Progression for Qualified Attorneys

BUILDING A BUSNESS CASE FOR PARTNERSHIP

Gone are the days where simply being good at your job, knowing the right people, spending time on the golf course, and generally being a good egg, are good enough to tick the boxes for partnership.

In today's commercially competitive market, firms select their partners, the future owners of their business, on the value they can add to the existing practice. This can come in several forms:

• The ability to introduce new clients and / or work referrers
• The ability to introduce new work from existing clients, referrers or contacts
• The ability to manage others to increase their productivity and therefore the turnover for the practice
• The ability to train others to develop their technical knowledge and experience, to motivate them to commit to the practice and ensure its future security

Whether you're looking for promotion to partnership within your existing practice, or seeking a move to a different firm as a partner or partner designate, our consultants are experienced in advising how best to provide the necessary evidence to establish your business case, and how to present yourself as a partnership candidate.

ADVICE FOR OVERSEAS ATTORNEYS

Sacco Mann often gets enquiries from overseas attorneys who are interested in furthering their career in the UK or Europe. The level to which we are able to help varies depending on a number of factors.

Industry Vs Practice

Generally speaking, the majority of UK Patent and Trade Mark Practices will require you to cross qualify with the UK examinations (see separate 'Route to Qualification' article). The obvious impact of this is clearly on salary. A typical London salary for a trainee is around the £35k - £45k mark depending on previous experience, although do bear in mind though that once you reach qualified status within a good firm you can expect in excess of around £70k - £80k per annum.

Within the Industry sector, companies have considerably more freedom to recruit candidates who suit their business and IP portfolio most closely. An example would be a UK or European base of a US head-quartered business that needs a US attorney on site in either the UK or Europe due to the amount of US work in the business generally. The type of qualifications required will depend according to the business and the location, but commonly companies will have a preference for attorneys who are European qualified, whereas they may not be as concerned about UK qualifications.

Consequently, we regularly advise candidates from the US, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, China, and South Africa, where large multi-nationals frequently have their headquarters.

Patents Vs Trade Marks

Notwithstanding the above advice which is more predominantly aimed at Patent Attorneys, candidates who have an overseas qualification in Trade Marks also need to cross qualify in the UK. While candidates are able to handle formalities / administrative roles in the meantime, ultimately to practice in the UK you will require a UK qualification.

Typical jurisdictions from which candidates seek to cross qualify include Australia, New Zealand, South Africa and other EU Countries.

How can Sacco Mann help Overseas Attorneys?

We occasionally receive instructions on Industry roles where our clients are either actively or potentially looking to consider overseas attorneys for the reasons above. We rarely recruit candidates directly from an overseas jurisdiction into a UK Private Practice.

However, we can and do assist candidates who have first qualified in an overseas jurisdiction once they have built up a couple of year's experience in the UK and are on route to UK qualification.