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Interview with Amanda Hamilton

30 Aug, 2018

Last week Jo Kangurs of Symphony Legal Interviewed Amanda Hamilton , CEO, National Association of Licensed Paralegals around the issue of why qualifying as a Paralegal is becoming the only career option for those wanting to enter the legal services profession. Q1: Can you give a brief background of the National Association of Licensed Paralegals and its key objectives/aims? The aim is to create the role...

The Other Jobs (Besides a Solicitor) in the Legal World

03 Jul, 2018

Chances are that you’ve probably heard in the past about people who get law degrees, only to end up finding success outside of the legal realm . As inspiring as some of these stories can be, it’s not always practical to make such a leap. The good news here is that even if you don’t want to be a solicitor, there are several different ways to make your mark in a legal profession. Here are some standout options. Become A...

Work-Life Balance in the Legal Profession

06 Jun, 2018

A lot of the time, a successful career means making sacrifices, and those in the legal profession probably know this better than most. Long hours are generally an expected part of the job, especially the higher up the ladder you go. As Maureen Brady , division manager for the Legal Solutions-Permanent Placement Division of legal placement firm Hudson, puts it, “Most lawyers really can’t complain about being paid £100K to...

Prepping Early for a Legal Career

01 Jun, 2018

The legal world has been growing by leaps and bounds in recent years , especially in the U.K. This means that the profession is getting a growing amount of attention for people looking for work, ranging from students taking the conventional route to become solicitors to other switching gears in their careers. In addition, we can’t neglect the fact that there are a range of different legal jobs other than solicitors that a person...

How Do You Progress To A Managing Partner?

21 May, 2018

When it comes to any career, your ultimate goal, in many cases, is to try and work your way up to the highest position possible. In U.K. law, the end-game here is becoming a managing partner. However, as it is for many of these types of positions, there’s a finite amount of managing partner roles , not enough for every single person who works in the legal field. In order to improve your chances of reaching that point, you not only need...

Protecting Your Professional Indemnity Insurance: Questions a law firm should ask during the recruitment process

09 May, 2018

by Jenny Screech, Legal Professions Executive, Howden UK Group Ltd 020 7398 4894 | jenny.screech@howdengroup.com Due diligence is important when a law firm is recruiting a new fee earner – whether that is at trainee, paralegal, solicitor or even partner level. Some firms are highly organised and have a pre-hire question set. Other firms are more reticent and feel awkward about asking questions relating to issues such as...

Tips for Your Next Law Firm Trainee Job Application

09 May, 2018

The time is here—law firms across the U.K. are beginning to recruit for trainees, and if you are among that hopeful group, you need to realise that you are in a very competitive field. Figures from a few years ago showed that on average, there are 65 people competing for every single training contract in England and Wales, meaning that you need to excel in both the interview process and what gets you there in the first place...

CILEx - Another Route to Becoming a Lawyer

27 Apr, 2018

The legal sector is a potential goldmine of a profession for those who are skilled and able to work hard. To put this in perspective, the UK legal sector grew 8% from the previous year in 2016, worth around £26bn. Statistics from Oxford Economics and Cambridge Econometrics showed that 370,000 people are employed in the profession, two-thirds of those in solicitors’ firms. Many people who want to pursue this path think that...

Is The Legal Sector Open To Job Shares?

20 Apr, 2018

For most employers, the idea of paying two people for one job may seem a bit absurd at first. However, if you stop and take a closer look, this is becoming more and more common. In 2017, one report showed that more than 770,000 high earners were now working part-time, not due to bad luck, but by choice. Timewise co-founder Karen Mattison explains: “The dramatic increase in job shares offers us a glimpse into how jobs will...

How Diverse Is The Legal System In The UK?

20 Apr, 2018

Diversity is becoming more and more of a hot-button topic in workplaces around the U.K. and beyond. The legal sector , long having been predominately white and male, is no exception. There has been an ongoing debate about exactly what is the root issue here, from the system itself to educational opportunities to financial issues (but that’s a talk for another day). Exactly what is the demographic breakdown for solicitors and other...

An Alternative Route: The Steps to Becoming a CLC Lawyer

10 Apr, 2018

Whether sitting down with a legal and/or educational advisor or searching the web, it’s quickly realised that there are several ways to earn courtroom status. While the traditional route requires a two-stage process: academic (earning either an undergraduate qualifying law degree or the Graduate Diploma in Law (GDL)) and vocational (in-office, hands-on training), other methods exist for mature students and entrants who are interested in...

Legal Apprenticeships Open New Career Opportunities

03 Apr, 2018

Qualifying to become a solicitor can be a costly career path. For aspiring lawyers, the traditional costs of formal education and training can frequently be an obstacle to qualification. Discovering alternative routes to learning programmes opens the door to lower-cost possibilities and enriching hands-on experiences for those candidates seeking to accomplish the sometimes-difficult task of qualification. Solicitor training is a critical...

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