In-house support for in-house solicitors

Hi Beth, what’s your role at the Law Society?

Hi! I’m part of the Member Services team and my job is to support our in-house members. As part of our new strategy, Leading Legal Excellence, the Society created a new refocused full-time role last year, which recognises how significant the in-house community has become.

More and more lawyers are working in-house, so it’s crucial that we understand what’s important to them and what the Society can do to help. It’s a really varied role and I’m just getting started – I’m sure it’s going to be challenging and rewarding in equal measures.

I also work closely with the Society’s In-house Lawyers Committee. There are 14 committee members with very diverse backgrounds, from financial services to the RAF, and from London to Stornoway. It’s a bit like a microcosm of the whole in-house community and they’re really committed to representing their fellow in-house lawyers.

Sounds exciting, so tell us about the new guide for in-house solicitors…

I hope that the new guide will be a really useful resource for all in-house lawyers, but I think it will be particularly helpful for those who have recently made the move in-house, or anyone who’s thinking about it.

The guide covers some of the key characteristics of working in-house and sets out some important rules and regulations. It’s also got some practical tips on things like privilege, FOI requests and instructing external counsel.

We’ve had valuable input from right across the in-house community and we’ve added a few words of wisdom from some very experienced in-house lawyers. It’s great to be able to include these insights – a big thanks to everyone who contributed.

How can other in-house members get involved with the work of the Society?

Well, for a start, get in touch! Part of my role is to get out and speak to our in-house members about their work and find out what the Society could be doing to better support them.

If anyone wants to know more about what we’re doing, share any concerns or just connect, I’d love to hear from them. Thoughts and suggestions for seminars, news features, or networking events are also very welcome.

We’re also going to start a regular in-house blog so that there will be a forum for our members to share their experiences of different aspects of working in-house. It’s open to anyone to contribute, so if you’re already a keen blogger or want to give it a go, just let me know!

The new guide for in-house solicitors is available on the Society’s website.

To find out more about the Society’s work to support in-house lawyers follow @In_houseLawyers on Twitter, join the dedicated In-House Law Scotland Linkedin Group or visit www.lawscot.org.uk/members/in-house-lawyers/