PROMOTED BY NAIMAN CLARKET he legal industry in Australia has changed significantly in the last decade with in-house and government legal roles (generally seen to offer lower pay but equally less pressure, and better work life balance than mid to high end private practice) each growing by over 80% compared with private practice growing 30% in the same period, unsurprisingly indicating that the attitude to work of millennials entering the legal profession is no different to their counterparts in other industry sectors.
If you’re one of the 65% of lawyers practicing law in private practice what should be your “end game” and how early into your career should you start thinking strategically? More importantly what impact will decisions you make today have on your future career choices and prospects.
In our experience it’s ok not to know what your long term plans are when you’re a 1-3 year lawyer, but if you’re on the cusp of being an SA (now earlier than ever with a number of firms promoting select candidates at the 3-4 year mark) or already an SA, chances are someone who will be key in deciding your future has already asked you the “what do you want to be when you grow up” question, or they will shortly.
Unfortunately, at this stage of your career, any vagueness or uncertainty can be viewed as lack of drive, lack of confidence or both, none of which is a death knell if your long-term goal is to be a well-paid technician special counsel. Many very bright, impressive candidates opt for this route as it can mean a long-term career in the law with an impressive title, great dollars and much less responsibility and stress than being a partner. This path also suits lawyers who are more interested in the practice of law rather than the business of law.
However, if you think partnership is something you aspire to, or you are not sure you want to close the door early in your career, then you need to be prepared before having career discussions with HR or other decision makers.
Partners will often give more client access and other business development opportunities to those lawyers who they think have “partnership potential” but who are also prepared to back themselves and have the drive, single minded focus, and stamina to get ahead
Partnership absolutely has its perks, but it doesn’t come without a huge amount of hard work and sacrifice.
But what if you don’t know? What if you don’t even know if you want to practice in the area of law you’ve fallen into?
Get clear quickly on the latter, because partners need to be seen as subject matter experts with deep expertise in their field. You can’t change areas of law (outside related areas) after the 2-2.5-year level without taking a significant step backwards in pay and responsibilities.
We often say to candidates there’s about a 2-year window to sort out your practice area. Unless you want to run your own general practice, no firm with a reasonable brand looks for generalists because their market positioning and charge out rates depend on being a specialist in a niche.
If you are a lawyer starting out in private practice and approaching the end of rotations having settled into an area you can’t see yourself practicing in, speak to HR and if they can’t help, find a firm that will support your career ambitions. Ultimately, you’ll never find happiness practicing property law if your passion is IP law. Once you’re doing what you love, start speaking to senior lawyers either in your own firm or elsewhere. Find out “warts and all” what being a partner will actually be like. What kind of hours are you likely to work? What are the perks? What are the responsibilities? How much BD is involved once you have an established practise and is that work recognised in the same way as billable hours? What is it like to be a partner during a down market? What impact will starting a family have on your career? Ultimately is it for you? Once you know where the road is taking you, making the right decisions along the path becomes easier.
