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How royal commissions changed the legal profession
The proliferation of royal commissions has placed greater demand on lawyers to step into new responsibilities and newly created roles, but the appeal may wear off, a new report has found.
Naomi Neilson
According to the Mahlab Report 2019, the repercussions of the Royal Commission into Misconduct in the Banking, Superannuation and Financial Services Industry has become financially attractive for certain firms. Boards are now more conscious of their liability, with head office advisory teams becoming vogue again.
The banking royal commission was instrumental in shining a light on the need for risk management processes and robust compliance. Senior management is viewing their compliance as being a corporate and personal responsibility.
“This has all resulted in an increase for regulatory lawyers particularly in the financial services sector,” the report said. “Mahlab reports an increase in legal roles overall and this is across compliance, governance, data privacy and company secretaries.”
Company secretaries are no longer working as administrative servants as roles have begun to develop. According to the report, more senior roles were created this year by companies seeking stronger resources to act as better support for CEOs and boards.
While post-royal commission work continues to lift revenue for certain firms, there is a recognition that this spike will eventually taper off as firms adopt new methods and focus expenditure on creating a sustainable environment.
The report said increases in revenue as a result of commercial activity and cases last year do not necessarily result in an uplift of partner drawings.
Firms of all sizes are facing big bills for technology and acquisition and are adjusting to drop off of record revenue enjoyed during the banking royal commission.
Despite changes within firms for staff, massive demands wrought by the commissions and the “accepted” hours and conditions imposed by firms mean that private practice lawyers are “loath to move to another firm”, choosing to instead remain in-house.
“The profession has been under the microscope this year,” the report noted.
“Allegations of unsafe work practices, bullying and harassment have shocked the profession and brought a welcome increased awareness that ‘norms’ of behaviour accepted or ignored for years are no longer acceptable.”
Naomi Neilson
Naomi Neilson is a senior journalist with a focus on court reporting for Lawyers Weekly.
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