Current trends in the law industry

With the onset and rise of the Covid-19 pandemic, the legal industry witnessed several paradigm shifts, with workplaces and education moving online worldwide. This poses a new threat with a hike in cybersecurity violations and cybercrimes, leading to rising demands of legal professionals specializing in cybersecurity. There are many other trends. The mass retirement of baby boomers, for example, is raising asset management and retirement plan markets, and a 33% rise in commercial bankruptcies needs legal officers to manage them. Then there’s also the efficiency-boosting measures taken by law firms that are expected to generate employment in other familiar and untapped avenues.

With a projected growth of 5%, which is faster than the average for other professions, law and legal services are a booming and bustling industry with vast potential.

8 of the top skills needed for law jobs

Law is a demanding career. It requires plenty of technical and hard skills, as well as soft skills. Technical skills help you perform the rudimentary part of your job well; for example, arbitration helps attorneys settle disputes without court involvement. In comparison, soft skills help you deal with the inevitable human contact and ensures smooth workflows and interactions. Technical skills are usually developed through on-the-job training and education, and guess what — so can soft skills. Learning how to be a better communicator, for example, requires understanding how and why people want to talk about a work issue. A healthy blend of soft skills and hard skills makes a person eligible for more jobs.

The following are the top six hard and soft skills required to attain a job in law:

• Legal research and writing

  Researching historical legal cases, looking up relevant rules and statutes, and learning about evidence analysis and persuasive legal writing is a recurrent part of a legal job. Accuracy in research and effective legal writing is necessary for both bar-certified legal professionals and legal assistants and paralegals.
  
  Legal writing is taught in most educational institutions for legal professionals as a part of the curriculum and can also be picked up by earning a certificate.

• Legal specialization

  Many legal professionals choose to specialize in various fields of law such as Environmental Law, Property Law, and Corporate Law. They may want to capitalize on emerging markets with favorable future growth by working on Technology or Patent Law. Or they may specialize in an area of law simply because they’re passionate about it or are well-paid and in-demand. You can learn more about various law specializations at academic institutions’ legal repositories, such as this one at Brown University. Law schools, remember, offer law degrees in general and distinct disciplines.

• A detail-orientated mind

  Making sure work is free from error needs thorough checking. Legal paperwork, successful inventory management, and taking witness testimonials all require incredible and focused attention to detail. This is a mindset that you can learn in school and improve through work and often helps you and your firm circumvent potential negligence lawsuits.

• Document preparation and evaluation

  Preparing documents like contracts, wills, subpoenas and dispositions used in court hearings and rendering other legal services is necessary for legal professionals. Evaluating paperwork, including that of opposing counsel, is a routine task. Legal secretaries and paralegals require these skills as much as attorneys.

• Case management

  In law, case management refers to managing, consolidating, and safekeeping information and data related to a case or matter using specific knowledge and methodologies. Most law firms, corporations, and government agencies use case management software to access information. Knowledge of legal case management software helps adhere to judicial policies and promotes overall efficiency. Popular case management software includes Westlaw and Lexis.

• Technical Literacy

  Owing to technological innovation, monotonous and repetitive tasks like legal e-discovery, case management, trial presentation, filing and documentation, and billing and transactions occur on computer systems online. People looking for jobs in this field need to have a working knowledge of software like MS Office, Nextpoint, Clio, OnCue, and many more. Even knowing about major social networks like Twitter, Instagram and Facebook is now crucial because so much of people’s lives are lived on those platforms that legal matters, like parental abuse or illegal traffic accidents, often start there or contain evidence.

• Organization

  The dynamic world of law has no room for error. Sometimes people’s livelihood, respect in society, and their future hang in the balance in a trial hearing. In such a charged and intense atmosphere, lack of organization could be a fatal problem. Systematic handling of documents, case files, bills and invoices, transactions, evidence, and exhibits need structured organization.

• Multitasking

  Simultaneously managing a heavy caseload, maintaining client interactions, keeping the attorney’s or lawyer’s work schedule, coordinating travel and events, and court reporting is no easy job. Research and assistance-based legal jobs demand multitasking ability as the individual needs to keep up with administrative and legal tasks.

Educational requirements for law jobs

Lawyers and attorneys need to have any specific educational, licensing, and state and federally sanctioned credentials. They require completing a Juris Doctor (J.D.) after their bachelor’s degree in any major. Most people who want to become an attorney must first get their bachelor’s degree in courses that prepare them for the rigorous academics of law school like political science and history. Still, you can apply with any degree, including technical and scientific ones like computer science and biology. Admission to a law school requires taking the LSATs (Law School Admission Test) and scoring high on the test. You can choose from various specializations like Health Care law, Labor law, and Admiralty law once you get into law school. After getting a J.D., attorneys need to take the bar examination for every state they want to practice law. Admission to the bar allows them to practice their craft and become a full-fledged lawyer.

Outside of those big legal jobs, others support them very important, such as in legal research or assistance. You can get on-the-job training, education, and certifications to help you gain technical skills, including legal research and writing. More than likely, a legal support job will require a bachelor’s or associate degree in political science, paralegal studies, or American law. Choosing to specialize in areas of law like Immigration law and Bankruptcy law is also beneficial. The American Bar Organization’s Directory of ABA Approved Paralegal Education programs contains a list of institutes providing diploma, Bachelor’s and associate courses used by legal assistants and secretaries.