The shortage of lawyers in rural Australia was further exacerbated in 2009, especially given the fact that redundancies across metropolitan firms highlighted the vast resourcing differences between city and country firms.

It was an issue highlighted in a report released by the Law Council of Australia, which surveyed 1185 regional and rural legal practitioners throughout Australia.

One of the key findings was that many rural and regional practices did not have enough lawyers to service community needs, with 43 per cent of principals indicating that their practice did not have enough lawyers to service its client base.

The problems looks set to escalate in the future, with a large number of lawyers - many of whom are sole practitioners - looking to retire from practice in the next five years.

Of the sole practitioners who made up 46 per cent of respondents to the survey, 30 per cent said they have been practising in country areas for more than 21 years, and 36 per cent said they didn't intend to be practising within the next five years.

Not surprisingly, succession planning was a key concern for heads of country law firms, with 71 per cent listing it as their biggest concern.

Other key concerns raised by respondents were attracting additional lawyers (58 per cent) and attracting lawyers to replace departures (51 per cent).

Brain drain was another key problem for regional and rural Australia, with 30 per cent of younger respondents (between 20 and 29 years of age) indicating that they only intended to practise in their current area for less than two years; 25 per cent said they would leave the country for better pay, 28 per cent to join a city firm and 15 per cent to start a new career.

The survey also indicated that country lawyers were taking on a significant amount of legal aid and pro bono work; 51 per cent of respondents said their practice took on legal aid matters, the majority dealing with more than 30 cases a year.

More than 64 per cent of respondents said their firm took on pro bono matters, and 71 per cent said they took on other unpaid, voluntary work within their area.

Other significant trends in the legal profession this year have included (click on link for a full examination of each trend):

>> Mid-tiers make their mark

>> Climate change on the horizon

>> The rise and rise of in-house

>> Speaking out about outsourcing

>> Too many city lawyers highlights rural shortage

>> Alternatives for billings methods gain momentum

>> The trend to business-minded lawyers

>> Mental health issues come to the fore

>> Workplace relations tug of war

>> Big firms place freeze on salaries