Reading Time: 2 minutes10,000 Hours Theory – can it work? At the moment there is a journalist who is trying out the above theory – is it possible to put in 10,000 hours and turn into an expert? – article is on the BBC website – here: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-26384712. The journalist has given up the day job and taken…
Reading Time: 6 minutesShould I stay or should I go? Crime Job Market Report I hope this article assists crime solicitors and does not depress anyone too much. It is a reflection of the harsh reality of crime regardless of the latest government interference in funding. Each time we get close to new contract deadlines or the next…
Reading Time: 3 minutesLying on CVs This is probably more relevant for locums than permanent candidates, but when going through gaps on CVs we very often get asked why it is so important that we know what someone was doing in 1995 for 12 months. Well here is the reason. This is an extract from a CV for…
Reading Time: 3 minutesHow much money can you earn as a consultant, freelancer or locum solicitor? We regularly get contacted by solicitors wanting to know how much can be made from working as a freelancer (if in crime), a consultant (if family or litigation) or a locum (if non-contentious). These include sole practitioners, senior solicitors looking to enjoy…
Reading Time: < 1 minuteWe sometimes get asked about International Baccalaureates and how they convert into A levels. We also spend some time every year advising clients and candidates on what BTEC HNCs equate to for A levels. Here is a handy table for converting them all into UCAS points. As an aside – whatever happened to all the…
Reading Time: 3 minutesThe Law Society have recently released an article based on a Freedom of Information request by Ed Austin. http://www.lawgazette.co.uk/5039197.article?utm_source=dispatch&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=GAZ161213. This indicates that every practising solicitor has contributed just under £100 to pay compensation to former Wolstenholmes clients who have suffered loss as a result of the firm’s dodgy dealings. Just after the recession kicked in…
Reading Time: 3 minutesWhy do Paralegals always seem so unreliable? One of the main reasons people come to see me as a career coach or contact our website is because they are law graduates and unable to get ahead – whether this is to secure a training contract or work generally in the legal profession. We very often…
Reading Time: 2 minutesElocution Lessons – a vital part of a move from the North to London? There has recently been a flurry of articles and comments in the media about the legal profession being traditional, conservative and middle class with a bias against anyone not conforming with the norm. This includes those with strong regional accents applying…
Reading Time: 3 minutesResidential Conveyancing jobs have been the number one area of law where Ten-Percent Legal Recruitment have successfully assisted law firms, solicitors, legal executives and licensed conveyancers for over 13 years. When we first set up Ten-Percent Legal Recruitment, back in April 2000, over 50% of our vacancies were from solicitors firms looking to take on…
Reading Time: 2 minutesRecently I have put together a couple of emails and letters for a client and these are included as free covering email and covering letter templates in this post below. The candidate in question is currently in house as a General In House Counsel. The covering email/letter is in a classic layout with the information…
Reading Time: 3 minutesWhat University should I go to in order to study Law? This is a question we are often, or “What is the best university to study law at” or “which Universities do commercial law firms consider to be the best?” or “Are there any universities that law firms will not take applications from”. The answer…
Reading Time: 3 minutesUsing a Personal Statement on a CV One thing that is often apparent on CVs is that people seem to take the wrong approach to their personal statement on the CV. It seems to be the accepted norm that the personal statement is used to put down quite a bland description of what the individual…
Reading Time: 3 minutesI want to get out of law and am completely fed up, what can I do? This relates to a number of queries that have come into the Ten Legal Careers Centre over the last six months, although the level of enquiries of this nature has dropped (excluding crime solicitors). Redundancy or threat of redundancy…
Reading Time: 5 minutes10 Ways to Get Fired Not that this comes up very often, but it is harder to get fired from a job than you would imagine. That said, a recent experience with an employer in North Wales indicates that it is possible to be fired for wearing a pink shirt, getting pregnant (the same employer…
Reading Time: 2 minutesWhat Role do Recruitment Agencies have in a post-recession world? Recruitment has always been at the more risky end of the service sector in relation to effects of recession. I can remember starting my consultancy Ten Percent Legal Recruitment back in April 2000 and speaking to an elderly lady who was working as a police…
Reading Time: 2 minutesThis is the advice I have recently given to a career coaching client looking to put together the perfect covering email or letter. It really depends on the circumstances in which you are using these, but generally you should be sending CVs as attachments and a covering email to go with the CV which should,…
Reading Time: 2 minutesConverting Australian degree grades into UK degree grades and vice versa. Converting UK degree classifications into Australian degrees and vice versa is not straightforward. Firstly Australian degrees are not split into 2.1 or upper second class degrees and 2.2 or lower second class degree levels. Australian students and graduates tend to be quite surprised when…
Reading Time: 5 minutesAreas of Law to Avoid unless you are a sado-masochist The title of this article speaks for itself. These are the areas of law to avoid getting work experience in, finding paralegal work or applying for training contracts in 2013. Crime LSC funded Immigration Personal injury LSC funded Family Law Social Welfare and Mental Health.…
Reading Time: 2 minutes—–Original Message—– From: Sent: 19 March 2013 17:15 To: Jonathan Fagan Subject: Setting up a law firm To whom it may concern, I am currently doing my LPC, and me and a few of my friends want to set up a law firm. We understand how difficult this can be and the financial implications but…
Reading Time: 2 minutesWhat and Who are Magic Circle Law Firms? The Magic Circle law firms are all based in London, all massive global operations, and employ well over 5,000 solicitors between them. The firms are: Allen & Overy Clifford Chance Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer Linklaters Slaughter and May These firms have a combined turnover of well over £4…
Reading Time: < 1 minute5 top tips for getting the most out of your vacation scheme with a solicitors’ firm If you have any additional suggestions, please email them across! 1. Make notes every day on everything you do – very useful for future application forms and also for remembering at interview. 2. Speak to as many people as…
Reading Time: 2 minutesInterview Question – What sort of response would we get from your referees about your professional and social manner? This question is asking you to consider the way you come across as a professional and also in a social environment. It is not asking you to give any details as to the type of reference…
Reading Time: < 1 minuteQ: What is the difference between contentious and non-contentious legal work? A: Contentious legal work relates to legal matters that take place between two or more parties, such as a court hearing or a tribunal hearing to resolve a dispute. Non-contentious legal work relates to transactions occuring between one or more parties, such as the…
Reading Time: < 1 minuteCrime Solicitor Duty Solicitor Rota Slot Shop is open for business for CDS12 Deadline Ten-Percent Legal Recruitment has been working with crime firms for over 10 years on duty solicitor, higher court advocate and police station vacancies. We have set up an online Rota Slot Shop for Duty Solicitors. So many firms are now using…
Reading Time: < 1 minuteUS Degree Classifications versus UK Degree Classifications Converting overseas degree classifications on CVs to the local equivalent is vital, particularly in the UK. Table for converting US degree classifications into UK degree classes. This is very important for US graduates wanting to work or train in the UK to try and use the UK equivalent…
Reading Time: 3 minutesFinishing your law degree is a massive achievement. The fact that you may have managed to get a 2:1 or a 1st Class Degree is wonderful and you are probably glowing with achievement right at this minute. If you got a 2:2 or Third Class Degree you are probably fairly depressed although even these are…
Reading Time: 4 minutesI have recently seen an advert in the Law Society Gazette for a well-known London university offering law graduates a chance to enhance their career prospects by taking one of their Masters Degrees. A question we regularly get asked by candidates is whether taking a Masters Degree will increase their chances of success in the…
Reading Time: < 1 minuteI have been involved in advising US and overseas lawyers/graduates in applying for UK based roles so many times and application forms can be very difficult indeed to complete. The main thing is to make sure that you assimilate to the UK standards, with A levels rather than High School graduation certificates, degree classes instead…
Reading Time: < 1 minuteThe answer to this is fairly simple. Apply to commercial law firms if you are looking at training contracts with commercial law firms. Apply to the high street law firms for the same reason. If you have a 2.2 or lower, you should be aiming at high street firms. If your academics are good and…
Reading Time: 2 minutesOne of the biggest mistakes candidates often make is to assume that recruitment consultants read covering emails if they are anything more than about 3 paragraphs long. As recruiters we are looking for very specific information in a covering email and have very limited time to read anything at all without heading straight for the…