Law

What is the Legal Sector?

Ideal Candidate for the Legal Sector

Opportunities & Musts at IEU

Application & Recruitment

Additional Resources

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In the Legal sector we can mainly find law firms. There are also consulting firms that provide legal services and Alternative Legal Services Providers (ALSPs).

SOME EXAMPLES

MAIN LEGAL ROLES

After studying law, graduates have a broad range of career options. These include traditional legal roles (such as pursuing the qualifications required to become a lawyer or attorney in each country) as well as positions as legal advisor or in-house counsel/lawyer within corporate legal departments.

  • Lawyer and Attorney: Lawyers and attorneys are qualified to represent clients in legal proceedings. They typically work in law firms, consulting firms or ALSPs that provide legal services.
  • Legal Advisor and In-house Counsel/Lawyer: Legal Advisors and In-house Counsels/Lawyers are not qualified to represent clients in legal proceedings but provide legal advice on legal matters. They usually work within the legal department of international or private companies, providing advice on specific or several legal topics. These departments ensure that the company operates in compliance with applicable laws and regulations.

To strengthen their professional profile and broaden their career prospects, law graduates often pursue additional training or specialization, or qualify as Lawyers/Attorneys:

  • Undergraduate legal studies can be further complemented by postgraduate degrees in specialized areas (such as Intellectual Property Law, Environmental Law, International Business Law, Legal Technology, or Labor Relations, among others).
  • While qualification as a Lawyer/Attorney is not always a prerequisite for applying to roles within multinational private companies, this depends on the country. Nevertheless, completing the qualification route in a given jurisdiction can enhance your professional profile for many roles and keep the option open to practise law in the future as a Lawyer/Attorney."

QUALIFIED LAWYERS

Key considerations for those interested in becoming qualified lawyers

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OUTSIDE THE LEGAL SECTOR

For those interested in practicing law, but not in the legal sector

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Explore alternative career paths for students with a background in law by watching this webinar.

LAW FIRMS

MAIN PLAYERS
Law firms can be classified by different criteria. Some criteria are:

  • Size / number of employees
  • Business volume/number of transactions
  • International presence
  • Featured practice areas

The best source of information to obtain updated classifications are official rankings, for examples:

  • Chambers and Partners
  • Expansión Jurídico
  • The Legal 500

STRUCTURE

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Professional career

Lifestyle

PRACTICAL ACTIVITY

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DESIRED PROFILE/RELEVANT SKILLS

The ideal candidate combines the right profile with strong motivation. Key traits include:

  • Reasoning and problem solving skills
  • Communication skills (both oral and written, correct grammar and spelling to write coherently and with cohesion)
  • Client-orientation
  • Detail-orientation
  • Teamwork skills
  • Ability to work under pressure
  • IT skills (MS Office)
  • High GPA
  • Languages
  • Extracurricular activities: additional courses, previous internship experience, volunteer work, etc. (Check the section "Opportunities and Musts during your time at IEU")
  • Don’t mind long working hours

MOTIVATION

  • Show your passion towards becoming a lawyer in the near future.
  • Show your passion towards the specific firm you are applying to. Why do you want to join that specific firm?
  • Show your motivation towards the specific internship program/position they offer.

For the second point, take into account the reasons for joining the firm both at the professional level (industries or legal practice areas in which they are strong, deals in which they have been involved, etc) and at the personal level (if you are attracted by and comfortable with the culture, values and environment of the firm).

Additionally, your studies at IE contribute to your profile in all the following aspects. Keep all of them in mind and highlight those that are relevant during the application process when appropriate (application materials, interviews, etc.).

  • You have a global/international approach to law (comparative law studies), thus, a multidisciplinary approach to solving complex legal problems.
  • You have studied different jurisdictions and this is very relevant in multinational law firms and companies.
  • You are able to interpret legal documents in English and your native language/s.
  • You are trained in Negotiation, Analytical and Logical Reasoning, Decision-making, Communication, Client Service.
  • Your studies have a focus on the Humanities, you acquire the necessary tools to both analyse the ideas of others and defend your own.
  • Your studies are oriented towards business and technology.
  • You can complement your studies with electives in different topics - highlight those that can be relevant. For example, if you study the Spanish Business Law track, make sure to include that information in your applications to law firms based in Spain.

TAILORING YOUR CV FOR LAW

Remember that in order to prepare your CV, you must follow the IE CV template and the instructions that you can find on the Career Development Training (CDT) (blackboard.ie.edu > Courses > Career Development).

Additionally, on the left,  you can find relevant tips for tailoring your CV for the Law Sector.

PRACTICAL ACTIVITY: CV CUSTOMIZATION

1. Tailor your CV using the keywords and key insights. Use the IE CV that you prepared for the CDT as your base.
2. Upload the tailor CV as a one- page PDF to the Career Portal (Documents tab) so you can use it in your applications.

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Opportunities & Musts During Your Time at IEU

Here you have different kind of activities through which you can start gaining relevant experience from the beginning of your studies. We highly recommend getting involved in these activities to build an attractive profile for the firms.

ACTIVITIES TO GAIN RELEVANT EXPERIENCE

  • Virtual Work Experience Programs

    Simulations of the work done at leading companies.

    For example: The Forage (free resource) - you can participate in simulations of firms such as Latham & Watkins, White & Case, King & Wood Mallesons, and many others. You can access The Forage’s website here.

  • IE Clubs

    Join relevant IE Clubs. Law Society, IE Ethics and Compliance Club, Debate Club (For further information: campus.life@ie.edu).

    • Law Society: they organize sessions, spread opportunities and provide relevant information on the legal sector.
    • Debate Club: you can join mock debates and improve your debate skills.

  • Competitions and Events

    Participate in Competitions and Events. For example: LLB Academic Department usually organizes the “Roman Law Challenge”, the “European Union Law Challenge” and the “Commercial Law Challenge”. They will inform targeted students when appropriate.

  • Volunteer Work

    Collaborating with NGOs / Foundations. Hacesfalta.org, Fundación Lealtad, The Borgen Project, UN Volunteers (online), UNICEF, etc.

PRACTICAL ACTIVITY: ENHANCING YOUR PROFILE

  • Complete at least 1 virtual experience on The Forage's website.
  • Join the IE sector-specific clubs of your interest and be an active member.
  • Attend at least 3 sector-specific events per year (workshops, company presentations, roundtables, lectures, etc).
  • Attend the Careers Forum for the Legal sector and any other recruiting events organized with companies from the legal sector.

What have you done so far and/or do you plan on doing in the upcoming years to enhance your profile?

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Application & Recruitment Process (Law Firms)

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OPPORTUNITIES & WHEN TO APPLY

In the two images below, you can see examples of opportunities included in the Talent & Careers Weekly Newsletter from past academic years.

HOW TO APPLY TO OPPORTUNITIES

  • Law Firms’ Websites

    Law firms centralize their recruitment processes via their websites. Do research and create your list of “target” firms. Apply directly through their websites!

  • Career Fairs

    • SPANISH MARKET: Legal Talent Fair (Feria de Talento Jurídico) - usually in October and January. Here you can find the firms that will be participating in the academic year 2024-2025 events
    • INTERNATIONAL MARKET: Careers Forum - usually in March.
      Information will be sent via email when it corresponds - check your inbox!

  • Talent & Careers Weekly Newsletter

    Events, company presentations, internship and job opportunities, search engines. Download the Excel sheet in order to filter opportunities by function, location, starting date, duration, etc.

    Please note that in this newsletter you will find legal roles in the legal sector and also in companies of other sectors (legal department of multinational companies).

  • IE Career Portal

    IE CAREER PORTAL IE’s platform where internship and job opportunities are posted. CV adapted to the EU CV template is necessary to apply.

  • Additional Search Engines

  • Networking

    Attend law-related events to generate relevant contacts. Identify people in your network related to the firms of your interest.

RECRUITMENT PROCESS

As mentioned before, law firms want to identify talented people who match the firm and have the required skills for the position. Throughout the process you must show:

  • Motivation towards the legal profession, the specific firm and the position.
  • You have the necessary skills to successfully perform.

Preparation is the key to success! Research the company and be updated on recent news in the legal sector.

USUAL STEPS:

  • Online application
  • Online or on-site tests
  • Group Exercises
  • Interviews

CLICK TO VIEW LARGER IMAGE

Online application

Tests (online or on-site)

Group exercises

Interviews (I)

Interviews (II)

Interviews (III)

Remember that in this website you can find webinars and useful resources in order to get ready for these steps of the recruitment process.

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Additional Resources

  • LEGAL PRACTICE AREAS: In the two following links, you can find information about different practice areas and what skills you need to succeed in each one.

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