2021 ended with a bang and the New Zealand legal market being very competitive in terms of recruitment and hiring top notch staff. It is becoming apparent that 2022 is bringing even further challenges and candidate shortages, with Lawyers heading off overseas and international recruiters aggressively tapping up talent on the ground here to persuade them overseas, many of whom have been thinking about this for a long time. The overseas market is also becoming more attractive as Covid restrictions are being lifted in particular in the UK and life is seeming to get back to normal as New Zealand is at the start of its unknown Omicron journey.

The Wellington legal market is split into two areas, private practice and public sector with the majority of our government and public sector legal roles being based in the Capital due to our central government offices being located there. Our Wellington Law firms are, like much of New Zealand, a mix of top-tiers, mid-tiers and boutiques stacked with specialised Lawyers and the traditional full-service private client firms. These law firms need strong generalist Lawyers who are client-centric and able to offer services across EPOA, Property, SME Commercial, Wills, Trusts, Estates, Dispute Resolution, Elder and Family Law. Law firms in Wellington have taken a leaf out of the Government organisations book and have a strong focus on work-life balance, career opportunities and tend to be flexible on other benefits, this is very apparent compared to law firms in Auckland and the other regions. We see more part time and WFH options in Wellington as well as demand from candidates for these benefits too. With house sale prices and rents soaring in Wellington, employers are having to do all that they can to secure and retain their talent. 

These law firms are also putting a strong emphasis on team culture, for example I placed a Litigator in a new role before Christmas and she was stoked to be invited to the team Christmas party to meet the team, before she even started and spent her first few days of induction in different offices meeting the whole team. I also placed a returning mum last year who was understandably nervous going back to work after child number one, she chose a firm and relocated to Wellington, where the Partners also had young children and were incredibly understanding. They gave her flexibility to take her time, adjust and ensure that both her and the little one were comfortable, she was confident her previous law firm in another city would not have done this.  The majority of Government and in-house agencies in Wellington offer great flexibility however sometimes the culture lacks due to large team numbers and multiple staff working from home at any one point, or permanently. They also offer good salaries for lawyers between 2-4 years experience due to struggling to offer a strong career path for lawyers with over 5+ years PQE, in the majority of cases there tends to be a lack of roles at the more senior level this tend to be due to those senior individuals having long tenue in their posts and a flatter senior staffing structure.

Salaries across the board have been increasing along with the rest of New Zealand with Wellington being just behind Auckland in private practice, however the Government agencies are keeping up with in-house corporates and offering highly attractive packages to acquire and maintain skills.  One of the most common trends we have seen in the legal market over the last six months is the ever present yet more aggressive counteroffer.  In our experience money and elusive promises are being discussed and promised to keep the staff, however, many job seekers return to the job market within six months of accepting a counter offer as the motivators to move are still apparent in the job seekers current role. 

Please review our website www.tylerwren.co.nz for more information about us and also to review our latest news on the legal jobs market. Contact Stevie Doubleday on sdoubleday@tylerwren.co.nz or call 09 930 9828 to speak confidentially about any of the above roles.