Considering Law as a career

Hi guys,

I’ll start of with a brief intro, I’m 25 with 3 GCSE’s and no A levels or any other forms of qualifications. I don’t have any particular subjects I’m really passionate about so the salary, job security, work/life balance aspects are pretty much the main points that I’m using to help me narrow down my options and if you do have other suggestions that meet the criteria besides this particular choice feel free to share them.

I want to hopefully hear from people like myself considering law as a career, people studying it and people who have graduated and can give me a realistic insight into the career path of a law graduate.

What kind of salaries can you expect to see within your first 5 years? Which areas of law are the most financially rewarding? What is the work/life balance like? How does opening your own firm work as a business? What is the work environment like? Do you need to brown nose and play politics to be able to progress your career?

Thanks for taking the time out to read my post and making the effort to respond!

Reply 1

RV3112

Original post by Lalas03

It goes without saying that "salary, job security, work/life balance" are factors which should be considered when deciding upon a future career, but you need more than that before you consider law as a career. It's a long (and often competitive) process to qualify as a legal practitioner. Additionally, legal study does not suit everyone, and it can be a dry, sometimes difficult degree to complete. Even the most enthusiastic of students find some legal areas about as compelling as watching paint dry. However these areas still need to be mastered.

Whilst i often worry about students who apply for law based on a starry-eyed dream of being a crusader for justice, the passionless approach is just as bad.

Whilst the financial rewards are certainly there, the salaries can vary wildly. I'm not sure what the average earnings are after 5 years, but it's probably in the range of £40,000 with high standard deviation. At the top firms, you could break the six figure mark. However, you earn that salary with long hours. Commercial/Corporate are the areas that tend to be the most lucrative.

Instead of asking these questions, ask yourself why you think you would be suited to a legal career and what interests you about law. There's no point in considering career directions that have no passion or aptitude for.

Possessing great communication and analytical skills, along with a strong attention to detail could be a sign. An Interest in politics, details of the lives of others, debating, human rights, commercial matters, compliance, problem-solving (and many more) may also indicate that you might find some areas of legal study or practice interesting.

Reply 2

Joleee

salaries can be extremely average and i’m not really sure what you mean about job security(?). just know it is very competitive to get a training contact or pupillage, especially since you don’t need a specific degree to do so; just a good degree. you could in theory get an apprenticeship but they’re not easy to come by. i’m assuming you’re looking to get some A levels?

maybe have a read of this link here as it tells you what solicitors do in different areas of law as there’s a lot of misconception about what solicitors actually do for a living. it’s not what you see on TV altho it can be quite stressful if you’re under tight deadlines or your legal assistants screw something up. in practise law is mostly applications and following rules and procedures, negotiations and transactions, babysitting clients, liaising with the other side’s solicitor. it’s an office job except you can get sued for malpractice.

https://targetjobs.co.uk/career-sectors/law-solicitors/advice/areas-of-practice

Considering Law as a career

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