Your career questions answered

Q: I am a Chartered Legal Executive working in employment law and I recently took on supervision of a small team. I’m used to working independently on my own matters and am worried I don’t have what it takes to manage and motivate a team. How do I become a more confident people manager? 

Louise: Firstly, congratulations. To have offered you this opportunity, your firm must have recognised that you have the skills and qualities needed to be a good team leader. Taking this step into people management is an important professional milestone.

Up until now, you’ve been responsible for your work alone, but now you’ll need to think about delegation, and relinquish some control. It’s good that you have experience of the work your team will be undertaking, but it’s important to recognise you won’t have time to get involved with every single piece of work. Learn to let go, giving you the time you need to lead and support your team.

Spend time getting to know them, even if you’ve worked together before. Understand their strengths and areas they might need to develop, so you can get a better idea of how to fit their skills and experience with the team’s overall goals.

Good communication will be vital, so schedule team meetings and one-to-ones. Facilitate two-way communication, providing your team members with the opportunity to raise issues, ask for help and for you both to be able to agree on expectations. Think about whether a ‘team charter’ is something you want to consider. It’s a way of everyone knowing what they can expect, and what is expected of them for the team to run successfully.

CILEX’s myCareer has some useful resources, including tips for new managers.

Briony: Remember, your firm wouldn’t have given you this position if they didn’t feel you were capable, so take confidence in that.

I would suggest speaking to your own manager or supervisor so they can offer you support and perhaps training if you feel it would be beneficial. Perhaps your current manager could act as a mentor for you.

There are also lots of great resources out there that you could look into yourself. Perhaps even invest in some life or career coaching to help you along the way.

As with any management experience, lead by example and perhaps set up meetings with each team member to build rapport with them and discover what exactly they need from you.

Always remember: your firm is on your side and will want you to succeed. They will be open to putting the necessary support in place for you.

If, after some time in your new role, you decide management isn’t the way forward for you, then of course be honest with your firm. It isn’t for everyone and it may be you wish to specialise in a purely technical role instead.

Q: I started my career as a legal secretary and went on to gain my Level 3 Diploma with CILEX and become a paralegal. For the last two years, I have been working on conveyancing transactions for a large law firm and am generally happy in my job, which doesn’t require me to gain any further qualifications. I’m not motivated to study further at this stage in my life but am worried I might regret my decision further down the line. Should I push myself?

Briony: This is a very personal decision and there are no right or wrong answers. The beauty of CILEX is that you can pick it up as and when you want to, so if you feel you are happy with how things are at the moment and you’re not at a place in your life where you want to study, then that is absolutely fine. Maintaining a good work/life balance is important.

If your circumstances change in the future, you may decide you want to look for a new role away from property or to start studying again, which CILEX allows.

It is, however, worth questioning whether the fact that your current firm is not providing a clear path to career progression and doesn’t require you to study, is demotivating you? Perhaps consider whether looking for a new role that would allow for your continued progression would change your ambitions.

Louise: Right now, you’ve got several options open to you. You could stay where you are as a CILEX Paralegal and continue to enjoy the work that you are doing. You can always change your mind - any decision you make is not forever.

You could obtain practice rights and become an authorised person in relation to conveyancing. This would mean you wouldn’t have to work under supervision, and could lead to further development opportunities at your firm or the opportunity in the future to work for yourself, or a firm regulated outside of the SRA.

This wouldn’t necessarily require additional study. As you don’t have any Level 6 qualifications, you could use your experience in the legal profession to obtain these rights.

You need five years’ total experience working in a legal environment and two years in the area in which you are seeking the rights. You would need to complete some skills logbook sheets, which demonstrate a number of learning outcomes, and compile five portfolios demonstrating your experience. Further information can be found on the CILEx Regulation website.

If this option isn’t for you right now, and you decide you don’t want to study further at the moment, there would be nothing to prevent you from picking up your studies in the future.

Bear in mind however, that timing would have an impact on which studies you were to complete. If you continue on with the Level 6 Diploma, you only have until July 2026 to complete it. Alternatively, you could transition to the CPQ. Your current qualification would mean you would receive full exemption from the CPQ Foundation stage and would be able to progress onto CPQ Advanced Stage. Completion of the CPQ would enable you to qualify as a CILEX Lawyer with practice rights.

If you decide not to follow either of these paths right now, you have a home in CILEX as a CILEX Paralegal and can still access all of our member benefits.