Over the last 3 years lawyers have experienced changes in employer attitudes towards office attendance and working from home. Law firms have been similar to many other business sectors. One of the positive trends we have witnessed has been how many law firms in the Midlands have recognised that attitudes on office attendance have changed.
Initially after the pandemic there was a lot of flexibility for all staff to work from home, but over the last 12 months or so, many firms looking for regular office attendance for many staff, often up to 3 days per week. However, we are seeing that law firms are carefully considering and at times thinking ‘outside the box’ on how to attract and retain the best candidates across what is becoming an increasingly strong and busy market. In particular, many of the top regional law firms have successfully hired lawyers from London who want to escape the City and often strike a better and more permanent balance between home and work.
So, what are the key benefits of making a move to a top Midlands law firm and why now?
1. Better work/life balance
Even with the increased opportunities to work from home, twelve-hour plus days and lost weekends are often the norm for striving lawyers at top London firms, or even those just trying to keep up. It would not be true or fair to say that lawyers outside the capital do not work hard, but we find that lawyers working in the regions are generally leaving the office around 6-7pm or before, and do not work whole weekends. Added to which, your commute is likely to be both shorter and far less stressful.
2. Cheaper housing and cost of living
Online commentary suggests that the average London house costs £490,936, which is double the average price in the rest of the UK (£245,443). Admittedly, that is an average over the whole country and the main cities in which the best “regional” firms are located will be more expensive. Generally speaking, living outside London is cheaper. According to cost of living comparison website Expatistan.com, London is 49% more expensive to live in than Manchester, for example. In other regions, the differential will be greater still and even taking salary differences into account, you may well be better off outside London. Coupled with this, you tend to get a lot more for your money in terms of green space or square footage.
3. Better supervision and greater responsibility
We frequently hear from solicitors who have trained outside London that they are given a lot of responsibility at an earlier stage and often receive more hands-on supervision and client contact than their London counterparts. The main reason cited is that deals tend to be smaller, and partners are under less constant pressure. In this new landscape, agile regional firms are delivering excellent remote support and supervision through face-to-face video interaction (both individual and collective) and better IT infrastructure including the rise in popularity of platforms such as MS Teams.
4. Improved working environment
The vast majority of firms have retained reasonable office space and see the value of doing this, not least to help preserve the sense of community, identity and culture within a firm. Property is much cheaper outside London and often this translates into larger, more spacious offices, but without compromising on the migration towards an agile work force, switching between home and the office. Plus, the working environment can often be more relaxed. For example, in a number of firms, we are seeing that individual fee-earner chargeable hour targets are being dropped in favour of a more collegiate, team-based approach. There is also a sense of your work playing an important role in the local community, so networking and engagement is actively encouraged.
5. Quality of work
A wealth of high-profile and headline-grabbing legal work is being done outside London, and many firms in the East and West Midlands undertake work of the highest quality for top blue-chip clients. A proportion of this work is drawn from London or internationally. In regional and national firms, being challenged technically, working with interesting, top-drawer clients, developing your profile and fulfilling your career ambitions does not need to be at the cost of pursuing life affirming commitments/interests outside of work. That ideal balance can be struck.
At Chadwick Nott, we have strong, long-standing relationships with law firms across the West and East Midlands, East Anglia and Northern Home Counties markets, from international firms and national heavyweights to mid-market regional firms and smaller boutique practices. We use our extensive connections to make sure you have access to the best opportunities - whether you are a junior lawyer or mid-level associate or a more experienced senior lawyer or partner.
You will find that many firms in the regions can offer an excellent platform to manage your life outside of work in a sensible way whilst also being fully engaged on high quality, cutting-edge work and having genuine scope to progress your career - whatever your aspirations might be. Here is a small selection of roles I am instructed on at present:
- Head of Commercial Litigation – Birmingham - J921951804
- Family Director – Worcester – J921952870
- Corporate Commercial Senior Associate – Shropshire - J921951826
- Employment Associate – Birmingham - J921951801
- Dispute Resolution 2+ - Remote - J921952920
- Private Wealth NQ-2 PQE – Birmingham - J921952964
For a confidential discussion, please contact Kate Sinclair at Chadwick Nott.
(t) 0121 200 5578
(m) 0792 100 1235
