The legal market as we know it and how it has transformed the demand for future lawyers

Posted in Latest News on 30 Jun 2015

As a London based recruiter I have seen many changes in practice areas, as some widen while others decrease significantly. Some say it’s a candidate driven market and others, not so much. The climate is ever susceptible to change, and this will continue as firms try to expand and aim to become ‘the best’.

The truth is, the legal market really is candidate driven, and without them even knowing, it’s changing dramatically. There are obviously pros and cons to this, however I think it’s now a great time to be qualifying as a Lawyer here in the UK.

The London legal market is a vast area and we are seeing more and more of the smaller ‘niche’ and ‘boutique’ firms sneaking out of the woodworks. A work/life balance is becoming a more of a common request, and the want for part-time hours are now on the rise as candidates are now seen to have more options than ever before.

Still the larger International and City firms are fierce competition for ‘the other firms’ but as candidates would now rather go into the areas they enjoy rather than staying with a firm out of necessity, we are seeing (particularly this year) a huge movement from NQs. Candidates from Silver and Magic Circle firms are seeking roles in smaller City and West End firms for a number of reasons, the first being that they now have more choice in the market, and secondly because their current firm can’t offer them the role they want. This isn’t to say that all NQs want this, as it’s a definite cert that many will only look at firms that have a particular ranking.

There is currently a big demand in areas which last year were completely unheard of in terms of expansion and development, for example Corporate, Commercial Contracts/Projects and Family. Due to the Jackson Reforms specifically,  firms are now seeing a rise in Family work and thus, a response in the market means more jobs. Litigation and Commercial have always been strong areas in London, and the changes in these practice areas has only been very slight, give or take no more than 5%. As other areas inflate and strengthen, we could see this sway over a period of time.

The property slump caused a lot of changes and redundancies and it nearly changed the market forever but we then found a bubble had been created which grew and grew over time and we saw (and I’m sure all felt) the property boom. For London this has been very lucrative, and still is probably one of the most popular areas we recruit for. Most if not all firms want property lawyers and some have even created separate property departments to handle the volume of work. This has created stiff competition and now anyone that can deal with property is in a very strong position. It is here that we see candidates have their pick based on the fact that the roles have continued to increase, but the amount of candidates has decreased. It is not unheard of that a property lawyer will now have more than one offer on the table. Let’s face it, it’s a position of power for the candidate and a position of vulnerability for the firm, hence the driving force for how the market is changing.

From the perspective of the ‘non-qualified’ Fee Earner and the Chartered Legal Executive, they are taking on a more established role within firms and departments to alleviate the pressure of time and increase workflow. We particularly find that these roles can come under an umbrella of labels such as Paralegal, Legal Assistant, Legal Executive, non-qualified professional and Fee Earner. Opportunities have increased which is good news for all as we see many candidates with a lot of talent who aren’t ‘Qualified’ gaining roles in some of the larger firms. Salaries for these roles are by no means equal to that of their qualified other, but are getting better with time as they are seen to have equal, sometimes more experience than their counterpart.

The legal market is currently very strong but must always be pliable so that areas can rise and fall and organic growth can take place. The survival of the fittest will always be a cliché in the legal world but so true. This applies to both firms and candidates alike but ultimately it is the constant demand for legal services that we fall back on.

Emily Oakes - Recruitment Consultant covering qualified and non-qualified opportunities in the London market.

To see our current opportunities click here.

T: 0203 755 3441

E: emily@douglas-scott.co.uk

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