denotes premium content | Feb 5 2012 Feature
posted 29 Dec 2009 in Volume 2 Issue 2
Cover feature: Picking a path
Jane Wintringham on the alternative career paths available to women in the legal profession.
With the economic downturn, the lure, and heartache, of private practice and partnership appears to have lost much of their appeal. The March 2009 Employee Satisfaction Report, conducted by Legal Week, revealed that just 35 per cent of female solicitors now see partnership as their primary career aim (compared with 58 per cent of male solicitors). In light of this, the ability to effectively manage your talent and career has taken on much greater significance. Those working within the legal sphere must have a clear idea of where they want to be in the next 12 months and beyond. And yet managing their own career is something that many busy lawyers fail to do effectively.
There are a number of alternative career opportunities available to those in the profession today, but many are unaware what these options are and how they may utilise them. Here, a chief crown prosecutor, senior academic, legal recruiter, sole practitioner, general counsel/company secretary and senior partner offer insight into how they began on their respective career paths as well as the highs and lows of their roles.
Chief crown prosecutor – Barbara Petchey, Crown Prosecution Service
How did you start out as a chief crown prosecutor?
Most of my training to become a solicitor was focused on corporate law. I was very clear when I started out that is what I wanted to do. I joined the County prosecuting solicitors department after I had completed a Masters degree in commercial law because I needed a job and I thought it would tide me over until something else came along. So the truth is, I fell into criminal law, but then found out I really enjoyed it, especially the advocacy element.
In 1986, the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) was formed and I transferred into the Service as a Crown Prosecutor. In 1988, I left to become a salaried partner in private practice specialising in criminal and family law, spending most of my time defending people in court and advising suspects at police stations. A few years later, I went back to the CPS to work again as a prosecutor. In 1995, I was promoted to Prosecution Team Leader responsible for managing a team of lawyers and paralegal staff. From there I moved to managing a large unit, followed by taking over responsibility for prosecutions throughout half of
What do you enjoy most about the role and what are your biggest challenges?
The most satisfying part of my job is achieving a good outcome in a case and securing justice for the public, especially the victims and witnesses in the case. I enjoy working with lots of different people, not just in the CPS, but in all the other criminal justice agencies such as the police and the courts, people who are really committed to getting the right result.
As a working mother, one of my biggest obstacles has been in striking a balance between work life and home life. Giving the right amount of time and priority to both is a daily juggling act.
The key for me has been to establish an effective network of support. One thing I have learnt is that I am not superwoman and as a working parent you need help. It is a challenge, but with the right help it can be done.
Another challenge is working with bereaved families. When someone has suffered such a significant loss as a result of crime, they have a lot of questions and need answers. They need to understand how the legal process works, what to expect, and how decisions are made. Although it’s difficult, it is essential that we provide them with this information to ensure they have answers to all of their questions.
What do you wish you had known about your career at the very beginning?
If I had known how exciting, interesting and varied the role of a prosecutor is and the many opportunities available I would have got into criminal law much sooner. Having said all that, the experience I gained in other areas, such as in family law, has been valuable to me as a prosecutor giving me a better understanding of the difficult issues that people have to deal with in their lives.
What advice would you give to someone considering becoming a prosecuting lawyer?
The best bit of advice I could give to anyone, whether they are starting out or well on their way to their goal, is to always be open to what you can learn from others. The experiences and knowledge of people in other roles should be respected and acknowledged.
I’ve always tried to retain this way of thinking throughout my career and believe this is the key to success. Everyday I am learning something new, which could be anything from how different crimes affect different people to how to manage a particular situation. I listen and I learn. I have made mistakes along the way, but the important thing is that I ensure I always learn from them.
Senior academic – Ann Evans,
I qualified as a solicitor in 1989 and worked in private practice, doing a mixture of intellectual property and commercial litigation. After a number of years in private practice, I moved to the
What do you enjoy most about your role?
I love teaching. It allows me to discuss and analyse key legal concepts and principles. That is what attracted me to law in the first place, but you tend to move away from that when you are actually practising law. It’s probably a cliché – but it is very rewarding interacting with students and being able to help them to understand some quite difficult concepts and to prepare them for the profession.
Ironically, I am now in a management position (as senior academic I am, in effect, the head of the
What do you wish you’d known about your career at the very beginning?
I can’t think of anything negative that I wish I’d known. In fact, I hadn’t realised when I started how varied and interesting my career would turn out to be, or how (relatively) easy it is to move between different specialisms or aspects of law.
What advice would you give to someone thinking about becoming a law lecturer?
Getting some relevant experience is vital. Give presentations to clients, or participate in training sessions for trainee solicitors/pupil barristers, for example. When we are recruiting new lecturers, we look for potential teaching talent as much as technical legal ability.
Legal recruiter – Rachael Mann, Director SaccoMann
How did you start out in lawyer recruitment?
I completed my A-levels and took a year out to travel the world before returning to undertake a law degree. I truly thought that I would want to be a lawyer, but, perhaps as a result of having broadened my horizons, pre-degree I decided to test my conviction by gaining a solid grounding of work experience while studying. I spent summers working in the full range of law firms – a high street criminal firm, mid-tier
What do you enjoy most about your role and what are your biggest challenges?
I love dealing with people, I enjoy the variety of people I meet (candidates, clients and colleagues), the issues that you come across and the ability to make a difference to people’s situations. One of the things that is most rewarding is creating bespoke opportunities for both lawyers and firms – opening up opportunities that simply didn’t exist previously.
In terms of challenges – time management is probably my greatest. There is always more that you can do for clients and candidates.
What do you wish you’d known about your career at the very beginning?
That it would get far more enjoyable and rewarding. I hated my first six months!
What advice would you give to someone thinking about becoming a recruiter?
Recruitment can be incredibly rewarding but it is relentless, you really need to care about what you are doing. As a career, it is least forgiving at the outset so don’t expect to love it on day one. Do expect it to be a rollercoaster of emotions. However, I have always found that you get out of it what you put in. Be genuine, honest, work hard, never say you are going to do something that you can’t or won’t and, above all, never put your interests before those of your candidates or clients.
Sole practitioner – Sara Ludlam, Ludlams – the intellectual property law specialists
How did you start out as a sole practitioner?
I set up my own firm two and a half years ago after being made redundant from a 28-partner commercial practice. I had considered setting up as a sole practitioner seven years previously and had not had the guts, so it was good to be pushed, as it has been a great success. My area of expertise – intellectual property (IP) – seems to be a good fit for a sole practice. In fact, I know of at least four other solicitors who have recently set up as sole practitioners specialising in IP law.
I have 13 years post-qualification experience now and am fortunate to have worked in a number of different law firms of different sizes and also as in-house counsel. I am able, therefore, to pick up all the roles in my new position without too much difficulty – from post boy to marketing manager.
What do you enjoy most about your role and what are your biggest challenges?
I love making all the decisions. But working alone can be hard as I am naturally a gregarious person and enjoy being part of a team.
What advice would you give to someone thinking about becoming a sole practitioner?
It is not as hard as it looks, but be prepared to be Lexcel compliant!
General counsel and company secretary – Ros Marshall Smith
How did you start out as a company secretary?
Having been a partner in private practice, I had a career break when my second child was born. I then joined a company as assistant company secretary (to give it a try) and was made sompany secretary three years later.
What do you enjoy most about your role?
I love being at the centre of things and being involved in board decisions. The biggest challenges I face are making sure the key legal points get picked up and being involved in a whole range of matters of varying complexity. The most difficult job is setting the board dates in April each year for the year ahead as this involves juggling diaries for nine busy people.
What do you wish you’d known about your career at the very beginning?
I wish I had known it would be useful, in terms of networking opportunities, to play golf (I still don’t play) and that doing the job well only gets you so far.
What advice would you give to someone thinking about becoming a company secretary?
Even if you are a qualified solicitor, it is worth getting
Senior partner – Joy Kingsley, Pannone LLP
How did you start out as a senior partner?
I was managing partner at Pannone LLP from 1993 to January 2008 and then became senior partner. I had heard this role justified a lot of time golfing while calling into the office. This didn’t happen, and I seem to be as busy now as I was as managing partner. I haven’t worked in any other law firm having joined Pannone as a trainee in 1978 and I became a partner in 1983.
What do you enjoy most about your role and what are your biggest challenges?
The challenges I face at the moment are those that everyone else is facing – making business work in a very challenging economy.
I truly love all of the roles I currently occupy – running two departments, business development in and outside the firm, being a non-executive director at search engine optimisation business, Icom, assisting as a consultant for businesses developing with the Legal Service Act 2007 in mind and being senior partner and member of the board at Pannone.
What do you wish you’d known about your career at the very beginning?
I wish I had known that it could become all consuming and compromise other areas of my life. If I had known that then, though, I am not certain what would I have done about it.
What advice would you give to someone thinking about becoming a senior partner?
It is difficult to generalise as the term can mean different things at different times. However if you are a senior partner who supports a managing partner, and indeed have been a managing partner, you cannot confuse the roles. You are there to give the benefit of your experience and then leave the current managing partner to decide what direction he wishes to take.
In summary
You can manage your career by setting clear goals and targets or choose to go with the flow instead. A career plan provides focus and encourages momentum however it can also mean that you fail to take advantage of interesting opportunities when they arise.
A change in direction or taking a career break need not be fatal. Be flexible – have the courage to try something different.
Work can become all-consuming and compromise other areas of one’s life. Remember to pace yourself. Recognise the effect stress can have, not only on your health, but also on your confidence and performance and beware burn out.
Effective time management is vital. Invest your energy in finding a time management system that really fits both your work style and temperament and follow it.
Realise the importance of building and maintaining your credibility, visibility, integrity and contacts throughout your career. Keep abreast of developments and trends in the wider world. Become a recognised expert in your field – write articles, deliver presentations, and put yourself forward for awards.
Be open to new ideas and be willing to learn new things. Know what your natural strengths are and play to them. The softer skills (traditionally viewed with suspicion in the legal world) are gaining in emphasis and value as clients demand and expect more from their professionals.
Invest the time and energy in nurturing your networks – at work and at home. Seek out a mentor and other trailblazers. Accelerate your performance by learning from their mistakes and experiences – as well as gaining their patronage and influence.
Remember to always have a ‘plan B’. However happy you are and smooth your career progression, it pays to keep your options open by having an alternative option. Lack of movement in recruitment means that when the economy revives you need to be alert and prepared to take advantage of new opportunities as they present themselves. Constructing a portfolio career in different sectors is one way of widening your experience and options.
Record your transferable skills, major achievements and areas for improvement. Be proactive and innovative in managing your professional and personal development.
