Head of Personal Law Technology

Job description

Our Circle Back Initiative partnership means we’re committed to responding to every applicant. Please note that all successful candidates will be required to undergo background checks as part of our commitment to maintaining a safe and compliant workplace We welcome fearless thinkers. For over 100 years, Maurice Blackburn has stood up for those who need us most. With courage and compassion, we extend access to justice to countless Australians. We look beyond the immediate challenge to support people in moments that matter across their lives, and continually push for better solutions for our clients. We invest in and empower our people to stand up for what we believe in and go fearlessly forward together. We work on real cases, achieving important and positive results in real people’s lives, which is why we are one of Australia’s most respected law firms. Maurice Blackburn, experience you can count on. The team and opportunity Maurice Blackburn has a bold ambition to redefine the way legal services are delivered in Australia, reimagining what justice means in a modern, digital and inclusive society. Our Personal Law division acts for people who have been seriously injured, wronged or let down, often against well-resourced institutions. Legal technology, data and AI can change how quickly and how fairly those clients are served: less time spent on paperwork, faster answers, and lawyers who can focus on the work only they can do. To achieve this, we have created a Head of Personal Law Technology role and we’re looking for an outstanding technology leader to build it with us. Reporting to the General Manager Innovation & Delivery, this is an opportunity to shape a technology function from the ground up. This isn’t a role for someone who wants to simply keep the lights on. Equally, it isn’t a role for someone interested only in greenfield engineering. We’re looking for a leader who can bring the best of both worlds together: modern software engineering, product thinking and experimentation, alongside disciplined ownership of the critical systems our business relies on every day. You’ll lead a multidisciplinary technology team, setting high standards across product, engineering, data and AI capability, and modern ways of working. You’ll challenge the team to think differently, prototype, ship, learn quickly and continuously improve, while maintaining strong ownership of quality, reliability, technical debt and the product lifecycle. That balance between building what’s next and running what matters today is central to the role. A big part of your impact will come through people. You’ll lead through change as we establish the function and evolve how technology works with Personal Law. You’ll be an exceptional collaborator and communicator who can build trust, explain the why, listen well and bring people with you. You’ll work across practitioners, technology teams and senior leaders, making complex decisions understandable and building confidence and momentum around where we’re heading. You’ll also inherit technology that matters today. Our environment includes business-critical legal, matter management, document and knowledge management systems, supported by internal teams and technology partners. You’ll be as comfortable talking about service reliability, incidents, vendors and lifecycle management as you are discussing product engineering, architecture and rapid experimentation. You’ll enable the responsible adoption of AI and emerging legal technology, with appropriate privacy, security and professional safeguards, and human oversight. What you’ll bring Modern engineering leadership. You have a strong software engineering background, or substantial experience delivering software with engineering teams, and know what great modern engineering looks like. Just as importantly, you know how to coach teams, build capability and turn good engineering practice into the way work gets done. Outstanding people leadership. You’re a strong communicator and collaborator who builds trust quickly, communicates purpose clearly and knows how to bring teams and stakeholders through change. Pragmatism. You’re excited by modern engineering, AI and product-led delivery, but understand transformation happens alongside the realities of operating complex, business-critical technology. Proven technology leadership. You’ve led multidisciplinary, business-facing technology teams and built strong engineering and product capability. Strong technical judgement. You can operate across architecture, delivery, operations and technology risk, while staying close enough to the work to challenge thinking and help teams solve difficult problems. A product mindset. You start with the problem, test ideas, learn from users and focus investment where it creates genuine value. Practical AI leadership. You can identify where AI assistants and agentic workflows can deliver better outcomes for clients and colleagues, test them responsibly and scale what works. If you’re a technology leader who is client focused, loves building great teams, strengthening engineering capability and bringing people with you through change, we’d love to hear from you! Our shared values represent what we stand for and guide how we act, with Courage; Compassion; Collaboration; Fairness and Tenacity. We love that you have a life outside of work and we’re happy to support yours. We provide you a safe, supportive and collaborative environment, backed by inclusive leaders and progressive people policies, where you can be your authentic self and thrive. Here we are committed to creating a diverse and inclusive culture, enriched by differences in ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity, disability, religion, age and family arrangements. Applications from First Nations People are encouraged.