Rachel Carter, Head of Peerpoint in Asia Pacific and Middle East, talks about the rising demand for Australia’s legal talent to work across borders to meet the needs of in-house teams from international organisations.
Through my time with Peerpoint, I’ve witnessed a rising demand for Australian legal consultants to work across borders to meet the needs of our international clients – and for good reason. Taking on a legal consultant can be a cost-effective way to access a wider pool of highly skilled legal professionals, but without the overheads and long-term commitment required when hiring permanently.
As a flatter legal market takes hold in Australia, the Australian Financial Review Law Partnership Survey has shown that fewer lawyers are seeking opportunities abroad, with lower attrition levels among senior associate level lawyers in 2023.1 However, this isn’t to say that international work has lost its appeal. What’s changing is the fact that gaining international experience no longer requires physical relocation, as was previously the case.
This is what makes Peerpoint an attractive option to both lawyers and legal function leaders.
Global experiences for Australia-based lawyers
Peerpoint has on-the-ground operations in the UK, U.S., UAE and Asia, and the Peerpoint management team in Australia has visibility of the consulting roles available in each of those markets at any one time, meaning that we can bring these opportunities to our consultants in a meaningful way.
When we first meet lawyers interested in joining Peerpoint, we look to understand their level of interest in international opportunities, whether that’s on a remote, fly-in-fly-out and/or relocation basis. With an understanding of the markets they are interested in working in, as well as their global mobility and flexibility in working hours, we are able to use A&O Shearman’s extensive global client network to proactively identify and generate opportunities aligned to their preferences.
Connecting global in-house teams with the legal talent they need
Australia is a high-quality, low-cost jurisdiction for legal talent. The quality of Australia’s legal talent is driven by our high-ranking universities renowned for their exceptional law programs,2 the affordability of legal education,3 and the significant number of dual qualified Australian lawyers.
This, coupled with Australia's global trade participation, linguistic proficiency and strong regulatory framework positions it as an international hub capable of supporting a wide range of clients, including those from different cultures and in various languages. At Peerpoint, we see ourselves as a dynamic resourcing platform that makes the most of what the Australian legal market has to offer, in order to support clients navigating their legal challenges.
It is widely known that market salaries and rates for lawyers in Australia sit below those that their peers achieve in other key economic centres, such as the UAE, Hong Kong, the UK and the U.S. This makes engaging an Australia-based lawyer a cost-effective proposition for a legal function in these markets.
For the Australian lawyer, the remuneration that can be achieved in working remotely for an international client is often higher than what can be achieved with a local client, meaning that the arrangement makes good commercial sense from both sides and ensures the experience is as rewarding for our legal consultants as it is for our in-house clients.
The pandemic has opened our minds to what might be possible on a remote basis, and this shift has been advantageous for buyers of legal services. It opens up possibilities for a more agile workforce capable of managing variable workloads, reducing costs, and increasing efficiency.
To find out more, get in touch with our team here.
1 Maxim Shanahan,“Young lawyers want to holiday, not work, in New York” AFR Online, Dec 13, 2023, https://www.afr.com/companies/professional-services/young-lawyers-want-to-holiday-not-work-in-new-york-20231204-p5eoy7
2 “World University Rankings 2024 by subject: law”, The Times Higher Education, https://www.timeshighereducation.com/world-university rankings/2024/subject-ranking/law
3 Sharon Masige, Samantha Stokes, and Hayley Hudson “A law student in France can pay nothing for tuition and earn a $35,000 starting salary. Here's how prospective lawyers fare in 9 countries around the world.” Business Insider, 14 Mar 2021, https://www.businessinsider.com/how-much-does-law-school-cost-australia-france-spain-2021-2