Articles From the Team
Securing your NQ job in Leeds and West Yorkshire - now is the time to act!
Securing your NQ job in Leeds and West Yorkshire - now is the time to act!
Having spent years studying, successfully securing that elusive training contract and finally qualifying as a solicitor you'd have hoped that the hard part was behind you, but given that training contracts offer no employment rights beyond the training period, many of you will find yourselves looking for a new job once you have qualified.
As we approach June, many of you will have already found out whether or not you are being retained by your firm, for others it might be August or even September before you find out whether you have the option to stay on at your firm.
It is a tough economic climate and tough decisions have to be made, so even if you have been the model trainee solicitor you are by no means guaranteed a job at your firm on qualification.
In some cases, there may be opportunities within your firm which you don't feel are right for you, say in other departments but not within the area that you are looking to specialise in. Many of you will give those options serious consideration and rather than risk being unemployed move into an area of law that might not be exactly what you were hoping for, but some will hold out for the perfect job elsewhere.
The cost of qualifying as a solicitor (university, LPC plus GDL for some of you) is huge and naturally you want to start earning a good salary sooner rather than later, so financial considerations can impact on the decision you make at this stage of your career. Just bear in mind that it can be difficult (though by no means impossible) to change disciplines post qualification.
Within Leeds and West Yorkshire there are various over subscribed areas of law including employment and family and other hugely undersubscribed areas including banking/finance, commercial property, construction and planning, so think carefully when deciding which discipline to move into about long term prospects.
If you have recently found out that there isn't a suitable role for you at your firm or if you are still waiting to hear your fate, then now is the time to get in touch with us about NQ opportunities. Over the next couple of months interviews for external NQs will be taking place and as the leading regional recruiter, we are best placed to represent you in your search for that ideal job.
For more information on NQ roles in Leeds and West Yorkshire please contact BCL Legal or call 0161 819 7475.