When do lawyers first take the leap into consulting?
Of all our responses, only five said they were familiar with consulting at fewer than five years post-qualified experience (PQE). Six respondents reported they got into consulting after six to 10 years, and whilst over 50% said they were over 10 years PQE before choosing consulting.
It seems surprising that many lawyers don’t even have awareness about an alternative working style until over a decade into their career, so we explored this further in interviews. Many interviewees had dismissed consulting as an option as they saw it as a ‘semi-retirement’ phase. A minority explained how they’d embraced consulting out of necessity, because of personal circumstances like unemployment or relocation.
Of respondents became a consultant with over 10 years PQE.
“I firmly believe nearly everyone can take this alternative career option, but working flexibly might not be right for certain stages of life. For me, it’s perfect because I don’t want to have any more children, so parental leave is an employment benefit that is no longer of any value.”
Respondents said they knew about the consulting path when they were junior lawyers.
The good news is that according to our respondents, consulting is being increasingly considered by junior lawyers. Post-pandemic, as the workforce generally becomes more flexible in terms of location and hours, autonomy is a well-researched motivator and often even an expectation. Unless traditional employers adapt to this working practice, our interviewees see the consulting route as being more and more attractive for lawyers at any career stage.
On the other hand, a warning mentioned by respondents to junior lawyers considering this route is the lack of consistent supervision and development. In addition, the fully-loaded charge-out rate is high, so there’s a natural expectation of high quality. More experienced lawyers perhaps have the confidence to express the limits of their expertise, to make sure expectations are set correctly at the outset and misunderstandings are avoided.
