The Flex Legal Blog

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Flex Legal's 2021 Christmas Gif
December 21 2021

Flex Legal's 2021 Wrap-up

After overcoming the challenges of 2020, Flex Legal has come back with a bang in 2021. From winning prestigious awards, to launching a brand new social mobility training scheme, it’s been a big year for the team at Flex HQ, so we wanted to take a moment to look back on our fave highlights from the year.
Blog banner - Modern slavery hidden in plain sight
December 7 2021

Modern Slavery: hidden in plain sight

Modern Slavery - it's everywhere and probably closer than you think. Everyone in the legal community understands the importance of human rights - but do we know about human rights abuses happening right under our noses?
Rudolph Benade, Paralegal of the Month, smiles at the camera. Behind him, the edges of the Flex Legal branding lightly caress his shoulders.
July 30 2021

July '21 Paralegal of the Month: Rudolph Benade

July 2021's Paralegal of the Month is Rudolph Benade! We're really pleased to recognise Rudolph here, who is a globe-trotting Future Trainee Solicitor. We put some big questions to Rudolph, such as how he got into law, what the future holds, and how he feels about working through us!
July 15 2021

Delivering Net Zero and in-house lawyers’ pivotal role

The legal sector has an opportunity to be on the right side of history in helping keep a liveable planet for all.  When it comes to delivering climate action, the most important part of the sector are in-house lawyers, due to their direct interface with their organisation; a trusted advisor who can act as a moral compass.
What does 'being commercial' mean? A Virtual Lunch follow up
May 13 2021

What does 'being commercial' mean?

'Being commercial' is one of the most important aspects of professional life in law - but what does this actually mean? Our most recent Virtual Lunch delved into this huge topic, so read our comprehensive summary of the main takeaways here.
A brainish cloud morphs before the Flex Legal branding
January 29 2021

How to Keep Productive

Staying productive is tricky during a pandemic. Fortunately, lawyer and neuroscientist Dominique Ashby spoke at our most recent Virtual Lunch and gave us some tips for maximising your brain's productivity. Read what she had to say, and help yourself keep productive!
December 18 2020

2020: a big year for Flex Legal!

2020 has been a surreal year for everyone - and Flex Legal has been no different. Despite the challenges, we've emerged stronger than ever. In this retrospective blog post, we reflect on the achievements of 2020 and look ahead to 2021.
harry mellor smiling like a cheerful chap
November 26 2020

This is me: Harry

Harry Mellor is a multi-talented member of the Flex Legal Sales and Marketing team, and has experienced more sides of the company than perhaps anyone else. In this edition of our 'This is Me' blog series, Harry answers some questions about himself, his work with Flex, and his ambitions for the future.
October 14 2020

Key Skills Junior Lawyers Need To Succeed

We were delighted to welcome Sarah Hunt, Neil Campbell and Emma O’Connor as guest speakers at our latest Virtual Lunch in collaboration with LexisNexis and Crafty Counsel. Sarah is Head of People Development at Osborne Clarke; Neil is Managing Legal Counsel at RBS; and Emma is a Talent Development Manager at Dentons. The topic for the call centred around the key skills that junior lawyers need to succeed, with the speakers drawing on their own experiences to offer excellent insights to attendees.
July 31 2020

The Flex Tech Update: uploading documents yourself

At Flex we pride ourselves on providing opportunities for law students looking to break into the legal industry. As such, a lot of the praise we receive is reserved for those closest to our paralegals, the Bookings Team. However, there is so much that goes on behind the scenes that enables the Bookings Team to perform as they do. We have always been proactive in seeking out innovative ways of using technology to increase efficiency. So in this new series of updates, we wanted to give praise to our fantastic team of Tech Gods.
July 31 2020

The F-LEX Virtual Lunch Wrap Up Blog

The Virtual Lunch Series hosted by our Sophie Gould, Head of Learning and Development, is going on a wee break over August. In this article, we look back at the topics we have discussed and the lessons we have learnt.
July 16 2020

My advice for junior lawyers

Joanne Theodoulou is the General Counsel and Company Secretary for Simply Business, the largest online business insurance provider in the UK. As an experienced leader of legal teams, we ask Joanne in part two of this interview, what tips to do have for junior lawyers starting their career in-house?
June 30 2020

How In-House Legal Teams Contribute Value to Businesses

The legal industry has been shifting significantly in recent years, with the role of in-house legal teams at the heart of the change. Although GCs have been discussing how to add value as a legal function for a number of years, articulating this idea in practical terms is difficult. In order to understand and examine the concept of ‘value’ and ‘value-adding behaviours’ of in-house lawyers, LexisNexis UK carried out a deep-dive survey with senior GCs across a range of sectors and organisations.
May 18 2020

Contracting as a lawyer gives me true liberty at work

Never before have I experienced the liberty to be the master of my own self professionally, equipping me with the possibility of choosing the conditions of my employment in comparison to other types of employees and most importantly providing me the feeling of true liberty at work.
Why I love working flexibly as a lawyer
April 28 2020

Why I love working flexibly as a lawyer

Lincoln would say “it's not the years in your life that count; it's the life in your years.” As a Flex Lawyer, I would say – it’s not the length of the project you work on, it’s the connections you make along the way, the experience you gain and the difference you make.
April 23 2020

Joining F-LEX in a pandemic

So I’m now six or so weeks into my new role at F-lex. WHAT A TIME to start a new job! When I said I was looking for a new challenge, this wasn’t quite what I had expected but I’m so pleased to have made the move. Here are some reflections on the first 30 days:
January 17 2020

For our users....by our users

Having attended the Legal Geek Legal Design conference for the past 2 years, it got us thinking about our users. Had we really had asked our paralegals if they understood what they were signing up to when they joined F-LEX?
November 1 2019

Flex Legal's Vac Scheme Guide

October, and if you haven’t started thinking about Vac Schemes then you should start now. An increasingly large number of firms are putting a greater emphasis on their vac schemes, with many city firms recruiting solely from them, such as HSF and Mischcon de Reya.
August 30 2019

The Future of Law De-Mystified

Earlier this month, F-LEX held a thought-provoking panel discussion in Manchester, chaired by our Head of Northern Hub, Eimear McCann. 50 of us, a range of legal enthusiasts and techies, gathered to demystify the future of the law. The evening proved to be a real crowd pleaser, provoking some interesting questions from the audience and some healthy debate.
SPG Law - Picture of Brazil
July 16 2019

Supporting SPG Law from Liverpool to Brazil

In November 2018, a group of F-LEX paralegals started a group action project in Liverpool with international firm, SPG Law; however, for some, this was just the start of an incredible journey which led to rural Brazil and culminated in permanent job offers for two and a training contract for another. This is their story!
November 28 2018

How to develop a mentoring relationship

Friends and family may lend a sympathetic ear to your career-planning, but it is important to reach out and connect with people who can offer objective career advice. By branching out and conversing with a range of people in your profession of choice, or even beyond, you will secure important guidance and advice for the future, and even make some great friends too!
July 30 2018

How technology is changing the legal industry

Across all industries, technology has challenged the status quo and the legal industry is no exception. The question is how? The unprecedented pace at which technology is evolving makes this general question difficult to answer in absolute truth.
June 5 2018

What is blockchain?

Blockchain is the driving force in digital disruption and is the technology behind bitcoin and other virtual currencies, however there is still much confusion behind it. This article aims to debunk the misconceptions around blockchain and provide a holistic view over it.
CV Tips Blog Banner - CV with a plant and coffee
June 27 2022

Top CV tips for aspiring lawyers

At Flex Legal, we truly understand how competitive the legal industry can be for aspiring lawyers, and how draining it is sending out hundreds of CV’s a week, only to receive piles of rejections in return. Take a read of this blog post for our top tips on how to ensure your CV stands out from the crowd, for all the right reasons!
Freshfields Logo
May 25 2022

Flex and Freshfields: Five years later

Freshfields is one of the world’s oldest law firms, with roots tracing back to the 18th century. So when their team approached Flex in 2017 with a need for Manchester-based doc review paralegals, we were delighted to help. And that was just the start - take a read to see how we've supported Freshfields over the years since.
Two black women are seen from the front and smile at a laptop screen, as they think about the pure joy of applying to the Flex Trainee scheme.
April 25 2022

How to apply to Flex Trainee

Flex Trainee is our SQE qualification programme, and we're getting a lot of interest in it! Read this blog post to learn how to apply to the scheme, and the diversity / social mobility criteria our STRIVE partners ask for in applications.
Midlands In-house Event Blog Banner
March 14 2022

Midlands In-house Event: Building the legal team of the future

The Midlands In-house Event will bring together an array of teams from across the thriving Midlands In-house legal community. Join us for our first session on the exciting topic of 'Building the legal team of the future', hosted by Sophie Gould, our very own Head of Learning and Development at Flex Legal!
A smiling woman works at her desk with a pen in hand. Her child hugs her from behind, as the Flex Legal branding envelopes them.
October 27 2021

The future of work: what hybrid means for the legal industry

The legal industry finds itself in the midst of a huge upheaval. The COVID-19 pandemic proved that remote working in law works, and the "Great Resignation" has seen legal professionals leaving their firms in search of better life / work conditions. As we rebuild, we must ask if this new hybrid model is here to stay? Read this longform article to find the answer to this burning question.