Hi all,
I have a conundrum, and it would be great to hear your thoughts on this. I recently started working for a legal tech company specializing in derivatives and contract automation. As a company, we normally work in investment banks and there is an opportunity for lots of exposure to their in-house legal teams. I have been there for nearly half a year and the job is going well. The role isn't a traditional paralegal role and I'm doing a lot more data entry than actual law work and am sadly not using that much in terms of legal skills. The place I work for also offers training contracts which seemed like a sweet deal at the time. and drew me in. However, I have some concerns about how it may affect later career prospects.
My concerns are as follows:
1- Will my qualifying at a boutique/ consultancy as a derivatives lawyer affect my career prospects later on? I'm aware that some leading firms ask for private practice training, which I won't have. I do wish to do some private practice work at some point during my career once I qualify and don't want to be inadvertently hamstrung due to my training at a consultancy at this point. I know that several former employees got pinched by the in-house legal teams of the banks they were seconded to, so this also could be an option later on.
2 - My job currently has hit a peak in terms of legal skills and professional development at this moment in time. I'm in effect doing a document review job with some extra work I've been set internally. There are no perks, low annual leave and the salary is low. The main draw is the training contract, to be honest, but there's been a hiring spree and only one person gets trained at a time so I'm not sure how likely it is that I would get it as there are at least 8/9 of us who are eligible at this point. Would it be worth me moving into a law firm, taking a paralegal role, and then trying to qualify internally into a private practice firm, or should I stick it out, get trained, and then see where that leaves me in 4 years' time?
I will admit, I'm in a strong position and know my CV is looking good, judging by the caliber of my colleagues and the other potential offers recruiters have thrown at me. I'm just wondering if this is the right move. If anyone has any thoughts, that would be great to hear.
I have a conundrum, and it would be great to hear your thoughts on this. I recently started working for a legal tech company specializing in derivatives and contract automation. As a company, we normally work in investment banks and there is an opportunity for lots of exposure to their in-house legal teams. I have been there for nearly half a year and the job is going well. The role isn't a traditional paralegal role and I'm doing a lot more data entry than actual law work and am sadly not using that much in terms of legal skills. The place I work for also offers training contracts which seemed like a sweet deal at the time. and drew me in. However, I have some concerns about how it may affect later career prospects.
My concerns are as follows:
1- Will my qualifying at a boutique/ consultancy as a derivatives lawyer affect my career prospects later on? I'm aware that some leading firms ask for private practice training, which I won't have. I do wish to do some private practice work at some point during my career once I qualify and don't want to be inadvertently hamstrung due to my training at a consultancy at this point. I know that several former employees got pinched by the in-house legal teams of the banks they were seconded to, so this also could be an option later on.
2 - My job currently has hit a peak in terms of legal skills and professional development at this moment in time. I'm in effect doing a document review job with some extra work I've been set internally. There are no perks, low annual leave and the salary is low. The main draw is the training contract, to be honest, but there's been a hiring spree and only one person gets trained at a time so I'm not sure how likely it is that I would get it as there are at least 8/9 of us who are eligible at this point. Would it be worth me moving into a law firm, taking a paralegal role, and then trying to qualify internally into a private practice firm, or should I stick it out, get trained, and then see where that leaves me in 4 years' time?
I will admit, I'm in a strong position and know my CV is looking good, judging by the caliber of my colleagues and the other potential offers recruiters have thrown at me. I'm just wondering if this is the right move. If anyone has any thoughts, that would be great to hear.
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