Lawyer Work-Life Balance
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| Analysis
A longer road? New partners offer career advice to frustrated associates
By James Boxell | August 1, 2013
The top 30 law firms made up fewer partners this year, while there was a worrying dip in the number of women promoted at the magic circle. James Boxell, Anna Reynolds and Alex Newman spoke to new partners to seek their advice for frustrated associates, both female and male...
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| Analysis
Food for thought – one lawyer's charitable initiative to put food waste to good use
By Legal Week | July 25, 2013
Every week thousands of tonnes of food are thrown away by retailers in the UK. At the same time, many thousands of people cannot afford even basic groceries. I became aware of the scale of the problem in late 2012, partly through a great documentary called Britain's Hidden Hungry. Although food banks around the country were taking non-perishable donations and redistributing them to those in need, I felt that a much better solution would be to take the mountains of surplus food sent every day to landfill sites or composted and redirect that as groceries to families in acute financial need. In November, Olswang let me move to a part-time role as a construction litigation associate, which gave me the time to set up an initiative to address the problem.
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City limits – are law firms are doing enough to combat work-based stress?
By Georgina Stanley | June 27, 2013
As new research reveals lawyers are finding their jobs more stressful than ever, Georgina Stanley asks whether law firms are doing enough to combat work-based anxiety and other mental health issues Statistics on mental illness speak for themselves. Every year, about one in four people in the UK will experience a mental health problem, with about 10% of the population suffering from depression and anxiety issues. Figures from Mind, a UK mental health charity, suggest that 8% of those suffering from mental health issues in any year will require specialist psychiatric help, while 2% will have problems so severe they require in-patient treatment.
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Daring to be different – Travers' Chris Carroll on preserving the boutique model
By Georgina Stanley | June 20, 2013
A lot has changed in the world in the 35 years since Travers Smith's outgoing senior partner Chris Carroll joined the firm in 1978. But as globalisation has driven many of the firm's most comparable City rivals through a series of international office launches and mergers, Travers has remained resolutely independent. Granted, with just over 60 partners and 250 lawyers, it is much bigger than it was when Carroll joined, when it numbered just 13 partners and employed just one female lawyer. Beyond these shifts in size, diversity and – of course – technology, much at Travers has remained the same. Even the firm's Snow Hill headquarters in Farringdon has moved just four doors down the road.
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Daring to be different – Travers' Chris Carroll on preserving the boutique model
By Georgina Stanley | June 20, 2013
A lot has changed in the world in the 35 years since Travers Smith's outgoing senior partner Chris Carroll joined the firm in 1978. But as globalisation has driven many of the firm's most comparable City rivals through a series of international office launches and mergers, Travers has remained resolutely independent. Granted, with just over 60 partners and 250 lawyers, it is much bigger than it was when Carroll joined, when it numbered just 13 partners and employed just one female lawyer. Beyond these shifts in size, diversity and – of course – technology, much at Travers has remained the same. Even the firm's Snow Hill headquarters in Farringdon has moved just four doors down the road.
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| Analysis
The fight for fairness – what are law firms doing to tackle the gender pay gap?
By Legal Week | May 30, 2013
Lawyers have a problem with equal pay – and it's a big one. More than 40 years on from the Equal Pay Act, women in private practice are paid a startling 26.7% less than their male counterparts. The finding, from a new Law Society study of solicitors' salaries in 2012, compares badly with the national picture: the law's gender pay gap is well over double the 9.6% difference between men and women's pay across the UK as a whole, as reported by the Office for National Statistics.
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| Analysis
In the cold light of day - Latham & Watkins partner runs the Antarctic marathon
By Legal Week | May 9, 2013
It's one way to make the gruelling schedule of trying to close a high-profile deal seem like much less of a challenge. But by the same token, most partners at international law firms would probably just as happily pull a 24-hour grind at their desk rather than run the Antarctic Ice Marathon. Late last year, I completed that very race in six hours 46 minutes.
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| Analysis
A push in the right direction - encouraging firms to plan for partners' retirement
By Legal Week | May 2, 2013
The major asset for most law firms is the partners working in the business. It is therefore surprising that, when it comes to providing retirement income, most firms take the view that it is the individual partner's responsibility to organise this and make the appropriate arrangements. However, unless law firms actively encourage – or even oblige – partners to make full provisions for their retirement, this could make succession planning difficult. Partners who have not made adequate retirement provision could end up in a situation where they cannot afford to retire. The Leslie Seldon case highlights some of the problems around this issue and the difficulties for all parties.
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| Analysis
Magnificent sevens - balancing law and captaining the HK rugby sevens team
By Elizabeth Broomhall in Hong Kong | April 18, 2013
Trainee lawyer Rowan Varty had a starring role at last month's Hong Kong Sevens tournament. But as the captain of the Hong Kong team and a player for the region's national squad, it was his rugby skills rather than his legal ability that had fans cheering. Despite spending the day in the office and evenings on the pitch, Varty is rather modest about his sporting achievements. In fact, he spends a lot of his time making up for them, conscious of gaining the respect of his peers and colleagues through hard work and fair treatment.
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| Analysis
The way to Westminster – making the transition from law to politics
By Legal Week | April 18, 2013
Law and politics may be a potent mix, but it is surprising just how many lawyers have successfully made the transition to elected representative. According to research by strategic communications consultancy the Madano Partnership, 12% of the elected new MPs at the 2010 general election have a legal background. Jonathan Reynolds, Labour MP for Stalybridge and Hyde, was formerly a corporate lawyer at Addleshaw Goddard in Manchester. He believes there are a lot of "natural synergies" between the two professions. "Lawyers are skilled at absorbing large quantities of data and they can get to the crux of the argument very quickly," he says. "They also know how to critically analyse complex data and documents. All these skills are required of MPs."
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