The latest Quarterly Report produced by Hays has revealed that within private practice, in-house and government legal roles, the market is still crying out for more mid to senior level construction and property lawyers.

“Given current construction and infrastructure projects and the continuous acceleration of certain property markets, in Sydney especially, demand will remain high across the in-house, private practice and government sectors,” the report said.

“In particular, demand for mid to senior level candidates who have come from highly reputable private practice backgrounds and those who have benefited from additional in-house experience, such as secondments or permanent roles.”

Similarly, the report noted that property paralegals are still needed “but as always remain in high demand and short supply”.

Among private practice, the report revealed that the biggest hotspots for legal roles are conveyancers and conveyancing paralegals.

“[These] remain in high demand in private practice thanks to high volumes of work and tight deadlines, which result in candidates moving regularly between roles,” the report said.

“There are also a high number of law students working in the field, but upon graduation they usually take a graduate role in another area.”

VIEW ALL

Banking and finance lawyers are also in demand in the areas of property finance, project and asset finance, according to the report.

“High-profile investigations in the finance sector have also increased demand for paralegals and lawyers with regulatory and compliance experience,” the report said.

“Planning and environment lawyers are still in high demand in many areas, especially in South-East Queensland, because candidates in the state typically head to North Queensland,” the report added.

“Family lawyers are still needed too, but are in scarce supply. Wills and estates is another area of ongoing demand as people put their estate plans in place.”

In the in-house legal sector, the report noted that mid to senior general commercial lawyers “with strong contracts experience are still sought across a range of industries”.

“Strong commercial lawyers with experience in negotiating, reviewing and amending construction contracts are also needed to assist with developer contracts, supplier agreements and the legalities surrounding construction projects,” the report said.

Mid to senior level TMT (technology, media and telecommunication) lawyers also remain in demand, the report found.

“Given the increasing number of technology start-ups and the growth of more established technology companies, demand has increased for lawyers and commercial contracts managers in the IT, telecommunications and finance technology space,” the report said.

“The need is highest for mid to senior level lawyers with strong private practice experience in IP and TMT, in addition to commercial in-house experience.”

Similarly to private practice, the banking and finance industry continues to need specialist banking and finance lawyers for in-house teams, according to the report.

“The areas in demand include asset management, derivatives and securities law,” the report said.