Alex Hall decided she wanted to change from her role as an Admin Assistant and follow her original aspiration of becoming a lawyer.
She began a role at Blacks Solicitors where she started as a Legal Secretary before transitioning into training as a Paralegal, despite having no previous legal experience. Now in 2017, she has just qualified and is going from strength to strength; proving along the way that it is never too late for a career change:
How long have you worked at Blacks, what is your current role and briefly describe your journey to this point?
“I joined Blacks almost six years ago in September 2011 as Legal Secretary in the Employment and Corporate and Commercial Teams, changing roles to become a Paralegal in the Corporate and Commercial Team in August 2013.
I officially qualified as a Chartered Legal Executive in March 2017, remaining as part of the Corporate and Commercial Team at Blacks.
“Shortly before joining Blacks I had completed my CILEx (Chartered Institute of Legal Executives) Level 6 Professional Higher Diploma in Law and Practice and was hoping to find a Paralegal role to begin the three years qualifying work experience I was required to undertake to formally qualify as a Chartered Legal Executive.
The role at Blacks came up and, although it was a Legal Secretary role and not the fee earning role I had been hoping for, Blacks was on my radar as a firm that I’d like to work for, so I applied hoping that there would be an opportunity to progress if I got the role. That opportunity came in 2013 when Paralegal roles at Blacks came up in both the Employment and Corporate and Commercial teams.
I applied for both and became a Paralegal in the Corporate and Commercial team from 1 August 2013. It was this role that gave me the opportunity to gain all of the relevant qualifying work experience necessary to complete my Work Based Learning Portfolio for submission to CILEx.
I submitted my Portfolio in September 2016 and received confirmation that I had been accepted as a Fellow of CILEx, formally qualifying as a Chartered Legal Executive in March 2017.”
What has been the most challenging thing about your progression and how have you overcome this?
“The most challenging part of my career progression to date was trying to shed the ‘Secretary’ label.
“I had made the most of each of my Legal Secretary roles, maximising the opportunity to gain valuable legal experience wherever possible, volunteering to take on extra responsibilities outside of my normal duties, including attending client meetings and drafting legal documentation and correspondence. However, despite including all of this relevant work experience and the skill acquired on my CV, the job title ‘Secretary’ seemed to be a huge barrier to securing a Paralegal or fee earning role.
“The way that I overcame this barrier was by trying to demonstrate and promote my skills, enthusiasm and aspirations within firms, such as Blacks. I found that removing all reference to any job titles from my CV was a successful approach.
This, I believe, helped me in the early CV sifting stages of securing an offer of another Paralegal role, around the same time as I was offered the Paralegal role in the Corporate and Commercial Team at Blacks.”
What advice would you give to someone who is looking for a career change?
“Whether you are in the ‘work to live’ or ‘live to work’ camp, most people spend a large proportion of their lives at work. To me that fact can only be made palatable if that work involves or relates to something you find some enjoyment or fulfilment in and really want to do.
“To anyone who is not satisfied with their current career choice, I would suggest:
- (if possible) gaining some work experience in your new chosen field (on an evening/weekend/holiday placement/voluntary basis if necessary) make sure it is something you want to do;
- seek out networking opportunities with other people working within that field and speak to them about their experiences – they will probably have lots of tips to help you out and might even know of potential roles and opportunities;
- don’t forget about any transferrable skills you already have – promote these when applying for new roles; and
- don’t be put off if the change takes longer than you hoped or anticipated, if it is something you really want it will be worth it.”
Who has been the most influential/important figure in your progression? (This could be a mentor, friends or family)
“It would be difficult to name just one person as there are a number of people who have been important in different ways.
I am lucky to have a very supportive family who encourage me to pursue whatever aims, goals or aspirations I have. In addition to this support, my friend Amna Rashid assisted me in finding opportunities to learn and practice valuable and relevant skills, helping me to promote these skills properly when writing and updating my CV.
She also took me along to networking events and introduced me to a number of her connections within the legal sector across firms in Leeds.
Also, Asad Ali (Business Development Partner at Blacks and for whom I worked as Legal Secretary/PA) had a large part to play in me securing the role as a Paralegal in the Corporate and Commercial Team. Last, but not least, David Paterson (Partner in the Corporate and Commercial Team at Blacks) who oversaw my qualifying work experience, helping to ensure that I had the opportunity to undertake tasks and gain experience in all areas necessary for me to complete my Work Based Learning Portfolio, reviewing and signing off each Logbook and providing a reference in support of my Fellowship allocation.”
Is networking an important tool and what advice do you have for those just starting out?
“Networking is definitely an important tool as it can be useful in terms of your personal development in a number of different ways. As mentioned above, it can give you an opportunity to meet people who already work within an area you want to work who will often be willing to share their experiences and knowledge with you and help you to seek out suitable roles or work experience opportunities.
In addition to this, networking is an important tool in enabling you to build a network of contacts in other fields and sectors that could, whether immediately or in the future, help support and facilitate opportunities for work and progression throughout your career.”
