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International Edition

Emerging markets foist language demands on firms but English remains lingua franca

By Legal Week | October 10, 2013

English may be the language of business, but law firm partners agree that Chinese is the language of the future. Nearly 50% of respondents to Legal Week's latest Big Question survey believe that over the next decade, Chinese will become the most important language to speak aside from English, replacing the current domination of Western European languages.

5 minute read

International Edition

Lack of language skills leaves UK in-house lawyers off the pace in emerging markets

By Alex Newman | October 03, 2013

A shortfall in non-Western language skills among UK lawyers is failing to meet the needs of business and leading to an over-reliance on external support, with just 24% of FTSE 250 lawyers speaking a foreign language...

2 minute read

International Edition

In-house lawyers aiming for top company roles must gain business experience outside of legal, says CEO

By Alex Newman | October 03, 2013

Senior in-house lawyers aspiring to top corporate jobs need to work in business areas outside of legal, according to United Biscuits chief executive Martin Glenn (pictured). The former head of PepsiCo in UK and Ireland made the comments at Legal Week's Corporate Counsel Forum last month.

3 minute read

International Edition

Not a lot of polyglots – cultural understanding lost through lack of linguists

By Charlotte Edmond | October 03, 2013

As recently as a decade ago it would have been pretty easy to count the number of countries where top UK law firms had set up international offices. Now, as their client base becomes ever-more global and competition for work at home intensifies, this is no longer the case. If school level French, Spanish or German could ever have got you through your dealings with international counterparts, they certainly can't now as clients look further afield to Asia, Africa and the Middle East.

3 minute read

International Edition

The first step on the ladder – what this summer's batch of vacation scheme interns have learnt

By Legal Week | October 03, 2013

For aspiring lawyers, vacation schemes are an essential path to career progression. Grant Murgatroyd speaks to this summer's batch of interns and finds out that the chance to network and socialise with employers can be as vital as the actual work...

11 minute read

Legal Week

Not a lot of polyglots – cultural understanding lost through lack of linguists

By Charlotte Edmond | October 03, 2013

As recently as a decade ago it would have been pretty easy to count the number of countries where top UK law firms had set up international offices. Now, as their client base becomes ever-more global and competition for work at home intensifies, this is no longer the case. If school level French, Spanish or German could ever have got you through your dealings with international counterparts, they certainly can't now as clients look further afield to Asia, Africa and the Middle East.

6 minute read

International Edition

Field Fisher takes on first recruits for school leavers' legal career scheme

By Pui-Guan Man | October 02, 2013

Field Fisher Waterhouse has taken on the first five recruits for a programme aimed at giving non-university students the opportunity to pursue a career in law. The Step2Success scheme, launched in May in conjunction with CILEx Law School, allows post A-level students to qualify as chartered legal executives at the firm within five years of starting the programme, and without having to earn a degree.

2 minute read

International Edition

CMS awards four social mobility bursaries in second annual round

By Pui-Guan Man | September 30, 2013

CMS Cameron McKenna (CMS) has awarded bursaries to four school-leavers in the second year of a competition designed to support aspiring lawyers from underprivileged backgrounds. The firm's annual bursary competition, which launched last year, provides bursaries worth £2,500 a year to Year 12 students to support their law degrees. Candidates are able to win bursaries if they in the first generation of their family to attend university, meet certain financial criteria and gain ABB grades or equivalent at A-level.

2 minute read

International Edition

The school-leaver lawyers – how law firms are benefitting from taking on talented young apprentices

By Legal Week | September 26, 2013

Soaring university fees are proving to be a boon for some law firms, which are stepping in to offer apprentice jobs to talented youngsters barred from traditional degree-led routes into the profession...

11 minute read

International Edition

Dropping the jargon – why law firm training courses should focus less on the law and more on how to practise it

By Legal Week | September 26, 2013

Formal training courses aimed at developing the legal skills of lawyers are often not effective learning tools at all. In order to improve, law firms must invest more time and resources into designing training sessions that use case studies, simulation and experience sharing. It is also important that greater investment is made in the training of facilitators so that they are more effective in coaching participants during a session. Traditional training methods have too great a focus on the law itself, rather than how to practise it. To be good lawyers, fee earners must learn key skills such as how to apply and give legal advice that is relevant to the client and their business, as well as how to present to a client without bamboozling them with law jargon. Speaking in the language of the client is crucial. If a formal training framework is a pre-requisite, that alone is not sufficient. The most effective and beneficial method of learning professional practice – and lawyers are not so different from other professions such as auditors or consultants – comes from shadowing and being coached by more senior lawyers.

7 minute read

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