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Top Careers & What to do with a Diploma in Law

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Joeme
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This article contains a list of top careers you can venture into with a diploma in Law.

What to do with a Diploma in Law

Law is one of the most prestigious careers in art and becoming a lawyer requires a lot, educationally. There is no particular way to become a lawyer. This is to say that having a degree in a totally different field doesn’t hinder anyone from still pursuing a career in law. Thus, as a graduate who wishes to still become a lawyer, a diploma in Law is the first step to the fulfilment of that dream.

Upon the completion of a diploma, you’ll be able to convert your Bachelors degree into a full LLB (Hons) degree, and will be eligible to apply for the Legal Practice Course (LPC),  which is another important step on the way to becoming a lawyer.

Law diplomas can either be taken as full or part-time studies and are generally completed within one to three years period depending on the course requirements and intensity of study.  Some law diplomas involve coursework, while others are research-based and assessed on the basis of a written dissertation.

TOP CAREERS TO ENTER WITH A DIPLOMA IN LAW

Having gotten a brief understanding of what law diploma is about, below are careers in law diploma

  1. Solicitor
  2. Arbitrator
  3. Barrister’s clerk
  4. Licensed conveyancer
  5. Paralegal
  6. Forensic computer analyst
  7. Human resources officer
  8. Mediator
  9. Political risk analyst
1. SOLICITOR

As a solicitor, you can work in a number of different legal organizations. The widest caseloads come from  solicitors’ practices, which cover criminal, family, probate and business law. If you become a barrister, it’s likely you’ll be self-employed and will be a tenant in a set of chambers. On the other hand, you could look for employment with organisations such as the Government Legal Service, the Armed Forces legal services or the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS).

2. ARBITRATOR

Arbitrators are known to work in alternative dispute resolution. Arbitration is one of the ways in which  legal disputes are resolved outside the courts and across international boundaries. It’s used on a voluntary basis by many individuals and businesses. An Arbitrator makes decisions on a dispute based on evidence presented by the parties involved. The decision the arbitrator makes is not always legally binding but they have to agree  to whatever the outcome is. However, an Arbitrator plays the role of a neutral person.

There are different types of arbitration. Thus, arbitrators are usually used to resolving family matters, property or finance, financial or contractual commercial disputes, employment disagreement, international or cross-border commercial disputes, etc.

Your tasks as an Arbitrator however depends on the type of dispute, but will typically involve:

  • gathering the evidence from the claimant and the respondent
  • writing a notice of arbitration clarifying what is expected of the parties
  • organising and conducting arbitration hearings where both parties will present their evidence and lots more.

Building a career as an Arbitrator does not involve any legal requirements. However, where disputes involve issues of law, having a law degree is very pertinent. This means that having a diploma in law makes you a good fit for this career. Arbitration is fast evolving as an alternative to traditional litigation. This means there are genuine opportunities for dispute resolution professionals with experience. So, there is no need to worry about job opportunities.

3. PARALEGALS

Paralegals are law professionals who work in a supporting role to solicitors and barristers.

As a paralegal, you may work in a variety of law firms and  chambers both private and public sectors. You will play an important role within a legal team. The position is sometimes used as preparation to qualify as a solicitor. You’ll need the ability to multitask and the desire to develop your understanding of law.

The areas of specialisation in this field include:

  • contracts/dispute resolution advocacy
  • conveyancing
  • family
  • crime
  • employment
  • litigation
  • wills and administration of estates.

Responsibilities

As a paralegal, you’ll need to:

  • Carry out office administration, including billing and writing letters
  • Organise diaries, schedule meetings and respond to telephone queries and compile litigation bundles
  • Network with clients and build valuable relationships.
  • Write reports, conduct legal research, take witness statements and attend meetings with experts, etc.

Skills

Some of the skills required of a paralegal includes:

  • Excellent communication skills
  • Attention to details in order to be able to analyse files carefully.
  • Good teamwork skills particularly when working with other departments to complete your tasks.
4. FORENSIC COMPUTER ANALYSTS

These sets of professionals investigate computer-related crimes including, hacking, online scams and fraud, terrorist communications, the use of illegal images, etc. As a forensic computer analyst, you’ll be required to work with a range of specialised software and other techniques to secure, analyse and  retrieve data linked to a range of criminal activities.

As an expert in this field,  your investigations can centre on data stored on a range of devices, ranging from  computers, flash drives, tablets, mobile phones and the cloud.

You could be working for the police or other law enforcement agencies, banks, specialist computer forensic company or an investigative team

Skills

You’ll need to have some of the following:

  • Willingness to keep up to date with the latest forensic computing techniques, tools and software.
  • Excellent written and verbal communication skills
  • Understanding of operating systems, e.g. Windows, iOS and Android.
  • An enquiring, investigative mindset with excellent attention to details.
  • Decision-making skills and the ability to interact with a range of people and communicate decisions effectively.
  • Integrity and compliance with issues of confidentiality

The confidential nature of the work, however, means it can be difficult to secure work shadowing or short-term work experience. You may be able to secure a summer internship or year-out placement in computer forensics, as these are available within a range of organisations.

5. LICENSED CONVEYANCER

They are specialists in property law who work on behalf of clients buying or selling property.

As a  professional property lawyer, you’ll specialise in property law and will work on behalf of clients buying or selling houses, flats, business premises or land especially in England and Wales. You’ll also deal with all the legal matters, administration, finance and queries involved in a property transaction.

As a licensed conveyancer, your responsibility includes to research information and communicate with clients, use a computerised case management system, protect clients’ interests at all times, while taking precautions against potential fraud and money laundering, draft or check sales contracts deal with all financial aspects of a transaction, receive and check mortgage instructions from lenders and undertake specific tasks required, receive mortgage funds, etc.

6. JOURNALISM

Having a law diploma does not restrict one to  the court of law. You can  venture into other careers outside the law firm and becoming a journalist is one of  such.  Many lawyers make excellent journalists because of the skills they possess such as  attention to detail, excellent communication skills in both speaking and  written forms.

7. HUMAN RESOURCES OFFICERS

As a lawyer, your knowledge of the law is a plus for you to fit perfectly as a HR. Human resources officers develop, advise on and implement policies relating to the effective use of staff in an organisation.

As an HR officer, your goal is to ensure that the organisation employs the right sets of staff in terms of skills and experience, and that training and development opportunities are available to colleagues in order to enhance their performance and achieve the company’s business aims.

HR officers are involved in a range of activities. However, to be successful in this career you must have a clear understanding of your employer’s business objectives and be able to implement policies which retain the right staff so as to meet these objectives.

In other words, human resources professionals are responsible for the hiring, firing and management of employees. They are also responsible for the management of employees once they are hired. This can involve scheduling, attending to grievances and many other ongoing tasks. When an employee is no longer suitable for a company, it is the human resources professional who will either work to make the situation better or terminate the employment agreement.

8. BARRISTER’S CLERK

Do you desire to use your business, administrative and people skills to manage chambers? The career of a barrister’s clerk is a perfect fit.

As a barristers’ clerk, you are responsible for the smooth running of  the administration and business activities of the barrister’s chambers. You must be familiar with court procedures and etiquette and will develop an expertise in the type of legal activities undertaken by your chambers.

This is a demanding but rewarding career which requires you to possess a strong combination of commercial, legal knowledge and interpersonal skills.

Your responsibilities as a barrister’s clerk includes the following:

  • Managing the diary and practice, including all activities relating to the barrister getting to and from court are in place
  • Marketing and developing the business to maintain the supply of work
  • Ensuring barristers’ fees are created and collected for their work
9. OATH COMMISSIONERS

Those in this field are responsible for verifying affidavits. An Oath Commissioner is appointed by the Chief Justice and is usually a solicitor in some cases.  The roles of an Oath Commissioner are as follows:

  • Ensures that  evidence in question is in written form
  • Establishes that the person before him/her has read the draft affidavit and fully understands the contents
  • Ensures that a person swears that the affidavit is true by raising the appropriate Testament in the right hand and repeating the words of the oath
  • Verifies that the affidavit was properly sworn by completing a “jurat” on the affidavit

So, if you have always wished to be incharge of  oath reading during a court hearing, this is for you.

10. LEGAL ADVISOR

As a legal adviser,  you are expected to counsel clients on legal rights and obligations. Legal advisors mostly carryout  research on  laws applicable to a particular case and thereafter go through previous judgements passed in cases similar to the one their client is currently facing. By doing so, they go ahead to  list out how their clients can defend themselves using such procedures and tactics.

11. POLITICAL RISK ANALYST

This role is sometimes referred to as country risk analyst or intelligence analyst. As one with a knowledge of the law, being a political risk analyst is a good career choice. You will be required to examine issues such as economic conditions, crime levels, government stability and governance, trade and regulations and human rights issues.

You may work with a range of private sector companies to inform business and investment decisions, or with governments and NGOs to assist aid policy making and strategy.

There are different specialties in this field but the  focus of  work is dependent on whether you work for a consultancy or risk advisory firm. As a consultant, you’d work on different projects for a range of clients – supporting companies, governments and other organisations with ongoing or ad-hoc information about the political environment.

Responsibilities

As a political risk analyst, you will be required to:

  • Collect and analyse information from different sources, relating to a particular area of interest
  • Use modelling tools and data analytics to calculate risk scores
  • Monitor conditions and update intelligence platforms and databases with trends and developments
  • Publications to maintain up-to-date knowledge of political developments.
  • Write risk assessments and reports for clients, including offering recommendations about managing risks

Other careers include:

  • Border Force officer
  • Civil Service administrator
  • Chartered accountant
  • Data analyst
  • Data scientist
  • External auditor
  • Patent attorney
  • Commercial rights manager
  • Court clerk/deputy court clerk
  • Courtroom clerk
  • Criminologist and forensic criminologist
  • Family advocate
  • Intellectual property practitioner/lawyer
  • Law clerk
  • Legal administrative officer
  • Legal researcher
  • Trading standards officer

CONCLUSION

Outside of the legal professions, with a diploma in law, you can fit into other careers perfectly with the sets of skills you are likely to possess as a lawyer.

This information in this article is to give you an insight on the career choices to  make as well as show you there are other career opportunities you can opt for outside the law firms. Therefore, you are not wrong to find more career information on employers in law, accountancy, banking, public services administration and other job sectors with a law diploma.

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