The View From London
July 30, 2010 by Damian
In my last blog post, I commented on how important it is from a recruiter’s point of view not to exaggerate the overall health of the job market. Bearing that in mind, after talking to my colleagues in London during the week about what is happening over there, this is hopefully a realistic overview of the London market as it currently stands.
However, before talking about what is happening now, I think that it is helpful to briefly rewind and consider how things stood this time last year. Basically, it was rubbish. Firms were laying dozens of people off, morale within the firms was at rock bottom, the deal flow dried up and the end of the world was nigh. The chances of an overseas lawyer securing a role in London was as likely as Osama being invited around to Barack’s house for a cup of tea and a chin wag.
Now, however, things have changed. Whether it is a change of government, a change in perception or just the summer sun shining, it looks like the woes of late 2008/2009 are gone and have been replaced with a healthy but cautious optimism.
It is certainly true to say that the law firms over there are hiring again. It just takes a casual look at sites like Totally Legal and Seek to see that. What is interesting is that, in addition to the litigation roles that you would expect to see, there are now corporate and finance roles being advertised, along with roles in more niche areas such as IT outsourcing and competition/antitrust.
What is even more interesting is the type of firms who are recruiting. It is not, as you would expect, the Magic Circle behemoths who are out scouting about, it is firms in the mid-tier such as Travers Smith, Macfarlanes and SJ Berwin who are leading the charge. There is good talent around and firms like these are making the most of it.
So, there are jobs, that is not in doubt. So where does this leave the Kiwi lawyer who wants to go over and drink warm beer and watch the 2011 Rubgy World Cup in a packed overpriced Walkabout pub in Shepherd’s Bush? Well, the obvious formula is that the more jobs there are, the better chance of a Kiwi lawyer getting one. At a basic level, that holds true. However, it should not be forgotten that this jobs recovery is still in its infancy and there A LOT of locally qualifieds around applying for these roles.
As such, if you are serious about getting something in London, you have to remove as many barriers as you possibly can. Firms don’t want to interview you via video-conference and pay you relocation costs so the best idea is to go to London and be available to interview face to face. (I realise that takes the huge leap of faith of resigning from your safe and stable NZ job but this post is about getting a job in London and if that’s what you want to do, then resigning and going to London is your best bet).
If you are around the 1-2 year level, the best advice is to stay where you are for another year or so. The most competitive place to be is at the UK newly qualified level so if you can avoid getting involved in that bun fight, then I would recommend that you stay where you are, get another 12 months + experience and make your move then.
For those candidates who have 3 years plus experience, a visa/passport and are in London to interview, it is fair to say that there should be options for you to consider. However, it is still not going to be easy. The days of having multiple interviews have long gone and even if you do manage to get multiple interviews, this does not mean that any of those will translate into a job offer. The reason is that firms are now interviewing more people than they used to. You may be up against 8-10 people in the first round of interviews. That is a lot of competition. You have to be patient and make sure that you are working with reputable recruiters who are looking after you and giving you the best advice possible.
If you want to talk to someone about this, please get in touch with us now. We have contacts with a very reputable agency in London who will be able to present you with a wide range of options in private practice over there.
Don’t Believe All That You Read (Apart From What Is In This Blog)
July 13, 2010 by Damian
There is a well worn adage that you shouldn’t believe all that you read. However, as the legal press is pretty conservative, I, like most people, generally take most of what I read on face value.
People read these industry magazines to get an informed view of current events and from a recruitment point of view, to get a steer on trends and movements within the job market. As such, when people read an article commenting on the state of the job market, the message that the article conveys will permeate into that marketplace and create among the readers a perception of what the reality is.
However, when I read this article in the Australian Lawyers Weekly, it reminded me of the dangers of doing such a thing and of the responsibility that people in our industry have to give a realistic view of what the market looks like.
www.boxbreakers.com.au/News/Now-what-.aspx
The majority of this article is in fact a very informative discussion about whether lawyers who have had their pay frozen for 12 months should expect a pay rise to reflect that. There is also some very helpful comment about the dangers of jumping out of one’s current role on the basis of a minimal pay rise.
However, one of the commentators takes the discussion into a completely different realm when he states:
‘It’s an amazing market. Absolutely amazing. For a candidate it’s the most buoyant market I have ever seen.”
I have to say that I found this comment to be ‘amazing’. To make comments like the one above, in my view, gives job seekers a completely unrealistic view of their chances and is counterproductive. Any candidate reading those comments will think that it is now easy to get a job and in the event that they don’t, they will be wondering what is wrong with them.
“It’s the most buoyant market ever and I can’t get a job – what is wrong with me?”
I understand the hypocrisy of commenting on someone else’s opinion with my own. I am also aware that this article relates to the Australian rather than NZ market. However, I work closely with an agency based in Australia and the message that they convey to me is a lot different to the one above. Yes, things are better; yes, firms are hiring; yes, if you have a strong background, you should be able to get a job but according to them, it is not an ‘amazing market’, it is not a ‘buoyant market’ and to give people the impression that it is is a dangerous message to send.
Interesting Articles – Australia and Ireland
July 5, 2010 by Damian
In this job, I read a lot of articles about the world of legal practice. The vast majority are reasonably dull but I came across a couple this morning which I found to be very interesting.
The first one relates to the Irish legal market. I found this interesting, not only because it relates to my home country, but also because it highlights the ever changing nature of legal practice and contrary to what was thought a year or so, the continuing global outlook of many firms.
http://www.thelawyer.com/1004872.article
It seems as if many firms are not going to retrench and concentrate on their home jurisdictions in the face of the GFC. Instead they will continue to look overseas for new revenue streams and opportunities to expand and grow. From talking to some of my friends in legal practice in Ireland, there is a fear that the market as it currently stands is unsustainable. It will be very interesting to see what effect these new players will have.
The second article of interest comes from the Australian edition of Rollonfriday –
http://www.rollonfriday.com/AussieWeek/AustralianNews/tabid/336/Id/739/fromTab/335/Default.aspx
This concerns the on/off/on/off/on/off talks between UK heavyweights Clifford Chance and Australian giants Mallesons. This has been going on for longer than anyone cares to remember but it looks like it could be finally heading up the aisle to the altar. However, the technical arrangements outlined in this article would lead one to believe that it is more likely to end up in a messy divorce than a happy ever after fairytale.