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LocalGovernmentLawyer The Legal Department of the Future February 2016 41 to ask respondents whether they would prefer to be specialist or generalist lawyers 58 say that they would prefer to be specialist 22 generalist with the remaining 20 expressing no preference. The law is now so complex and fast- moving that the old generalist will disappear says one in-house lawyer. Clients appear to have more confidence in the advice given by specialist lawyers says another. That said the variety of work offered by local authority legal departments remains a significant attraction and the dilemma facing local government lawyers in this respect is succinctly summed up by one survey participant as follows The variety of local government work is the main reason for my job satisfaction and desire to remain in the sector. This is however balanced by the desire to have more certainty in having a specialism allowing you to provide more comprehensive advice in a faster and more direct manner. This pressure becomes more telling as further cuts take place resulting in clients referring issues for legal advice at a more crucial point than would otherwise have been the case. Shared services Given the potential demand for more specialist services from an individual authority is likely to be weak then the obvious place to develop more specialist roles would be within shared teams. Moreover if this was to enable an alternative career path for local government lawyers then that may also create some enthusiasm for shared services which is lacking at the moment. Most lawyers seem resigned to the growth of shared services rather than enthusiastic about them. The proportion of lawyers expecting to be part of a shared service in future has jumped from 21 to 31 on just two years but they are still a turn-off for a significant minority of local government lawyers 28 of whom say that they would be less likely to apply for a job in a shared services department compared with just 7 who would be more likely to. There needs to be more communication as to what the benefits are of a shared service as the majority of staff are struggling to see the benefits says one respondent. When asked what effect being employed in a shared services department has on key aspects of lawyers working lives and careers a majority are positive about the effect on the quality and variety of the work they do and career development and training prospects and neutral on the impact on support and facilities job security culture and perhaps surprisingly on their relationship with their clients. A small majority are negative about the effect of shared services on pay and conditions and a large majority think that working in a shared services team will have a negative impact on the manageability of their workloads and the location of their offices. The experience is very different from working for one authority or even two says one employee of a shared service. Once you move above that the dynamics are different and the cultural variations between your clients is very significant. A large shared service is both the best and the worst place to work in times of austerity. Trading out of trouble There is more positivity amongst in- house lawyers about working in a department offering external legal services however. When asked about their attitudes towards working for external clients 62 agree with the statement that the growth in providing legal services to other organisations is an opportunity for me to acquire new experience and skills compared with 24 who agree with the statement that it was not the reason I joined local government and a risk to the public sector ethos. The remaining 14 agree that it is a necessary evil if it improves job security. Meanwhile and in contrast to the prospect of working in a shared services department almost as many respondents 19 say they would be more likely to apply for a job in a team with a high number of external clients as the number About the surveys Two surveys were conducted between July and November 2015. The first surveyed heads of legal at local authorities in England and Wales on the management issues they face and their plans for the future. 100 heads of legal took part. The average department size was 26 and the breakdown by type of authority is as follows First tier authority 17 Second tier authority 34 Unitary authority 26 London Borough 14 Metropolitan authority 9 The second survey on careers and job satisfaction issues was conducted amongst the local authority lawyers that subscribe to the Local Government Lawyer newsletter. 312 lawyers took part in the survey. The results of both were compared with previous management and careers surveys conducted in 2012 and 2013 respectively.