With diminished career prospects at home many solicitors have hit the road in search of work
MORE THAN 1,000 solicitors in Ireland cannot find work at present, with many of those who have jobs only able to work part-time. As each batch of graduating solicitors passes through the gates of Blackhall Place, the problem is exacerbated. Each year since 2009, an average of 700 people have qualified as solicitors. Many of these cannot find work while the luckier ones have been left with little choice but to accept dramatic pay cuts.
Law Society of Ireland president John Costello did not sugar-coat future prospects for young lawyers in his address to the latest crop of solicitors who received their scrolls in Blackhall Place last year.
In the opening three minutes of his short speech, he talked of the fear, panic, anger and sense of crisis that many in the hall were feeling as they embarked on a career in which many of the opportunities they once would have taken for granted had all but dried up.
Law firms throughout the country are culling solicitors due to a decline in work, particularly in areas such as conveyancing. But amid all the cutbacks, an increasing number of graduates are taking up legal positions abroad.
ALAN DEVLIN, ASSOCIATE AT LATHAM & WATKINS, SAN FRANCISCO
Working abroad is a viable option for young Irish solicitors struggling to find work, according to Alan Devlin, an associate in the San Francisco office of US firm Latham Watkins.
“It’s a tragedy of our time that circumstances have forced so many young Irish people to emigrate when they would have preferred not to do so. For those Irish lawyers who are struggling to find attractive employment at home, though, it’s sensible to consider opportunities overseas. US employers know that Irish lawyers are well educated and have a lot to offer,” he says.
Devlin, who moved to San Francisco from Dublin earlier this year, says the number of job opportunities in the United States has shrunk from its peak in 2007, but is nowhere near to vanishing point.
“The market for entry-level lawyers in America, unfortunately, is still in distress. Irish law graduates will thus face challenges, but the good news is that opportunities out here still exist.”
However, Devlin who grew up in Dublin and attended UCD, before going on to study law at the University of Chicago and Stanford University, is quick to stress that Irish graduates who have also studied in the US have a better chance of securing work there.
“I know many Irish lawyers who have enjoyed tremendous success over the past several years. Some have got into leading US law schools, others have joined prominent international law firms in New York, California, and elsewhere, and others still have launched their own legal practices. What each person had in common, however, was a willingness to pursue a US postgraduate degree before seeking employment out here,” he says.
But there are certain disadvantages, he says. “American law firms are less generous with holidays than their Irish counterparts.”
MICHAEL GILL, COMMERCIAL LAWYER AT THIESS PTY, BRISBANE
Michael Gill, a commercial lawyer with Thiess Pty in Brisbane, thinks the opportunities for Irish law graduates in Australia are “fantastic, both in terms of financial gain and exposure to different working practices and cultures”.
Gill moved to Australia in December 2011 following a two-year stint with Dublin law firm Hussey Fraser. He currently works with the legal and contract services team at Thiess, one of Australia’s leading mining, construction and services contractors.
He got the job with Thiess through a contact he met while working as a trainee solicitor with law firm Arthur Cox, and stresses the importance of contacts (and luck) when finding work abroad. “I met a contact from Arthur Cox who is now the general counsel of Thiess. He needed assistance with a large international arbitration and offered me a short-term contract which was made permanent a few months back.”
While he does not think it is difficult for Irish law graduates to get work in Australia, he says a lot of recruiters are unwilling to talk to Irish qualified lawyers who have not yet been admitted in Australia despite the fact that it is common practice for the mid-top tier firms to hire Irish solicitors. While he does think recently qualified solicitors should consider working outside Ireland, “it is always preferable to head abroad with some professional experience behind you before entering the ‘unknown’,”he says.
CIARA GAFFNEY, LAWYER IN HENRY DAVID YORK, SYDNEY
Taking conversion exams to qualify as a lawyer in the country you are moving to increases your job prospects as it shows employers that you are in for the long haul, according to Sydney-based lawyer Ciara Gaffney.
The UCC law graduate and Irish qualified solicitor moved to Australia in December 2008 to experience living and working abroad. She spent a couple of years working as a corporate lawyer in Sydney-based law firm Gilbert + Tobin before moving to Henry Davis York.
“You can practise as a foreign qualified lawyer in Australia if you have qualified in Ireland. Australia is also a common law jurisdiction, and the process for obtaining a visa is relatively straightforward. If you sit the conversion exams to qualify as a lawyer in Australia though, it shows employers you are committed to staying in Australia,” she says.
Experience is important but even if you have not gained post-qualification experience in Ireland, there are still opportunities in Australia, according to Gaffney. “When arriving in Sydney, Irish lawyers can contact firms directly, contact recruitment agents and make contacts in the legal industry.”
She advises young Irish solicitors thinking of emigrating to Australia to get their foot in the door of an Australian firm, before applying for lawyer positions.
“I know people who have started working in Sydney law firms as paralegals initially, to gain local Australian legal experience and get to know people in the industry, and who have then been hired as lawyers by these firms.”