Navigating the different areas of practice within law can be a daunting business. Luckily, we're here to help. Here, we'll talk you through a few key areas of practice in which you could specialise, as well as providing advice on the best way to make up your mind.
Banking and finance law represents an extremely large international sector that involves various industries and overlaps with many other practice areas. Banking and finance lawyers deal either with the borrowing of money or the management of financial liabilities, and their job is to negotiate and record the contractual relationship that exists between borrowers and lenders, and to ensure that the best legal and commercial interests of their clients are protected in loan agreements.
Some lawyers love the law, but unfortunately have lost interest in their chosen specialty. Before they become totally burned out, they might consider changing their area of practice (AOP), but they should fully understand the implications before making the move.
Here's how to pick the best area of law for you.
A core area of law, it's likely that you've encountered contract law as part of your degree or training contract. Here's what life is like if you take contract law further, and specialise in it as an area of practice.
Corporate law concerns general corporate legal matters, including the formation, operations and incorporation, rights of directors and shareholders, articles of association, board meetings, secretarial mattes and the public listing of companies.
Find out more about employment law as a legal practice area.
EU law is a system of law that’s specific to all the members of the European Union, which overrules the national law of each member country if there’s a conflict between its national law and the EU law.
Financial markets is a breathtakingly diverse area of practice. It includes numerous sectors such as capital markets, commodity and energy trading, financial services, restructuring/insolvency, Islamic finance and related areas. The good news is that demand for financial services lawyers is increasing, and the field is quite lucrative. The bad news is that it’s extremely competitive to break into and, like a jealous mistress, it’s very demanding on your time and energy.
In order to be recognised in your chosen field, you need to ensure that you’re acquiring relevant training and experience. Here are the things you can do to make sure you’re making the most of your opportunities to reach your full potential.
According to the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO), intellectual property encompasses the “creations of the mind, such as inventions; literary and artistic works; designs; and symbols, names and images used in commerce”.
Litigation lawyers help clients resolve civil disputes. Litigation in the UK can involve a large number of legal issues, such as:
Although personal injury lawyers suffer from derogatory stereotypes such as the “ambulance chaser” label, most practitioners find this area of practice both lucrative and emotionally satisfying. Since the practice of personal injury law differs greatly from its public reputation, it’s important that you become aware of its dynamics before you decide to pursue it as a career.
In a nutshell, private client lawyers help high net worth individuals, families and trusts manage their wealth. This area of practice, defined as it is by the identity of the client than by the nature of the work that’s done, overlaps other areas of practice such as tax law. Some similarities exist with corporate law, because you’re likely to spend quite a bit of time working with private charities.
Shipping law deals with the movement of goods and passengers by sea. It’s divided into two categories: ‘wet shipping’, which involves incidents that occur during an actual voyage, and ‘dry shipping’, which concerns most other legal matters connected with the shipping industry. Here’s a breakdown of what being a shipping lawyer in the UK might entail:
Sport and media law is one option into which you could qualify.
When it comes to practicing tax law in the UK, the good news and the bad news is the same, depending on your point of view – the UK maintains some of the most complex and rapidly-changing tax laws in the world. From a taxpayer’s point of view, this represents a headache. From the point of view of an ambitious tax lawyer, however, it represents opportunity.
Find out more about TMT law as a qualified area of practice.
When most people think of torts (if they are familiar with the term at all), they think of personal injury law. Although personal injury law certainly accounts for a major portion of tort law, the field is much broader than this.