2020-21 Vacation Scheme Applications Discussion

[Lily721]

So....a bit of a stupid question but guys, what are the challenges facing the legal industry as you see it?
Would be interested to hear people's thoughts on this.

 

[Lily721]

Thank you for the unnecessary advice.

It is my understanding that this forum is to help each other, including on the topic of commercial awareness.
Just because I have asked this question, does not mean I don't have my own thoughts. I was simply asking to start a discussion and confirm my own thoughts.

Good luck with your career.

 

[LS12]

So....a bit of a stupid question or probably disappointing question but guys, what are the challenges facing the legal industry?
Would be interested to hear people's thoughts on this.

I would say some of the biggest challenges are, lockdown meaning a lot of people are working from home - think how does this affect trainees? how does this affect general office culture? Will clients be trickier to get hold of?

There's also challenges from a legal tech perspective

A bit more generic might be brexit - especially with the lack of clarity around financial services?

 

[whisperingrock]

Real judgy from someone short sighted and dishonest enough to offer assessment centre materials to other people....

Edit: AND WITH YOUR REAL NAME. WOW.

 

[cmaj]

Just to remind you, I believe DLA specifically told us to keep these materials confidential. They said do not share them, use them in the exercise only and delete them straight after the event. I'd be really careful about not just sharing them but also posting this on a public forum under your real name. DLA said at my AC that they regularly monitor forums...

 

[JayC]

Once one reaches interview stage, is everyone on a level playing field? Or will grad rec sometimes have certain applicants in mind that really stood out that they just want to confirm in interview, while other interviewees would need to be really impressive in interview? This is obviously for firms that don’t do CV-blind interviewing

 

[JayB]

Real judgy from someone short sighted and dishonest enough to offer assessment centre materials to other people....

Edit: AND WITH YOUR REAL NAME. WOW.

Probably a troll

 

[whisperingrock]

Probably a troll

If it is, they really hate the real person, who posted on linkedin about getting a vac scheme with DLA and offered materials both here and on the student room with the same username.

 

[RVT11]

So....a bit of a stupid question but guys, what are the challenges facing the legal industry as you see it?
Would be interested to hear people's thoughts on this.

That's not a stupid question at all! To be honest, it took me a little while to get my head around understanding law firms as businesses and I'm still learning! One of the big ones as mentioned is tech! Law firms like any other business have to fight off competition and offering the best legal tech in the market is a great way of staying ahead of the competition. DM me if you'd like to chat through some other points, I have a few notes from presentations I attended, happy to help

 

[Holly]

If it is, they really hate the real person, who posted on linkedin about getting a vac scheme with DLA and offered materials both here and on the student room with the same username.

I think it’s a troll/ fake account for sure. The account was created 25 minutes ago. Very very sad!

 

[JayB]

I think it’s a troll/ fake account for sure. The account was created 25 minutes ago. Very very sad!

Yeah the individual probably doesn’t like the real person very sad indeed. Needs a life imo

 

[LoveLaw]

I don't mean to sound harsh, but if you are revealing confidential communications online so blatantly, perhaps considering alternative careers would not be a bad thing.

 

[Asil Ahmad]

So....a bit of a stupid question but guys, what are the challenges facing the legal industry as you see it?
Would be interested to hear people's thoughts on this.

There are two things which come to my mind D&I and are law firms doing enough with this.

Second is the SQE and discuss the challenges faced by the SQE but I might be wrong about the SQE.

 

[sabma]

So....a bit of a stupid question but guys, what are the challenges facing the legal industry as you see it?
Would be interested to hear people's thoughts on this.

I'd say: diversity, attracting top talent, the pandemic/work from home, cyber security/data protection, ESG (in terms of conducting responsible business and making sure their clients do the same), demand from clients who want more bang for their buck especially because a lot of businesses are cash strapped rn due to the pandemic, competition from the big 4 (atleast from a traditional firms pov).

Please dm if you want to ask me more qs Not a stupid q at all. I have extensive experience and it's something I had to thoroughly research.

 

[Rob93]

So....a bit of a stupid question but guys, what are the challenges facing the legal industry as you see it?
Would be interested to hear people's thoughts on this.

Not a stupid question at all.

In my view it's actually an extremely difficult question because it is horrendously broad and treats 'the legal industry' as some monolith, which it isn't - as firms like to remind us when saying that answers should be meticulously tailored to their particular business.

In very broad terms I think that looking beyond Brexit at other dynamics in global trade is something worth considering. US-China tensions create obvious probems, but also less obvious ones if you look at who gets caught in the middle (Canada & some Latam countries have found themselves weirdly squeezed by that conflict).

Cryptoassets are still gradually making their way into virtually every aspect of commerce, and that's less widely discussed than it was 3 years ago - just be careful with this one as it's 1. fast-moving an 2. very complex. You don't want to get caught with your pants down.

Traditional firms are still coming under increasing competitive pressure from the Big 4 and alternative service providers, so having to find new ways to deliver value (and drive revenue) to stay in the game.

If this is a question on an actual app, if possible I'd try to scope the question down to things that I know impact that firm. Shortlist some that seem like they have broader ramifications and see which one is best suited to being built out. Just make sure you answer the question being asked and don't stay too specific.

 

[Naomi U]

So....a bit of a stupid question but guys, what are the challenges facing the legal industry as you see it?
Would be interested to hear people's thoughts on this.

Hi @Lily721

Firstly, I just want to say that this is absolutely not a stupid question!

There are a number of really interesting topics to consider which have been spurred on by COVID-19. When approaching this question I think a good way to approach your response is to consider the challenges impacting clients as this impacts the type of work carried out by firms, and then to also consider challenges impacting the nature and organisation of firms as businesses.

So for example, a big challenge brought on by COVID-19 has been towards the hospitality sector and traditional brick n mortar type commercial models. What does this mean for firms in terms of their clients and work? Well you could talk about the fact that a lot of clients are in severe financial difficulties meaning there is a greater demand for things like insolvency and restructuring support and distressed m&a work. Arguably, this may mean that many other practice areas face a significant fall in demand.

Another example could be the challenges brought by COVID-19 through the increased reliance on technology and remote working. Therefore an interesting thing to consider and research would be the impacts this could have on the way in which firms tackle issues like data protection and confidentiality.

These are just some examples to give you an idea of the type of things to think about when researching.

Hope this helps! Feel free to ask anything else ( remember there is no such thing as a silly question here ☺️ )

 

[WannabeSolicitor24]

So....a bit of a stupid question but guys, what are the challenges facing the legal industry as you see it?
Would be interested to hear people's thoughts on this.

There have already been some good thoughts placed in here but I would say increased competition in London is a big one as well - lots of US Firms are having double digit growth per year at the moment. Also competition from the Big 4 legal services, and the rise of the 'Ince Group' amongst others, a new business model for Law Firms.

When I had my TC interview with Slaughters, they said they perceived that the biggest challenge facing them wasn't losing clients to US firms but losing out on top graduate talent which I thought was really interesting.

Anyway, just my two cents. Best of luck

 

[Jessica Booker]

I have to say, it's very interesting to me that you say this as I have always been under the impression that it is a big no-no to call a professional by their first name - I am often myself addressed as 'Mr' in an e-mail even though I'm a student! I trust you though, so if you think the first name is better I will use that

You don't know if they are Mr or Ms or Mrs or Dr or Sir or Dame...

It is an old tradition that is getting very outdated.

I would only use it if you know for sure it is the right prefix. The reason you get emails with a prefix in is because you have given a preferred prefix to the company when you gave them your data.

 

[Jacob Miller]

So....a bit of a stupid question but guys, what are the challenges facing the legal industry as you see it?
Would be interested to hear people's thoughts on this.

Not a stupid question at all! I discuss some potential challenges in my latest article, it may help you approach this issue:

Definitive Guide to Law Firm Interviews! *Monday Article Series*

In this week's (slightly delayed - sorry!) Article, we take a look at law firm interviews. Introduction Almost every law firm’s application process involves some form of interview. This style of interview is designed to find out about your motivations, experiences, skills and characteristics...

www.thecorporatelawacademy.com

 

[rose63]

So....a bit of a stupid question but guys, what are the challenges facing the legal industry as you see it?
Would be interested to hear people's thoughts on this.

I also really struggle with this type of question. It can seem so vague and quite overwhelming. I’m not great with legal tech as a topic so I tend to avoid that. Something I’ve gone for in the past is the introduction of alternative business structures which challenges traditional law firms etc - could be something to look at if you haven’t already!