Legal Village

The unloved lawyer

Posted 18/07/2007 by Bill Knight

As the six readers of this blog will be aware, I would seriously like to know why nobody wants a City solicitor on their board. Our firms are some of the most successful in the world – particularly internationally – but very few of us get a good job when we retire from practice in our 50s. Former senior partners are not represented on the board of the Financial Services Authority or the Court of the Bank of England. In the Us, each of the five commissioners of the SEC is a lawyer.

Last month I chaired a seminar at Oxford University’s Said Business School, sponsored by the City of London Law Society, which tried to answer these questions. We enjoyed a brisk and candid debate, but what we heard was uncomfortable for solicitors. It echoed what chairmen and CEOs had already told me. They did not like the lawyer’s mindset: ‘Prepared to debate, but not prepared to agree’; ‘never prepared to be wrong’; ‘just a craft industry’; ‘don’t give me a lawyer - I’m in enough trouble already’.

The subject aroused interest in the City firms – particularly from the senior partners! Of the 50 who came to the seminar, approximately 30 were City lawyers, with the rest from a wide variety of backgrounds. Business was represented by Bob Ayling and Clare Spottiswoode; the public sector by Pam Chesters, chair of the Royal Free Hampstead NHS Trust, and Eve Salomon from the Better Regulation Commission; and the voluntary sector by David Isaac, chair of Stonewall and Modern Art Oxford and a partner at Pinsent Masons. The speakers also included Mairi Eastwood from Praesta, who is an executive coach, and Simon Kingston, a headhunter from Russell Reynolds.

What is to be done? The seminar, which was held under Chatham House rules, agreed that there is a problem, which was put down to lawyers' specialisation and general reluctance to get involved with the business of clients. What boards needed was experience in business and financial knowledge and lawyers did not tick the boxes.

Lawyers should start thinking about this sooner in their careers rather than later. The public and voluntary sectors might be more prepared to take a chance on a lawyer without board experience who was committed to their aims and this could provide invaluable experience. Firms should consider encouraging lawyers to take up these non-commercial appointments. They should not give rise to problems of conflict of interest and should result in more business-minded lawyers. When it comes to applying for jobs you should think about your CV in a different way and be prepared to be rejected often.

Vanessa Knapp of Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer, who attended the seminar, said afterwards: "It was sobering to hear some of the views about lawyers and there was much food for thought. Lawyers can offer an independence of mind and ability to get to grips with a problem quickly but may need to add more skills before they can contribute fully."

David Isaac said: "Becoming a board member of a charity can provide City solicitors with very valuable skills and experience. However, becoming a charity trustee should not just be seen as a stepping stone to joining the board of a plc. The experience of helping to run a charity can be just as rewarding as being involved in a plc."

The world is run by boards and lawyers who want to play a part in running the world will find they have to join one. Above all, you have to want it. As Antoine St Exupery said: "If you want a man to build a boat, do not send him out for wood and nails, but teach him to yearn for the wide and endless sea."