Hays Legal - July 2010
Hotspots
In private practice, solicitors with between three and four years PQE in general commercial law or with specialist energy sector experience are increasingly sought after. General strong commercial skills never go out of fashion in the private sector and firms looking to capitalise on increased business confidence in the national economy seek experienced commercial solicitors who offer a broad range of skills and an acumen that can deliver real value to clients.
Meanwhile, following the recent Government decision to award a permit for exploratory deep sea oil drilling off the East Coast, the energy sector is showing increasing signs of heating up. Solicitors with energy experience will be able to make a noteworthy contribution to the industry as it begins to expand and consolidate.
For in-house roles, litigators with experience representing clients in court will have opportunities to develop their skills. With the recession tightening legal budgets, a litigator's ability to simultaneously undertake preparatory work while also directly representing clients in court has given lawyers great opportunities to develop their skill sets - something that corporations are seeing can add real value to their in-house legal teams.
In addition, moving on from hiring freezes and budgetary constraints, roles in the public sector for lawyers are beginning to open up. In particular, solicitors looking to use their private practice experience and transfer into government to deliver results for clients responsible to multiple stakeholders will be sought.
The coming quarter
New jobs may be created within legal firms however it is more likely that we will see hiring managers being given permission to fill roles that have previously sat vacant. These roles will be permanent in nature and employers will continue to put applicants under close scrutiny despite the candidate-short nature of these specialist areas.
Executive trends
In-house legal counsel and high-level legal roles within government continue to be recruited for. For these roles, team management, strong communication skills and the ability to present advice to the highest levels are all skills that employers expect to see complementing particular legal expertise.
Employer trends
Employers are increasingly looking outside their local region for candidates. Our international network of offices can identify candidates with in-demand skills who are looking for a new challenge and location.
Candidate trends
There has been an increase in available candidates at the entry-level following a number of years of reduced graduate recruitment intakes. Intermediate-level lawyers have tended to stay in their position given the difficulty of finding work overseas at a stage in their career when many would have traditionally relocated on their OE. This has reduced the amount of movement in the market overall, further diminishing interest in graduate recruitment.
It is a similar story for senior-level lawyers who have consolidated their experience within their current role.
New Zealand remains a destination of interest for overseas lawyers from Australia and the UK in particular. Lifestyle and career options following Admission or roles taken up utilising transferrable skills see us receive a steady stream of CVs. Employers have an opportunity to broaden the skills/knowledge that they can deliver to their clients should they be in a position to take up such candidates.
