"A big driving factor of this model's success is the power of the PwC brand," says Peter Workman, managing director of PwC's Flexible Legal Resources (FLR), the new on-demand lawyering service offered by the Big Four accountancy firm.

When FLR was launched in the UK four months ago, it received 500 applications within 14 days and now boasts a pool of more than 1,000 contractors. The success has led to the model being taken up in PwC's Swiss offices, with its Asia network also considering adopting it too.

Since the arrival of flexi-lawyering pioneer LOD in 2007, a string of similar offerings have flooded the market, such as Eversheds Agile, Pinsent Masons' Vario and Addleshaw Goddard's AG Integrate. All provide contract lawyers to address clients' legal needs on an ad hoc basis. So what makes PwC's version any different?

The answer is that although the model is similar, FLR benefits from the backing of one of the biggest financial services companies in the world.

"Candidates have said they although they had never previously considered working in this way, the draw of the PwC brand, its client list and the types of projects they could work on have made them think again," says Workman.

He adds: "A great example of this is an ex-FTSE 100 GC who had recently left their role, did some travelling and was looking for the next opportunity. He saw our campaign and realised this could be ideal."

The launch of FLR was prompted in part by calls that Workman had been receiving from overburdened GCs and legal heads calling out for extra staffing resources.

Their message to him was that secondees from law firms and contractors from some of the other flexi-lawyer businesses – although often good lawyers – did not have enough in-house experience and were too accustomed to life in private practice. As a result, FLR's initial focus has been on signing up senior lawyers, in particular those with in-house experience.

"One of our key selection criteria is that candidates have a really solid background and experience of working in an in-house environment, and initially a background in financial services, as that is the clients who were calling us and saying: 'We have these massive complex projects that we need to deliver as a result of regulation change and Brexit and we need a holistic solution'," explains Workman.

That holistic solution that PwC now offers is something traditional law firms will need to take notice of. FLR is just one part of the firm's 'New Law' offering, which gives clients access to legal technology, outsourced managed legal services and now this pool of contractors.

All of this is being leveraged when PwC goes for panel pitches alongside its traditional law offering. Despite the service's initial focus on financial services, FLR believes it is able to service any client regardless of the industry, and has already placed contractors in construction, real estate and insurance companies.

Workman is of the belief that the flexi-working model should not just apply to lawyers, and that in the future PwC should be able to provide contract-based resources in all professional services sectors.

Looking to the future, he says: "We do not see this as just a UK offering – I have had enquiries from Asia and we see that as a key market for this offering. I don't think there is a limit on growth."