Legal practitioners specialising in construction, banking and finance and insurance are three of the most in demand practitioners in the Australian legal market at present, according to Hays.
Findings from the recruiter’s most recent quarterly report on the sector found legal practitioners with like-for-like experience across those special practice areas remain in demand, and are likely to remain so for the rest of the year. “Employers are looking for candidates with like-for-like experience, including in the same industry and on the same systems,” said Darren Buchanan, director at Hays Legal.
Construction lawyers are in demand in response to large infrastructure projects in the mining and resources industry, says Hays. “We are also seeing demand for planning and environment lawyers from a number of top tier firms within their energy and resources practice,” the report states.
Other legal practitioners in demand as a result of mining and resources projects include corporate lawyers, and banking and finance lawyers, particularly senior project finance lawyers.
Litigation, insurance and employment lawyers are also continuing to be in high demand: “Candidate shortages still exist in many areas,” said Buchanan. “Many organisations have invested in retention strategies to keep their best people, so there’s still a shortage of high quality candidates for certain roles, particularly those that require excellent leadership skills or very specific experience.”
General commercial lawyers who are currently working in-house but who have a solid prior background at a top tier law firm are equally sought after. “Many roles specify the need for experience and training from a leading law firm as an indication of a candidate’s technical ability,” says the report. “Generally employers look for around three or more years of experience to ensure that a candidate has solid basic technical drafting skills before they moved into an in-house counsel division.”
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