“Career progression is not about handing out business cards. It’s about building real relationships”

I do wonder if post-pandemic working has made relationship building in the office harder for junior lawyers. If you’re only in twice a week, and the people you need to meet are in on other days, that’s a new complication.

This means you need to take more of a proactive approach and plan further ahead. For example, it might be a matter of asking, “Are you around in two Tuesdays’ time? Let's meet up for a coffee.”

Creating connections

I threw myself into the legal community from a very early point in my career, which I couldn't recommend more highly. I was a member of the London Young Lawyers Group committee from day one as a trainee. I later became its chair, before stepping down in 2022.

We launched local campaigns such as partnering with some amazing pro bono organisations operating in the capital, in the hope of boosting volunteer numbers.

It was here that I found my support network. There are some pressures that you can't talk about at home or discuss with your friends because it’s not their world. We were all junior lawyers coming up together. We bumped into each other at different events, awards and dinners. It's those people that have supported me throughout my career. The good, the bad and the ugly.

There are some really talented creative people in my network that have gone on to do incredible things. Having them around me, seeing the career routes they've taken, in all sorts of different directions, has inspired me to create my own path too.

Oliver hosting an AI panel.

New ways of networking

From very early on, even at law school, we’re told to go out and build a powerful network. Go to events, build your skills and bring work into the firm.

It struck me that much of the networking space in the wider corporate world just hadn't moved on in about 20 years. My dad was coming home from these sorts of events many moons ago.

I started The Careers Edit to run cross-industry social networking events that people would actually be excited to go to, not feel like they are at work after work.

I wanted to create a safe space where people could learn and share, with charismatic speakers that really resonated. People who had skills in coaching and educating.

We cover wellbeing, networking and skills – I’ve been very close to people that have really struggled with their mental health and wellbeing. I know my industry, law, places a unique set of pressures on people. The hours are often very long. The pressure is high.

We also want to get people active, for example through fitness classes – but with an element of networking. We need environments where people feel comfortable enough to create genuine relationships.

Ultimately, career progression is not about handing out business cards and hoping for work. For me, it’s about building real relationships. I want to help others to progress, support my own career goals and industry passions, and win business for the firm. There is often a natural synergy in all of those things.

A Careers Edit summer party.

Building a profile

I realised the importance of building my professional profile later on in my career. Initially it happened as a byproduct of the people I surrounded myself with. For example, featuring on the podcasts of contacts that I’d met through networking.

I do remember thinking that writing articles would be a good way to promote my expertise, and contacting industry publications to ask if I could draft something.

But it wasn't a conscious decision. Now I am very much aware that building a presence online is vital.

I am quite intentional about the audience I am trying to build. The sweet spot tends to be business owners and those operating in the small and medium-sized enterprise (SME) market. There is a lot of crossover between my own interests and that of my wider network – I’m lucky in the sense that what I like to post about tends to resonate with my community.

Oliver says he is "intentional" about the audience he's trying to build online.

Moulding my role in the firm

My firm, Weightmans, is ahead of the game in the innovation space. We’re growing and ambitious. If you look at the big legal technology events, you’ll see people from Weightmans on the panels.

I love that about the firm. They’re forward-thinking in the roles we have, too. As well as being a fee-earner in the litigation department, I work with the product and innovation team as an ‘innovation partner’. We create new services and offerings to solve problems for our clients.

I still love being a litigator, but it’s nice to have some time to switch on a different part of my brain and be creative.

It strengthens our client relationships too. As litigators, to be able to say to clients, “We have developed a technical solution that could help reduce the number of claims against you, so you don’t have to come to us”, is the level on which we want to operate. Because if we don’t provide these solutions, someone else will.

The market shifting is an opportunity for junior lawyers to think about what their roles might look like in the future, if they take an interest in solving clients’ problems and remaining competitive.

Different firms have different approaches. My ‘innovation partner’ role is part of Weightman’s wider innovation strategy, trying to involve staff at all levels across the firm.

I’ve heard of other firms who simply have a timecode that anyone across the organisation can use to come up with ideas, or innovative solutions. Some might build this into solicitors’ yearly targets.

Oliver speaking at an event.

Career pathways

Being agile and alive to change in our industry is something that is going to be an absolute necessity. It's going to look very different in five years.

Really think about the type of career that you want. I think there can be a misconception in law schools that there are only 15 law firms in the world, and that going into law means ‘Big Law’ and being a full-time fee-earner.

Or that it means you must aspire to be a partner, get huge wages and be working until all hours.

That is not how a legal career has to look in 2025 and beyond.

I have great friends who absolutely loved the fast-pace, high pressure, long hours and big wages. I have others that didn’t.

There are lots of different career avenues within the legal sphere that didn’t exist a few years ago – and others that don’t exist yet. Keep your options and eyes open.

Top five networking tips for those who don’t feel confident

1. Do it your way: find what works for you. If you don’t like big networking events with hundreds in the room; then try one-to-one.
2. Don’t hang around: start building your network as soon as possible. In years to come, you will have long-term, meaningful relationships with key decision-makers as your contacts rise through the ranks.
3. Maximise your time: you can’t go out networking every day. When you do carve out time, try inviting a few of your contacts along to events too (particularly if you think they might be of value to each other).
4. Diversity is key: diversity of thought and skills is vital for creating opportunities as your career progresses.
5. Don’t be ‘all take’: real relationships are not transactional. Be genuine and see where you might be able to help those around you. Eventually you will start to see those opportunities come your way.