour)
2. Communicating and influencing
3. Managing a quality service
In the personal statement section of your application form – in no more than 500 words – set out how you meet the following essential experience criteria for this role:
+ extensive experience of criminal or civil litigation in the higher courts, with a breadth of exposure to complex cases, the law relating to disclosure, and the handling of sensitive information
+ confidence dealing with complex and voluminous numerical data
+ experience of drafting complex legal documents and conducting complex legal and factual analysis
+ experience dealing with expert evidence
+ experience of managing contested casework/litigation with multiple parties
In addition you will need to demonstrate the CPS or Civil Service Values.
Please note, the panel has the right to assess the lead behaviour ‘Making effective decisions’ first. If the standard on this behaviour isn’t met, the other behaviours won’t be considered and your application won’t progress. The panel also has the right to raise the minimum standard pass mark.
The panel may also refer to the lead behaviour at the interview stage to determine merit order.
CV
You will not be required to upload your CV however, when submitting your application there is a ‘CV section.’ You will be required to provide information regarding your employment/academic history for the past 3 years and skills and qualification details.
Please note that it is the candidate’s responsibility to provide the specified application information in the requested format to ensure that they are considered for the post.
If you are unable to cover 3 years through employment/ academic, a character reference will be required for clearance purposes.
Strengths
Strengths will be tested at interview stage, the strengths being tested will not be shared in advance of the interview.
Use of AI
Candidates must ensure that their applications, including personal statements and behaviour examples, are truthful and factually accurate. Please note, that plagiarism can include presenting the ideas and experience of others, or generated by artificial intelligence, as your own.
Other
This is a full-time post. However, requests for flexible, part-time working and job share will be considered, considering at all times the operational needs of the Department.
Clearance Required
The successful applicant will be required to secure SC clearance.
If successfully appointed, you will be asked to complete the Character Enquiry Form, Nationality and Immigration Questionnaire and National Security Vetting Form
The job you are applying for is covered by Article 3(a) of the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 (Exceptions) Order 1975, consequently Section 4(2) of that Act does not apply.
For the reasons outlined above you are required to disclose all previous convictions and cautions, including spent convictions. Failure to make a full declaration will result in the withdrawal of an offer of employment if our checks reveal convictions that have not been disclosed.
To be cleared to SC/ clearance level the candidate has to be able to meet the residency requirement as per Cabinet Office guidance. They are as follows for CPS.
SC – 3 years within the last 5 years
Waiting List
Candidates who are recommended by the selection panel but not appointed to the current vacancy will be placed on a waiting list for 12 months and may be offered another post, should any further vacancies for a Specialist Prosecutor arise in their chosen location. CPS may also approach candidates on the waiting list to fill other roles requiring similar knowledge and experience, including in other locations.
Feedback
Feedback will not be provided until the vacancy is complete, please note that written feedback will not be provided for candidates who do not pass the application stage.
Fair Processing Notice (FPN)
From April 2018, the CPS will provide a Fair Processing Notice (FPN) to all new applicants after they have been successful at interview. These candidates will be informed that, as one aspect of pre-employment screening, their personal details – name, National Insurance Number and date of birth - will be checked against the Internal Fraud Database (IFD) and that anyone included on the IFD will be refused employment unless they can demonstrate exceptional circumstances., Successful candidates must undergo a criminal record check.
Successful candidates must meet the security requirements before they can be appointed. The level of security needed is security check (opens in a new window).See our vetting charter (opens in a new window).
People working with government assets must complete baseline personnel security standard (opens in new window) checks.

Nationality requirements
This job is broadly open to the following groups:
+ UK nationals
+ nationals of the Republic of Ireland
+ nationals of Commonwealth countries who have the right to work in the UK
+ nationals of the EU, Switzerland, Norway, Iceland or Liechtenstein and family members of those nationalities with settled or pre-settled status under the European Union Settlement Scheme (EUSS) (opens in a new window)
+ nationals of the EU, Switzerland, Norway, Iceland or Liechtenstein and family members of those nationalities who have made a valid application for settled or pre-settled status under the European Union Settlement Scheme (EUSS)
+ individuals with limited leave to remain or indefinite leave to remain who were eligible to apply for EUSS on or before 31 December 2020
+ Turkish nationals, and certain family members of Turkish nationals, who have accrued the right to work in the Civil Service
Further information on nationality requirements (opens in a new window)

Working for the Civil Service
The Civil Service Code (opens in a new window) sets out the standards of behaviour expected of civil servants.
We recruit by merit on the basis of fair and open competition, as outlined in the Civil Service Commission's recruitment principles (opens in a new window).
The Civil Service embraces diversity and promotes equal opportunities. As such, we run a Disability Confident Scheme (DCS) for candidates with disabilities who meet the minimum selection criteria.
The Civil Service also offers a Redeployment Interview Scheme to civil servants who are at risk of redundancy, and who meet the minimum requirements for the advertised vacancy.

Diversity and Inclusion
The Civil Service is committed to attract, retain and invest in talent wherever it is found. To learn more please see the Civil Service People Plan (opens in a new window) and the Civil Service Diversity and Inclusion Strategy (opens in a new window).

+ Extensive experience of criminal or civil litigation in the higher courts, with a breadth of exposure to complex cases, the law relating to disclosure, and the handling of sensitive information.
+ Confidence dealing with complex and voluminous numerical data.
+ Experience of drafting complex legal documents and conducting complex legal and factual analysis.
+ Experience dealing with expert evidence.
+ Experience of managing contested casework/litigation with multiple parties., 1. Academic: You must have a law degree, Common Professional Examination or Graduate Diploma in Law.
2. Professional: You must have completed a Legal Practice Course, Solicitors Qualifying Exam or Bar Professional Training Course and the relevant pupillage and training contract - or received a full exemption from the relevant professional regulatory body.
3. If you’re a CILEx-qualified candidate, you must be a Fellow of CILEx, and in addition being a CILEx advocate or litigator holding all three advocacy certificates providing you with ‘general qualification’ within the meaning of s71 (3) (c) Courts and Legal Services Act 1990. You must have a right of audience in relation to any class of proceedings in any part of the Senior Courts, or all proceedings in County Court or Magistrates Courts.
4. You must have a valid practising certificate for England and Wales or be eligible to obtain a valid practising certificate, issued from either the Solicitors Regulation Authority or the Bar Standards Board., The successful applicant must have a valid practising certificate for England and Wales or be eligible to obtain a valid practising certificate issued from either the Solicitors Regulation Authority or the Bar Standards Board.
If CILEx qualified, must hold a ‘general qualification’ within the meaning of s.71 (3) (c) Courts and Legal Services Act 1990.

The Crown Prosecution Service is based in England and Wales. If you’re applying for this role and live in Scotland or Northern Ireland, you must let us know when accepting this offer as you need permission to work from your home address if hybrid working is part of your role. Unfortunately, there is no guarantee that this approval will be granted.
Please note that applicants must be aged 18 before starting in the role, start dates would be expected to be 8-12 weeks after the closing date of this advert.
There are 5 positions available within the following locations:
1x Leicester
1x Sunderland
1x Wakefield
2x in either Birmingham, Liverpool, Leeds, London, Manchester, Newcastle, Nottingham, Swansea.

Alongside your salary of £60,640, Crown Prosecution Service contributes £17,567 towards you being a member of the Civil Service Defined Benefit Pension scheme. Find out what benefits a Civil Service Pension provides.