More than 42% of associates believe that it is better to work as a generalist lawyer operating across several different practice areas in the current economic climate, according to a recent Legal Week benchmarker survey.

In this video, Legal Week director of research Des Cahill talks to Badenoch & Clark senior manager Colin Loth (pictured), Keystone Law partner William Robins, and Wragge & Co partner Jonathan Chamberlain about the findings of the survey, which canvassed over 900 respondents on issues that are set to shape the future of legal services.

One-third of respondents believe it is important to gain experience in another practice area, enabling associates to transfer to this as business needs dictate, with only 24% of associates suggesting that specialising within one practice area is their preferred method of career progression within the legal profession.

The findings contrast with partners surveyed, 63% of whom preferred retraining specialist associates to another business area where there was demand, and only 21% suggesting firms should hire generalist associates. A further 16% suggested that redundancy was a viable option if work in a given area was adversely affected.

When asked to measure the cost effectiveness of these options, 53% of partner respondents said re-training specialist staff was the best option. Only 27% of partners preferred the generalist option. Just 20% favoured redundancy as one of the more cost-effective options.

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