How much opportunity awaits Freelance Lawyers?

In years past, the number of law firms using freelance and locum lawyers has been a taboo subject. 

However, with more lawyers choosing where and when they work, this is becoming an area of greater interest. A recent survey from LexisNexis found out just how much work law firms need, so-called freelance and locum lawyers, to complete their workloads.  

In their survey of over 500 UK law firm leaders and associates, LexisNexis found that nearly a third (34%) relied on short-term contract lawyers or freelance lawyers to carry out some of their client work. More than half, however, said they weren’t. (57%, with the remaining 9% saying they weren’t sure.) The survey pulled out an interesting stat: medium-sized firms were the most likely to rely on these temporary postings. In this sector, the figure was 46%, well above small and large firms, which were slightly lower than the average. Looking more at the firms that rely on freelancers, the vast majority were using them to supplement their workload. 64% used them for 20% or less of their client work, with 19% saying they relied on them for up to 50% of their total workload. 15% relied on freelance and locum lawyers for over half of the time, with a surprising 7% of those saying in the survey that they used temporary and contract lawyers for between 90%-100% of their firm’s work. The report expressed concerns about the over-reliance on these temporary postings, especially in view of a firm’s ability to grow organically without building a permanent core team that can work collaboratively.  

However, there are many great reasons why getting freelance lawyers can benefit firms. The report highlights that the main reason for doing so is getting specialist knowledge on a case-by-case basis. Rather than employing a specialist in a specific field and then having to continually find work for that person to do to justify their continued employment, they can bring people in with the skills they need for a particular case on a short-term basis and then not necessarily needing to continue employing them and not being able to utilise their talents. These lawyers can be found through fee-sharing firms or legal resourcing providers. But are more lawyers turning towards flexible and freelance work now? The survey recorded some comments along these lines, with many people feeling this might be a better option for them. It offers a great balance and, for some, more significant financial incentives than remaining with a firm full-time. Even going to a fee-sharing arrangement, where lawyers are self-employed but able to work with the resources and backing of a whole firm, is becoming a more popular arrangement than ever before.  

So, the need for freelance, temporary, locum and contract lawyers does seem to be growing from where it was even five or six years ago. Firms now feel able to talk about using freelancers to help grow their businesses and keep up with their workloads. While there might still be concerns about over-reliance on temporary workers, it’s becoming more of a viable option for firms and lawyers themselves. We here at Douglas Scott have a dedicated locum team who would be delighted to help you. You can email them at locum@douglas-scott.co.uk.