Lawyer Salary

Ans in Caps

I heard it's easier to get a TC in liti/dispute resolution department in bad times like these. but i'm worried i won't like liti as i'm an introvert. if i don't like liti and i apply to be an assoc in the corporate department of another firm after my training, will it be very difficult to get a job as a corporate lawyer? NOT REALLY IT DEPENDS ON THE FIRM YOU APPLY TO, WHERE YOU TRAIN AND WHAT MATTERS YOU DO. IT IS EASIER FOR CONTENTIOUS INSOLVENCY AND COMMERCIAL LITIGATORS TO HOP

is being a liti assoc considerably more stressful than being a corporate lawyer in the same firm - i'm looking to apply to mid sized firms YES. UNLESS YOU ARE IN BIG 4 CORP SG CORP DEPTS IN MID SIZED FIRMS ARE LARGELY 9 TO 6

on the other hand, let's say i like working as a disputes lawyer and do that for a few years. does that severely limit my ability to go in house, to the point where it would be almost impossible for me to get a decent in house position, if i have no connections and have average grades from a local uni? NO IT DEPENDS ON WHAT INHOUSE AND WHAT INDUSTRY. THAT BEING SAID IT IS HARDER FROM LIT TO INHOUSE

can i go from being a disputes lawyer in private practice to working in a legal role in the public sector with only a weak second upper, in a role that does not involve me being a prosecutor? just curious even though i prefer the private sector for personal reasons GRADES ARE NOT A LIMITING FACTOR IF YOU STUDIED LOCALLY. IF YOU STUDIED OVERSEAS THEY MAY BE

finally, is there a significant difference between litigation and arbitration work? i plan to take arbi mods in my final year. if i mostly do court cases during the TC that doesn't mean i can't do arbi work later on in my career, right? i think liti/arbi both should require similar skill sets? YES TO MY KNOWLEDGE BUT SOME KNOWLEDGE IS ONLY SPECIFIC TO ARBITRATION. SKILL SETS YES ROUGHLY THE SAME

Originally Posted by Unregistered

disclaimer: I'm a student so i apologise for any remarks which may seem ignorant

I heard it's easier to get a TC in liti/dispute resolution department in bad times like these. but i'm worried i won't like liti as i'm an introvert. if i don't like liti and i apply to be an assoc in the corporate department of another firm after my training, will it be very difficult to get a job as a corporate lawyer?

is being a liti assoc considerably more stressful than being a corporate lawyer in the same firm - i'm looking to apply to mid sized firms

on the other hand, let's say i like working as a disputes lawyer and do that for a few years. does that severely limit my ability to go in house, to the point where it would be almost impossible for me to get a decent in house position, if i have no connections and have average grades from a local uni?

can i go from being a disputes lawyer in private practice to working in a legal role in the public sector with only a weak second upper, in a role that does not involve me being a prosecutor? just curious even though i prefer the private sector for personal reasons

finally, is there a significant difference between litigation and arbitration work? i plan to take arbi mods in my final year. if i mostly do court cases during the TC that doesn't mean i can't do arbi work later on in my career, right? i think liti/arbi both should require similar skill sets?

Switching from Liti to Corp is fine, but you may need to find a firm with large enough practice groups that you can apply to switch around. If you're going to a small one-two man firm it's quite pigeon-holed.

Liti & Corp have different stress levels. For liti, when you are on a case, you may need to stay back late to prep documents for weeks on end. For Corp it's more of a slow burn, "high season" timings are also present, but the sheer desperation and fear of running out of time to submit documents to the Court is not present.

It's tough to go into in-house as a liti lawyer unless you are in specific practice groups (Construction/IP law), a general liti lawyer has a harder time going in-house than corp lawyers. Find those in-house roles where "covering your ass" is more impt than doing up a pretty document, those fields may require liti-trained lawyers.

If you're talking specifically "public" roles, you can always apply to do legal policy etc at the minlaw, but they generally want you to have certain experiences or unique selling points (e.g are you a family lawyer who wants to specialise in fam law reform?)

Liti and Arbi are same same but different. Arbitration is very hard to get into as a lawyer at any PQE, because arbitration is not in the Courts. Therefore, you don't need to be an SG-qualified lawyer even if the arbitration is in SG. You are competing worldwide for the bigger cases. Essentially, unless you are super high flyer, or you find a strong liti/arbi mentor, you won't do big arbitration cases anyway. My advice is don't bother taking arbitration mods, nobody cares at all. Save your energy and apply for an elective giving out easy As. If you really want to train for arbi, you can always do it during the part b course.

Originally Posted by Unregistered

Switching from Liti to Corp is fine, but you may need to find a firm with large enough practice groups that you can apply to switch around. If you're going to a small one-two man firm it's quite pigeon-holed.

Liti & Corp have different stress levels. For liti, when you are on a case, you may need to stay back late to prep documents for weeks on end. For Corp it's more of a slow burn, "high season" timings are also present, but the sheer desperation and fear of running out of time to submit documents to the Court is not present.

It's tough to go into in-house as a liti lawyer unless you are in specific practice groups (Construction/IP law), a general liti lawyer has a harder time going in-house than corp lawyers. Find those in-house roles where "covering your ass" is more impt than doing up a pretty document, those fields may require liti-trained lawyers.

If you're talking specifically "public" roles, you can always apply to do legal policy etc at the minlaw, but they generally want you to have certain experiences or unique selling points (e.g are you a family lawyer who wants to specialise in fam law reform?)

Liti and Arbi are same same but different. Arbitration is very hard to get into as a lawyer at any PQE, because arbitration is not in the Courts. Therefore, you don't need to be an SG-qualified lawyer even if the arbitration is in SG. You are competing worldwide for the bigger cases. Essentially, unless you are super high flyer, or you find a strong liti/arbi mentor, you won't do big arbitration cases anyway. My advice is don't bother taking arbitration mods, nobody cares at all. Save your energy and apply for an elective giving out easy As. If you really want to train for arbi, you can always do it during the part b course.

thank you so much for your detailed reply!

i did apply to firms which specialize in disputes/don't have much of a corporate presence so being pigeon-holed is definitely a concern.

you make good points about arbitration, i've certainly seen similar posts here about how competitive the field is. i'll look into other electives then.

Originally Posted by Unregistered

Switching from Liti to Corp is fine, but you may need to find a firm with large enough practice groups that you can apply to switch around. If you're going to a small one-two man firm it's quite pigeon-holed.

Liti & Corp have different stress levels. For liti, when you are on a case, you may need to stay back late to prep documents for weeks on end. For Corp it's more of a slow burn, "high season" timings are also present, but the sheer desperation and fear of running out of time to submit documents to the Court is not present.

It's tough to go into in-house as a liti lawyer unless you are in specific practice groups (Construction/IP law), a general liti lawyer has a harder time going in-house than corp lawyers. Find those in-house roles where "covering your ass" is more impt than doing up a pretty document, those fields may require liti-trained lawyers.

If you're talking specifically "public" roles, you can always apply to do legal policy etc at the minlaw, but they generally want you to have certain experiences or unique selling points (e.g are you a family lawyer who wants to specialise in fam law reform?)

Liti and Arbi are same same but different. Arbitration is very hard to get into as a lawyer at any PQE, because arbitration is not in the Courts. Therefore, you don't need to be an SG-qualified lawyer even if the arbitration is in SG. You are competing worldwide for the bigger cases. Essentially, unless you are super high flyer, or you find a strong liti/arbi mentor, you won't do big arbitration cases anyway. My advice is don't bother taking arbitration mods, nobody cares at all. Save your energy and apply for an elective giving out easy As. If you really want to train for arbi, you can always do it during the part b course.

thank you so much for the detailed reply!

i did apply to firms which specialize in disputes work so being pigeonholed is definitely a concern. i guess if i end up in such a firm i'll just have to apply to other firms asap if i find out liti work isn't for me.

you make very good points about arbitration, i've seen other posts about how competitive the field is. i won't focus on arbitration electives then, although i may take one out of interest.

Originally Posted by Unregistered

KCL is the best school for aspiring barristers. It is way better than NUS. Name me a UK barrister from NUS and I will personally bow down and admit my shortcomings to you.

Anyway OP who decided on KCL over NUS. You made the right choice. The quality of education is the best. Harvard is second rate for barristers in the UK.

So much derision on foreign talents in this forum but yesterday's Jamus Lim v Josephine Teo debate shows how a third tier AU grad easily made mincemeat of a supposedly superior NUS grad. s://..com/watch?v=z869mSR8exQ

Foreign talents including those from KCL should be treated with deference as they are likely to win local losers in life and court.

Originally Posted by Unregistered

So much derision on foreign talents in this forum but yesterday's Jamus Lim v Josephine Teo debate shows how a third tier AU grad easily made mincemeat of a supposedly superior NUS grad. s://..com/watch?v=z869mSR8exQ

Foreign talents including those from KCL should be treated with deference as they are likely to win local losers in life and court.

Redacted y0utube link was titled Josephine Teo and Jamus Lim debate effectiveness

Originally Posted by Unregistered

I’ve heard it usually takes about a month or even slightly longer in light of COVID (and the people on the recruiting panel being very busy). All the best and do update if you receive any news.

From previous experience, it was longer than a month without covid. lol.

Originally Posted by Unregistered

From previous experience, it was longer than a month without covid. lol.

Thanks. How long exactly did it take for you? Is there a difference in timeline for offers and rejections?

is it true that oon & bazul NQ pay is 7k?

Originally Posted by Unregistered

is it true that oon & bazul NQ pay is 7k?

hahahahahaha.