Legal Recruitment

A law student in the UK typically has to study for up to 3 years to get his or her law degree and one year for completing the LPC. It is a quite expensive and time consuming process. After going through this expensive academic process, the prospective solicitors start their hunt for the training contract. For this they rely on various recruitment agencies and legal vacancies published in newspapers and magazines. But at present scenario a 2:1 at degree makes solicitors eligible for training contracts. Law graduates, who do not fulfill this condition, may find it difficult to get a training contract.

Training contracts are now mostly awarded to prospective solicitors two years in advance. Moreover, legal firms have more options and they can now pick the best. In this scenario, it has become mandatory for solicitors to get work as paralegal. It means that it will take a solicitor another 2 to 4 years after graduating to actually start a training contract. A paralegal job outside London can get anything between £15-20000 per annum. But it will take you a number of years to get £20-30000 per annum and that too depends on the area of law he or she is practising.

So what does a prospective law student should analyze in this situation? One can say for certain that to study and make a striking career in law is not for those, who are faint hearted. You have to expend a lot of money in law colleges and put in tremendous effort to complete with fellow graduates. It is better to look for other areas in law, which pay better and have plenty of vacancies. Corporate and commercial law and commercial litigation are such areas. A recruitment agency can better tell which area you should choose after going through your credentials.

The period of economic slowdown has proved to be very difficult especially for legal sector, where professionals lose out on salary and other fringe benefits. The entry level law graduates have to bear the extra burden of sustaining in a shifting job market besides launching a successful legal career. But now things seem to be settled for good and it’s time to take on the task of making a striking career in law.

In-House Job Vacancies

With the banking and financial sector recovering from the credit crunch, in-house legal professionals are once again in high demand. The opportunities are expanding with everyone from blue chip financial companies to large corporations on a recruiting drive. They are seeking law graduates for litigation, corporate law, employment law, contract law and international law.
Law graduates will find an in-house legal job advantageous. The advantages include the work-life balance, high salary that a large company provides, tremendous growth and other fringe benefits. Each corporation has different options and the nature of responsibilities you’ll be assigned may also differ.

By carefully evaluating the benefits of an in-house career, qualified lawyers can decide whether an in-house career path is suitable for them or not.

Private Practice

Many of the qualified lawyers choose to go for private practice. Depending on their work experience, they start their private practice in a court of law as associates and work alongside more experienced legal professionals. In private practice, the work culture is very different from that of a company. The working hours are long and irregular and the work covers a wide range of aspects. The road to success in private practice is very stressful but the remuneration is fabulous. Most of the lawyers in private practice set their own law firms in the long run or end up with a partnership in existing law firms.