Quote:
Originally Posted by Unregistered
For those interested in branching out of the legal industry to completely unrelated areas, is there any advantage to practising law for say, between 1 to 3 years, before moving out?
Quite apart from the fact that one who decides not to remain in the legal industry after one's PTC ends cannot be truly said to have practised law, arguably there a former practising lawyer would bring along certain perspectives/insights/qualities that would appeal to organisations, even if his/her substantive knowledge might not be applicable?
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The answer above about "life experience" and "it depends" is a bad one. It really doesn't work that way.
When thinking about career moves, you should always think about it from the hirer's perspective. What value proposition do you bring to my org as a lawyer with 1-3 years of experience? I will give you an example. Say you are a M&A lawyer. A really good one. After 3 years, you decide you want to switch out and become a BD manager. You apply to my org. Do your 3 years of M&A experience mean anything? Straightforward answer: No. Even if I were to be planning an upcoming merger, something right up your alley, (1) it's not your job to handle the merger, and (2) if I really needed legal advice, I would consult my law firm. Not my BD manager.
Of course the situation is different if you are inhouse counsel, but we're discussing the case where one applies to a non-law related role.
Then the common response at this point is: "What about the soft skills that you have as a lawyer communication writing analytical skills bla bla bla". My answer is: Sure. You have that. But you're also expensive. If you're coming in as a 3PQE, will you accept a pay that's equivalent to a fresh grad? Probably not. But that's your value to me right now because you have no experience in the field. And fresh grads can also have those small skills. Even if you are willing to accept that, wouldn't I rather hire a fresh business graduate who already has some notion of business concepts from a degree that is somewhat related to the field?
In short, the longer you stay in law, the harder it is to get hired in a non-law field. Simple as that. If you wanna get out, get out earlier. This is anecdotal as well, have many friends who experienced the same. The most common way of pivoting out is apply to a good school, do a MBA. Then you can restart your career.