What exactly is an ABS and why is this relevant to Law students and graduates?

An ABS stands for "Alternative Business Structure" and this is relevant to Law students and graduates because they are part of the changing legal landscape of England and Wales.

ABS came about as a result of the Legal Services Act of 2007.  It allowed non lawyers to offer legal services alongside other business areas and became known as "Tesco Law".  It was actually the Co-op that became one of the first to get its ABS licence and was closely followed by the AA, Direct Line and Saga.  Then some established law firms such as Irwin Mitchell and Weightmans also joined the ABS group.  PWC was the first of the big four accountancy practices to get its licence and now offers legal training contracts, as does EY.

What does being an ABS mean for organisations?

For law firms, it means that they can be managed by non-lawyers and can attract external investment. For organisations like the Co-op it means they can offer legal services alongside their established businesses such as funeral care and insurance, thus widening the market for the consumer.

What does the establishment of ABS mean for students and graduates?

Although there are now over 500 ABS licensed organisations, this hasn't led to a massive change in legal recruitment yet.  However, it could lead to more jobs for paralegals which is good news for LLB graduates unsure about going straight on to the LPC without a training contract.

One such firm is Riverview Law, based on the Wirral.  Riverview provides business legal services  to its customers using a fixed price model working to support in-house legal teams, for example.  Riverview employs paralegals (or Business Law Executives as it calls them).  It then recruits trainee solicitors from those paralegals.  Some of our University of Chester LLB graduates are now trainees at Riverview Law.

ABS has certainly got a foothold in the market for legal services so every Law student and graduate should be aware of them.

Have you got a LinkedIn profile? Are you using LinkedIn to look for jobs?

If not, you could be missing out on job opportunities. LinkedIn is the world's biggest professional networking site.  More and more organisations are using LinkedIn as a recruitment platform.  It's really easy to get your profile launched.  Just sign up at www.linkedin.com and follow the step-by-step instructions.

Here's a few hints and tips to help you set up your LinkedIn profile:

1. Choose a photo that creates a professional impression. 
2. Headline - this is the first piece of information anyone will read about you so make it interesting and eye-catching.  Don't just say "Student".
3. Customise the URL that LinkedIn gives you to make it more personal.  Click the edit button and revise
4. Summary - This should contain 150-200 words outlining your career goals and achievements. You can also add links to blogs and videos here as well.
5. Experience - Use this section for any paid work or legal work experience
6. Voluntary experience and causes - any volunteering you may have done
7. Education - give details of your degree subject and where you studied.
8. Skills and endorsements - add skills that define your professional role, experiences and contributions.
9. You can also add any languages you speak.

There is some really useful information to help you develop your profile on the LinkedIn website - https://university.linkedin.com/linkedin-for-students

Follow my online training guide - How to make a perfect LinkedIn profile

More and more employers are advertising jobs on LinkedIn so get started with your profile today!

Alternative Legal Careers event University of Chester Wednesday 22 March - Book now

According to the Law Society only around 50% of students on a Law degree actually go on to become solicitors or barristers.  So, what do the other 50% do?

There is no doubt that a Law degree gives you a whole host of transferable skills.  This means that these skills can be adapted and used in other careers.  You may decide to go into a career area that is legally related such as paralegal or Legal Executive work, law costs, legal research etc. Even if you decide to do something completely different, skills such as essay writing, research, advocacy and debating are all transferable to other graduate jobs.

The majority of employers, outside of specialist areas such as medicine or engineering, do not specify a degree subject when recruiting. They want to hire you because you are a graduate and you bring along the skills gained from studying for any degree.

In order to give you some insight into alternative legal careers, as a starting point, 

Careers and Employability has arranged an afternoon of speakers on Wednesday 22 March from 1.30 - 3.30pm in Binks 013.

At 1.30pm there will be a presentation on the CILEX route to qualification as a Legal Executive.

At 2.30pm the University of Law will present on alternative legal careers.

To secure your place please book via Events on CareerHub here