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The biggest headwinds facing young lawyers revealed
While the number of law grads keen to make their mark in Australia’s legal profession is commendable, there are certain challenges they must be wary of, according to three BigLaw firms.
Emma Musgrave
Gilbert + Tobin chief people officer Anna Sparkes, King & Wood Mallesons head of resourcing Penny Thompson and MinterEllison chief talent officer Mary Lyras spoke to Lawyers Weekly about the current state of the market for new and aspiring lawyers ahead of this year’s 30 Under 30 Awards.
“Post-pandemic we now have hybrid models of working, with many teams splitting their working hours between the office and home, which presents one of the biggest challenges for juniors,” Ms Sparkes said.
“Even if graduates themselves are not working remotely, it’s likely some of their team will be.
“The challenge for graduates/young lawyers is how best to remain connected, sustain a continuous workflow and ultimately, their development trajectory, given the impact of hybrid working on those more informal opportunities to learn by osmosis, build relationships and ‘get noticed’.
“Juniors need to really take ownership of their career and be as proactive as possible.”
For Ms Thompson, junior lawyers need to understand they’re embarking on a “whole new learning experience” and take that on board in their early career development.
“‘Dare to grow’ is our tagline – coming into a law firm represents an opportunity to grow which may require pushing the boundaries of your comfort zone,” she said.
“Remaining future-focussed is also key – it is critical that people are looking forward to how technology and other influences continue to change seeking out future growth areas the way we work as lawyers.”
Meanwhile, Ms Lyras noted that as the practice of law continues to evolve, so must too the next generation of legal professionals.
“The practice of law continues to evolve, so the next generation of law graduates needs to be not just technically strong but also adaptable to keep up with changes in the industry,” she said.
“The last 12 months have been challenging for everyone. Though it has provided flexibility around the ways and where we work, its challenges have been in technical training and industry and client knowledge transfer.
“We are focused on a variety of learning experiences and opportunities where our graduates can continuously develop their technical skills and build industry knowledge in real time, from leading practitioners (in-house, clients and through industry).”
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Emma Musgrave
Emma Musgrave (née Ryan) is the managing editor, professional services at Momentum Media.
Emma has worked for Momentum Media since 2015, including five years spent as the editor of the company's legal brand - Lawyers Weekly. Throughout her time at Momentum, she has been responsible for breaking some of the biggest stories in corporate Australia. In addition, she has produced exclusive multimedia and event content related to the company's respective brands and audiences.
Prior to joining Momentum Media, Emma worked in breakfast radio, delivering news to the Central West region of NSW, before taking on a radio journalist role at Southern Cross Austereo, based in Townsville, North Queensland.
She holds a Bachelor of Communications (Journalism) degree from Charles Sturt University.
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