Many lawyers in private practice eventually reach a point where they reconsider the pursuit of partnership, finding the prospect of years as a fee earner less appealing. While the most common alternative is to seek an in-house legal position, this option may not suit everyone. Fortunately, there are various opportunities within law firms that can provide fresh perspectives, potential for growth, and a break from the conventional demands of time recording and billing.
These positions typically provide a significantly improved work-life balance and stable hours, making them appealing to many lawyers, not just those with family obligations. There are often more part-time options available, along with greater flexibility for remote work and non-traditional hours.
Knowledge lawyer/PSL
In recent years, knowledge management teams in law firms have gained increasing significance, evolving significantly since their inception in UK city firms during the 1990s. The COVID-19 pandemic intensified the need for robust knowledge resources, prompting firms to adapt their training methods for junior lawyers and optimise the use of available resources.
Traditionally, PSL (Professional Support Lawyer) and knowledge roles were seen as best suited for highly technical lawyers with specialised expertise. However, experienced lawyers with a commercial perspective have expanded the PSL role to encompass driving efficiency and cost-effectiveness across the entire practice, enhancing workflows, and maximizing fee-earning time.
Today, larger firms feature multi-tiered knowledge teams that may include a Global Head of Knowledge, regional Heads of Knowledge Management, and various junior and senior PSLs focusing on different practice areas or sectors. This structure provides genuine opportunities for career advancement in the field.
Here are a few of the responsibilities that could fall within the remit of a typical PSL or a Knowledge Management Lawyer:
Initially, only the magic circle firms had PSLs in the Asia region. However, this trend is expanding, with many US, silver circle, and smaller UK law firms recognising the advantages of having knowledge lawyers in the right time zone who possess specialised regional expertise to support local teams. As a result, there are opportunities to join a firm as a sole PSL, allowing you to design your own role and eventually create and lead your own team.
Salary- Depending on the firm, PSL’s can expect to earn between 15-20% less than fee-earners with the equivalent post-qualification experience which for many is thought to be a good compromise for the personal benefits that a change from fee-earning can bring.
Legal Project Management
Legal project management is about applying the principles of project management to the delivery of legal services within the legal sector, as well as using newer, bespoke methodologies that are being developed purely for legal projects.
The main and most important part of a legal project manager’s role is to work in collaboration with the legal team and take responsibility for the day-to-day activities of planning, estimating and cost management, tracking issues, risks and actions, coordinating meetings, document management, and ensuring resource is available when required.
While traditional project management skills around planning, reporting and action tracking are typical in legal projects, skills in document management are vital as many projects are very document heavy and linked to this, awareness of legal technology is also important as many documents are on digital platforms and sometimes with an element of AI or machine learning. Having a legal knowledge and background as to how deals progress can be incredibly valuable.
As the legal sector continues to transform, legal projects become ever-more complex and global. Rather than a focus purely on project objectives – how they are going to be achieved, how progress will be communicated and when the project needs to complete – emphasis is also placed on how lawyers are approaching these projects from a resource perspective. Who might be a good fit and what are the skillsets required?
Emotional intelligence is also a key skill as building relationships between the law firm, an in-house legal team, the business and other stakeholders is key in delivering a successful project. Navigating these personalities and quickly becoming embedded in a team can be helped with a strong grasp of the ‘softer’ skills.
Across Asia we expect to see legal project management continue to grow in popularity. The nature of legal projects is evolving and in an environment where clients are very cost focused firms need to ensure that projects are appropriately resourced. Firms are also increasingly understanding that by employing a dedicated project manager, lawyers are freed up to focus on the legal work, creating more efficiency.
Lawyers interested in taking their careers in this direction can benefit from taking courses in project management such as PRINCE 2 which will complement their legal background. Some firms will sponsor Legal Project Managers to undertake such courses once they are onboarded.
Risk and Compliance
The legal profession is a highly regulated field where solicitors, legal service providers, and clients must adhere to specific professional standards, regulations, and legislation. The primary role of the Risk & Compliance department in a law firm is to ensure compliance with these obligations and to mitigate risks for the firm.
Compliance teams in law firms typically include both qualified and non-qualified professionals. Common positions within this sector include General Counsel, Compliance Managers, Compliance Lawyers, Analysts, Officers, and Assistants. They are often Global teams with members across various jurisdictions.
Compliance encompasses a wide range of sub-sectors. Some firms prefer to hire specialists focused on areas such as Anti-Money Laundering (AML) and conflict resolution, while others, particularly those with smaller compliance teams, offer broader roles that cover multiple aspects of law firm risk and compliance.
In Asia we have seen many firms favour individuals that can cover a broader role which often covers areas such as data protection, employment law as well as SRA and Law society regulations and as such there is a preference for candidates that are legally trained. A compliance lawyer will often work closely with the partners and COO in the firm and therefore strong communication skills are vital. They are often supported by junior AML and conflict officers.
Legal Technology
The impact of technology on legal services is profound, particularly in the wake of the global pandemic, but also due to ongoing pressures to reduce costs and improve efficiency. Advancements like artificial intelligence empower modern software to scan legal documents, enhance communication, and help lawyers quickly find relevant casework.
Adoption of technology in the legal sector can help to improve efficiency while also attracting more clients. It enables more flexible legal services, increases transparency, and reduces the likelihood of documentation errors. Legal technology is also creating new jobs that did not previously exist. Whilst legal technology firms are currently busy hiring technical specialists such as software developers law firms also need internal resources to help advise on a legal tech strategy and to work closely with the key stakeholders in the firm. You will also play a key role in the application of new technologies and the managing of vendors within the firm.
Lawyers interested in moving into this area will need to have a keen interest in technology and have often undertaken additional courses to help support this interest.
Salary- a cut in salary is inevitable but from experience lawyers making this sort of move are often passionate about the area and salary is therefore not the main driver for a shift in focus.
Attorney Development and Learning
Most UK, International and US law firms have systems in place to support the professional development of lawyers. This can involve robust and comprehensive training, coaching, networking, and mentoring programs that encourage lawyers to explore their interests, hone and expand their skills, and chart their own path.
While this area was traditionally overseen by someone in the HR team, firms are now recognising the advantages of having an experienced lawyer in this role. Such an individual can often better understand and address the various challenges that lawyers face.
In particular Covid-19 created new challenges in a lawyers career development particularly in terms of building strong internal relationships and the role of attorney development has been critical to building in-person meaningful professional relationships.
Responsibilities can include the following:
If you are ready to take the next step in your career and want to discuss options outside standard fee earning positions, do get in touch. We listen, we care and we have the right connections.
Camilla is the Founder and Managing Director of Worthington Legal. She has over 18 years of legal experience, initially as a lawyer in a top city law firm in London before moving to Hong Kong in 2014. Camilla regularly presents at partner strategy meetings, advises on market trends and hiring strategies and mentors lawyers at all career stages, both professionally and with the Women in Law Mentoring Programme.
