The World of the In-house Lawyer

In this episode, Deepak Malhotra, Corporate Adviser and former senior in-house lawyer (General Counsel) explains how he developed his career as an in-house lawyer. He discusses the experience of moving to a role where from day 1 was literally ‘sitting amongst your clients’ in corporate business. Deepak speaks about the critical skills of communication, building trust, influencing, being proactive and how he saw his in-house team’s role as being ‘educators’ of the businesses he sat within.  The episode also explores the growth of in-house roles (with 1 in 4 solicitors now working in-house) and how that opens up opportunities to hold for roles in corporate businesses, government, charities and human rights organisations.  Finally, Deepak discusses the long-term career options, and the wide range of opportunities that in-house roles can offer to develop different skill-sets. This episode encourage listeners to undertake some practical actions after listening to the episode. Consider what interests you most. Do you want to be a deep, niche specialist in an area of law, or have a broader, commercial role?In your network, ask if anyone knows a solicitor who has an in-house legal role and seek an introduction.  Ask them what they enjoy about the role, and compare this conversation with another contact who works in private practice.Useful resources:Look at websites such as the ‘Association of Corporate Counsel’ where there are career resources and information about in-house roles.Explore what opportunities exist for in-house training contracts, and the different government or corporate entities which offer them.