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Six in Ten Lawyers Look to Move In-House

Increase in Law Department Hiring as Six in Ten Lawyers Look to Move In-House  says Laurence Simons/ACC 

  

-        61% of lawyers in practice are considering a move in-house

-        More than half of EMEA companies expanded their legal teams in Q1 2012

-        External legal spending down 13% since 2008

 

Declining external legal spending and increasing hiring of in-house lawyers has convinced a majority of practice lawyers to consider roles in-house according to research by international legal recruiter Laurence Simons and global bar association, the Association of Corporate Counsel. 

The 2012 Europe, Middle East and Africa Law Department Survey analysed hiring trends and department structures, and found that 53% of companies stated they had hired into their legal departments in the first quarter of 2012. This represents a 13% improvement on company forecasts last year, when only 40% expected headcount in their legal departments to rise. This is matched by a fall of 13% on external spending by legal departments on legal services in the last four years.         

At the same time, six in ten lawyers working in practice would consider a move in-house. 

“In a marketplace where companies are continually looking to maximise the value they get from their legal teams, spending on practice lawyers has been squeezed as in-house teams have been required to take on more responsibility. That’s why the number of paralegals per lawyer has fallen as in-house departments are hiring more qualified lawyers to take on a more complex and sizeable workload”, explained Naveen Tuli, global managing director of Laurence Simons. “The ultimate result is that an increasing number of practice lawyers are realising there are great opportunities to be had in-house” 

Laurence Simons’ research also shows the UK is the country within the EMEA region to which most in-house lawyers are currently being recruited. 30% of in house hires in the EMEA region were in the UK. Germany accounted for 24% and France for 20% of positions. 

Mission Critical Areas 

Jim Merklinger, VP & General Counsel, Association of Corporate Counsel:
"Anti-bribery and corruption, competition and IP, along with general commercial, were the issues most frequently cited by respondents as being mission critical over the last twelve months. These were also areas that teams reported having strong expertise in-house as legal departments focus on managing the key risks and opportunities for their businesses."

The survey also found that while cost-management is high on the agenda for most businesses, specialist areas like taxation (6%) and insurance (0%) remain a relatively low priority within legal departments. 

Tuli added: “Inter-jurisdictional exposure is highly prized as legal teams are frequently required to take responsibility for jurisdictions beyond the country in which they are based.”

To find a new legal role, browse the latest opportunities from Laurence Simons here

Compensation for In-House Banking Lawyers: Salaries v. Bonuses

While not as contentious and high profile as the remuneration of bankers, the topic of remuneration for in-house lawyers in the banking sector has attracted a good deal of interest and debate over the last couple of years. As the manager of an in-house banking and financial services team, I am frequently contacted by both clients and candidates seeking guidance on what direction the market has moved, who’s doing what on bonuses and so on.

The most noticeable trend in the banking market over the last two years has been a significant ‘re-basing’ of salaries. While this has been neither ubiquitous nor consistently applied, the vast majority of the major global investment banks have made some adjustments to the fixed element(s) of their compensation packages. However, due to variations as to how different banks have approached this, the effect has been to create broader salary ranges than existed previously. 

The trials and tribulations of working in-house

 When I was offered a job to work in-house for a telecommunications company almost immediately after completing my LLM, I grabbed it with both hands. That was eight months ago, and although there have been fleeting moments of doubt, I certainly don’t regret accepting the position. Looking back, it’s been an interesting – and at times, painful – journey but I’ve learnt an awful lot in the process.

Working in-house brings a number of unique challenges distinctive to private practice – for better and worse. On the plus side, it’s certainly easier to relate to the client, as your interests are much more closely aligned. Having just one client who is 100% on-board with what you’re doing also has a number of upsides. It’s a pleasure not having to try and routinely handhold the client and walk them through the details of your course of action in a matter, explaining why you’ve done X and not Y.

General Counsel

We know that there is a difference between working for an in-house team and becoming the General Counsel of a company. To find out what really matters, we’ve spoken to Helen Fletcher Rogers and have obtained a comprehensive list of issues to think about and questions to ask when considering a General Counsel role.

Helen is very familiar with this, having been European General Counsel for Eastman Kodak Company. Helen is now a Consultant with Lawyers in Business, an organisation dedicated to ensuring in-house lawyers are able to make a real contribution to their businesses. For further information, you may like to visit their website - www.lawyers-in-business.co.uk. Lawyers in Business run a series of workshops from lunchtime networking seminars to morning and afternoon classes. You can view their future events on their website or in our own legal events diary.

Why work in-house?

A job ‘in-house’ or a job ‘in industry’ involves working as a solicitor for a company or organisation which is not a law firm.

While a career path to partnership in a law firm is a familiar role, some of you may feel like trying something different. For those of you who feel you are not suited to follow the path to partnership, a position in-house may be worth exploring.

In-house jobs were once considered ‘alternative’ career paths for people who couldn’t handle the pressures of private practice – this is no longer the case. Indeed, in-house jobs are now highly sought after.