Lawyer Salary

How do you think the market for training contracts will be like in the next 5 years? I'm thinking of going to one of the mid tier uk law schools.

Originally Posted by Unregistered

How do you think the market for training contracts will be like in the next 5 years? I'm thinking of going to one of the mid tier uk law schools.

Hi there, I would strongly encourage you to consider and seek opinion from your peers who are currently studying in the mid-tier UK law schools. It is not difficult to enter the mid-tier UK schools as long as you have decent tertiary results. However, the Ministry of Law had delisted about eight law schools from the UK list. Further, the third law school in Singapore hosted by SIM will soon be launched. This means that there will be another supply of law graduates in addition to the current NUS/SMU, UK, Australia law graduates.

Originally Posted by Unregistered

Let me tell you my story. I had a tough time finding a training contract. I was reject by the Big Four, and many of the other well-known boutique firms. Thankfully, I managed to get a training contract with a medium-sized firm, and I was given very good training and opportunity by the firm.

I became very good at what I am doing (some specialized skills) that my name became relatively well-known in the field. I was headhunted by the Big Four (I rejected all of them), some big international firms based in Singapore, some Joint Law Ventures/Formal Law Alliances, and some Fortune 500 companies for an in-house role. I am now at one of the big international firms.

For those who are having difficulties finding a training contract, do not be too picky with the brand. Of course, bigger firms have bigger deals, but you will likely have a small role to play in these deals. You will be lucky if you get to meet clients as a junior in these firms, and will not be provided the opportunity to play a leading role in the deals. Some of the smaller firms can provide you very good training and provide you good opportunities, similar to what I received.

May I enquire which is the medium-sized firm that provided good training and mentorship? Some clues would be of great help

Originally Posted by Unregistered

How do you think the market for training contracts will be like in the next 5 years? I'm thinking of going to one of the mid tier uk law schools.

Firstly, I don't think anybody can say what the market will be like in 5 years' time. Just about 2 or 3 years ago, nobody was actually aware that there would be an oversupply of law graduates, even though all the signs were in the air. Nobody was keeping track or paying a close attention to the numbers, until now, least of all our regulator.

Secondly, your own prospects are going to differ greatly based on many factors such as your grades and expected class of honours, whether opportunities open up for you along the way through connections or internships, and whether you are an interesting candidate or charismatic or good looking (no kidding).

Personally, I don't think being in a mid-tier UK school will make it more difficult for you, assuming it is one of the still-recognised Scheduled Universities. Firms and the older lawyers like to pay lip service about how the local university law graduates are better, but I haven't actually seen a demonstrable, tangible advantage comes with being a graduate of NUS or SMU thus far. It is pretty even footing.

Lastly, as nobody can say how the market is like in 5 years time, don't get pigeon-holed into the whole cookie cutter path of progression which may not hold true by the time you graduate. You may even find that non-lawyer careers, such as the civil service (outside the Legal Service), are perfectly viable career options and not indicative of personal failure vis-a-vis your peers.

Originally Posted by Unregistered

How do you think the market for training contracts will be like in the next 5 years? I'm thinking of going to one of the mid tier uk law schools.

Well, maybe just to make my own prediction, if the glut of lawyers continues for a while, then the top JC students may not consider law as attractive as before, given the poorer prospects, and turn to banking or finance (where the competition is way worse), or something else completely. More importantly, their practical parents would not see a UK/Aust law degree as a worthwhile investment and thus resolve the key source of the current glut - the large number of overseas law students.

So by then, instead of it being a firm's market, as it currently is, it may swing back into being a student's market.

If so, then the current students facing the glut are extremely unlucky - given that they had to face such tough competition for no other reason apart from being born in the early 1990s, and that by the time they move over the fence to become a part of the firms, it is no longer a firm's market for students.

I have to qualify all this again though, that it is completely my own opinion, and we won't know what will happen in future. The government may change their regulations for all we know (maybe using the bar exams as a cut-off, rather than making almost everybody pass the bar exams).

I am 37 this year and i was running my own business for the past 12 years. I exited the market and ended up all my business and i am currently working in sales sector.

I am very keen in studying law and hoping to be able to work in the law sector in the future.

However, i need to start from getting a diploma and a recognized degree in law and that might take 4 years and i will be 41-42 by then. Is it too late to start?

Originally Posted by Unregistered

I am 37 this year and i was running my own business for the past 12 years. I exited the market and ended up all my business and i am currently working in sales sector.

I am very keen in studying law and hoping to be able to work in the law sector in the future.

However, i need to start from getting a diploma and a recognized degree in law and that might take 4 years and i will be 41-42 by then. Is it too late to start?

It is never too late to learn. But if you are considering to study law solely on economic benefit, well it may not worthwhile to invest into getting a law degree. At the age of 41-42, you will have at hard time of convincing employer to hire you instead of the young fresh grad in their twenties.

Originally Posted by Unregistered

May I enquire which is the medium-sized firm that provided good training and mentorship? Some clues would be of great help

Surprisingly, a local one

Originally Posted by Unregistered

It is never too late to learn. But if you are considering to study law solely on economic benefit, well it may not worthwhile to invest into getting a law degree. At the age of 41-42, you will have at hard time of convincing employer to hire you instead of the young fresh grad in their twenties.

Hello,

Perhaps I can provide another perspective. Im currently reading law at SMU. There are JDs (i.e. grad students) around that are easily in their 40s and took law as a second qualification out of interest/gain. From what I see, these JDs have not faced problems getting training contracts. on the contrary quite a few have snagged places at large/international firms.

That said though, the JD batch seems to be a mixed bag. There are those who also cannot get TCs at the places they'd liked, but I believe this is more down to their personal abilities than anything else. I'd say if you're confident in your language and analytic skills, and feeling up to spending upwards of 60-80h a week doing readings (JDs have an accelerated course), then go for it!

I'm just a student, so take my opinions with a pinch (or a pitcher) of salt!

current law students beware: the hr dept of a certain big4 firm is plain awful and horribly incompetent. messed up my tc interview and now i hear they're messing up the entry dates for their incoming RLT batch. good luck getting all your trainees in on time.