Did you Qualify as a Solicitor During the Pandemic?
It’s now more than two years since we first started hearing about this mystery virus, quickly named Covid19, and words like furlough, lockdown, social distancing, lateral flow and PCR tests have become overused in our vocabulary for the 2020s.
According to statistics produced by The Law Society, around 1400 new solicitors will have qualified in those two years. I’m sure many of you experienced periods of uncertainty and stress wondering when, and even if, you would ever qualify as a Solicitor and what your career in law would like once we came out from under the cloud that is Covid.
Now you are a qualified Solicitor with one or two years’ PQE under your belt, you may well be reaching a crossroads in your career; staying with your current firm, or considering what opportunities could be out there for you and how qualifying during the last two years may have impacted on your chance to secure a new role.
Here are a few things to think about:
Loyalty
The firm you trained with looked after you throughout the difficult times of furlough and lockdown, supporting you through your training to ensure you qualified on time, or only slightly delayed. It’s the least you can do to stay on with them after they stuck by you.
Don’t be under the illusion you are letting anyone down. Law firms are commercial organisations and people come and go for a variety of reasons. They may be sorry to lose you, or at least don’t want to have to incur the expense of replacing you. However they will be able to find a replacement and, more importantly, you need to put yourself and your career first.
Unsure of how you compare to similarly qualified Solicitors in other firms
If you have been at the same firm from the start of your training contract, or even longer, it can be hard to know how your skills compare out in the market. You may still be doing some of the same tasks that you were doing as a trainee and feeling like the office junior; conversely you might be given some really complex work and feeling like you’re drowning – is this usual and the norm in other firms?
Talk to your friends that you studied with, people you have met in the YSG or JLD and ask them about their workloads, promotion paths etc. It can be awkward to speak to your peers about money and more personal issues though, so by contacting a recruitment consultant you can be assured of an objective opinion of your standing in the current market, your chances of finding a new role, what that role could look like and the kind of salary and package you could expect.
Pay rise / Promotion promised
You have been told that a move up to Associate / Senior Associate, or pay rise, is imminent.
Most firms complete their salary reviews and promotions at the same time every year. If you are passed over this year and told it will happen next year, there is no guarantee you won’t be in the same position in 12 months’ time. I’d suggest you consider that this might be a good time to explore the job market.
Changing your area of law
You accepted a position as an NQ in an area of law that wasn’t your first choice as at the time you were concerned about job security and whether other opportunities would arise in your preferred specialism.
It’s difficult but not impossible to change your legal specialism – it can depend on a number of factors including how long it is since you handled work in this area, whether what you are specialising in now is related to what you want to do and your transferable skills. Also, if there is a real shortage in the area you want to move into it there may be more firms open to giving you the opportunity.
The best thing to do would be to contact a recruitment consultant – we can give you an honest appraisal of what is available and which firms could be worth applying to, or how to go about getting yourself in the best position to make the move.
Your life / priorities have changed
Family, your relationship status or simply re-evaluating what’s important to you can result in a need for the option for days working from home, reduced or flexible hours, or having the ability to take volunteer days in order to give something back.
Whilst most law firms enabled their employees to work from home during the lockdown restrictions, most are now encouraging everyone back to the office, at least for part of the week. If the working patterns don’t work for the “new you” it could be worth exploring what else is out there – you may find a firm that enables you to condense your hours over 4 days which gives you a day to indulge in your new-found hobby, or make arrangements so you can be on hand to pick up the kids from school or nursery. To find out if what your current employer is asking of you is competitive, or there are improvements to be made by moving firms, speak to a recruiter about what options are out there in the market.
In summary, you have a lot to think about and can probably come up with a lot more questions than outlined above! But, rest assured, the answers are out there and whatever you are looking for, the solution is probably out there somewhere. If you are considering your current status as a Solicitor, or just wondering what the market can offer someone like you at your stage of your career, you are well advised to contact a specialist legal recruiter here at eNL Legal. We have experienced consultants with extensive knowledge of their respective regional markets who would be happy to pass on that knowledge and any inside information that might help you in the next step of your career.
Solicitor vacancies & how can eNL Legal Recruitment can help you?
Since 1999, eNL Legal recruitment has provided insight, guidance and support to clients and candidates to support the legal recruitment process. We are a leading, legal recruitment business able to assist you on your journey to finding a new legal position, offering a personalised, tailored, and confidential service.
Our friendly, experienced team all have a strong knowledge-based approach to matching the right candidates with the right clients and roles. Our strategic and commercial focus can be depended upon to deliver straight-forward and practical advice which will achieve positive end results.
To see a full list of our current vacancies please click here.
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