Reading Time: 2 minutesAdvice Preferably you will have been asked this question with just the well as opposed to the badly bit as it is a general rule in interviews that wherever possible you try to avoid any negative comment or thought about anything. It does make a difference to the perception of the interviewer if you focus…
Reading Time: 2 minutesAdvice This is a loaded question and one you need to be very careful about answering. If you are applying for a junior post, for example a training contract with a solicitors’ firm, you really should not be giving any indication at this stage of an interest to specialise in. You simply do not know…
Reading Time: 2 minutesAdvice This question really depends on the circumstances of the interview. If you have been headhunted, are currently in employment and not particularly looking until you were approached then it would be perfectly acceptable to give a straightforward answer. If not, you need to consider your response very carefully. If you give an affirmative answer…
Reading Time: < 1 minuteAdvice This again is a question that almost requires you to say yes. If you say no it almost indicates that you really don’t care about your work or your activities. You are the type of person who is happy just to turn up to work each day and sit at a desk for 8…
Reading Time: < 1 minuteAdvice This is almost a challenge and is again one of those interview questions that can really only be considered in a negative fashion. There are obviously jobs where aggression is considered to a certain extent as a positive at certain levels, but this question really is one to determine negative and not positive issues. …
Reading Time: 2 minutesWe took a call yesterday from a solicitors firm somewhere in England and Wales, and the conversation went as follows: “Hello I wonder if you can help, we’re looking for a family paralegal.” “Yes sure, can you give me a bit more information please?” “Yes, we would like a paralegal who’s able to assist with…
Reading Time: 2 minutesInterview Question – Are you Accepted into a Team Quickly? Advice At first glance you may be forgiven for thinking that this is a yes or no answer as you are being asked a pretty closed question. This question gives you the opportunity to give a specific example and to get over a point to…
Reading Time: 2 minutesInterview Question – Are you a leader? What a horrible question! Some would argue that it is too formulaic – would “yes” or “no” suffice depending on the job? Would you want to recruit a junior paralegal who said “yes”? Advice This is a very difficult question to respond to if you have not prepared…
Reading Time: 2 minutesWe have had a query this week from a Year 13 student awaiting A level grades – can poor A Level Results affect any chances of a legal career? The quick and honest answer, and something perhaps relevant to qualified solicitors with many years PQE even, and an answer you will rarely hear from HR…
Reading Time: 4 minutesCV Review for a Paralegal – as usual personal data removed. Feedback at the bottom of the CV. Reviewee has consented to this review being published. On these reviews please ignore the layout – this is due to our cut and paste operation! ——————————————————————– CANDIDATE NAME Address: Email: Telephone (Mob): Telephone (Home): EDUCATION September 2018…
Reading Time: 3 minutesExtracting yourself from the business We are involved in the buying and selling of solicitors’ firms and accountancy practices across the UK and further afield. Sellers can be anybody from a sole practitioner through to a very large partnership or company, but the usual aim of owners selling up is to get out of the…
Reading Time: 2 minutesToday is the day when the LAA have issued a whole new load of contract awards after recent tenders by law firms across the UK. So far we have had telephone calls from law firms asking about Family Law Supervisors and Mental Health Law Supervisors. Any more? I can’t remember if Housing or Immigration are…
Reading Time: 3 minutesAsk a Recruitment Consultant – questions this month on our chat bot Questions sent to us via our Chat service online, together with general career questions emailed across. We do our best to answer all queries, sometimes after a fairly lengthy delay if we are busy! Q: I am currently studying to become a solicitor…
Reading Time: < 1 minuteYes. This could be the shortest article I have ever written! Here is what to write.. 1. Make sure you cc in any agent you are working through so they know what has been said.. The firm may think you are trying to circumnavigate their involvement.. 2. Thank the interviewer for their time and say…
Reading Time: 2 minutesMinutes from HMRC’s latest IR35 forum indicate that similar reform could hit the private sector soon. This could be a worry to a good number of law firms who regularly use locums. Our own thoughts on it are that provided the contractual position is clear and the locum is a senior lawyer who is able…
Reading Time: 3 minutesI write this article from a personal perspective and it is an expression of opinion only. I often get asked by candidates if they think firms discriminate against them and this article is about our experiences of behaviour that is both overt and implied. Discrimination against Law Firms Law firms often think that as recruiters…
Reading Time: < 1 minuteQuestions sent to us via our Chat service online, together with general career questions emailed across. We do our best to answer all queries, sometimes after a fairly lengthy delay if we are busy! Q: I am a New Zealand qualified solicitor looking for paralegal opportunities with an immediate start. Can you assist? A: No…
Reading Time: 2 minutesOut of 5 job interviews arranged for paralegals and junior fee earners, we estimate that 1 candidate will not turn up. For solicitors and legal executives we think the figure is closer to 1 in 20. Why? Here are our top reasons. 1. It is much easier to apply for a job than it is…
Reading Time: 2 minutesWe have recently introduced a candidate to an employer where a restrictive covenant was used which must surely fall foul of rather a lot of employment regulations! The role is a fairly junior fee earner position and not senior management or director level. The restrictive covenant was actually called a “non-compete clause” and included the…
Reading Time: 2 minutesQ: I wonder if you have any advice or comment on the following. a sole practitioner has been asked by a lender panel to give details of a locum who the principal would have on call if the worst happened and the firm was left without a solicitor at short notice. Do you have any…
Reading Time: 2 minutesA recent law graduate has asked an extremely pertinent question regarding future career plans: “In your professional opinion, how much do sole practitioners (on the high street working in family/conveyancing) tend to make annually? Also more generally, would you say, despite the over supply of law graduates and the SRA’s soon to be new route…
Reading Time: 2 minutesAsk a Recruitment Consultant – questions this month on our chat bot Questions sent to us via our Chat service online, together with general career questions emailed across. We do our best to answer all queries, sometimes after a fairly lengthy delay if we are busy! Q: I graduated from university with a 1st class…
Reading Time: 2 minutesThe Legal Profession, Flexible Hours and Working from Home Many years ago, when I started out in law, flexible hours were something women benefited from when they had given birth and returned to work for a few years. Otherwise hours were strictly 9am to 5pm with an hour for lunch. These days however law firms…
Reading Time: 2 minutesDangling the carrot of a partnership when being offered a job or at an annual review is either because: 1. The firm genuinely like you, are genuinely nice and genuinely see a long term future for you at the practice. Partnership is a good way of cementing your relationship and committing you to the business…
Reading Time: 2 minutesAsk a Recruitment Consultant – questions this month on our chat bot Questions sent to us via our new Chat service online, together with general career questions emailed across. We do our best to answer all queries, sometimes after a fairly lengthy delay if we are busy! Hello – can you find me a job?…
Reading Time: 2 minutes1. Review your CV. If an agent has sent it, ask them for a copy. We amend CVs nearly every time we send one out – mainly to remove any waffly bits or to present them in a better light. Get a copy, read it carefully. Remind yourself of anything you may have written 10…
Reading Time: 2 minutesHourly Rates of Pay for Locum Solicitors and Legal Executives Although conveyancing rates increased over the last four weeks, we will now see a drop in hourly rates as we get closer to Christmas. September tends to remain fairly high as demand has traditionally still been strong. £35 per hour in Conveyancing is still the…
Reading Time: 2 minutesAsk a Recruitment Consultant – questions this month on our chat bot Questions sent to us via our new Chat service online, together with general career questions emailed across. We do our best to answer all queries, sometimes after a fairly lengthy delay if we are busy! Our New Chatbot Hi. My Australian degree has…
Reading Time: 2 minutesThinking of Retraining in Wills & Probate after years out of the profession and coming from a Commercial background. Is it possible? We have recently received a request for advice from a solicitor coming from a Legal 500 commercial background and after over 10 years out now seeking to return to the profession but not…
Reading Time: 2 minutesAsk a Recruitment Consultant – questions this month on our chat bot Questions sent to us via our new Chat service online, together with general career questions emailed across. We do our best to answer all queries, sometimes after a fairly lengthy delay if we are busy! Do you think it is still worth becoming…