Victoria Moore – senior associate in the Midlands in-house team

What have been the main trends/ developments in the Midlands in-house market over the past 12 months?
Busy recruitment market with an increased number of placements compared to 2013.

What have been the real growth areas and where has the demand been coming from?
A significant amount of placements in 2014 have been within teams that are either restructuring (i.e. Compass and National Grid) or that have recruited a new GC who is in turn building a team (i.e. Wolseley, Lafarge Tarmac and Halfords). In addition, there has been a steady stream of interim placements (Wolseley, Mid-counties, Office Depot, Norbert Dentressangle) and mid level appointments (Alliance Boots, Compass, Celesio, PCMS).

What have been the key stories that have dominated the in-house market?
The continuing trend of private practice lawyers moving in-house and seeking progression in an in-house environment. Along with a significant increase for real estate lawyers who also want to make the move in-house.

What are your predictions for the Midlands in-house market for 2015?
As legal teams are becoming more valued and integral to a business, we hope to see the growth achieved across in-house legal teams in 2013 and 2014 continue at the same rate in 2015.

How would you sum up 2014 in one sentence?
It’s been positive with a number of very senior roles coming to the market in 2014.