UK Legal & Compliance postings up 11% this month, but weekly pace has cooled off its peak
Hiring is still ahead of last month, but the week of 26 Oct brought fewer new roles than the busy week of 28 September, a 34% drop from that peak.
of open roles are at employers on the UK Home Office sponsor register. Clydeco, Freeths, Addleshaw Goddard and Freshfields are on the list.
UK sponsor register, matched by employeris what the typical role asks for. 10% ask for 10 years or more.
44% of open roles state years252 new roles in the last 30 days, against 228 the 30 days before, at the same companies.
Companies read for 60 days or moreThis week's read
There are 958 open Legal & Compliance roles in the UK right now, spread across 447 companies. New postings in the last 30 days are up 11% compared with the 30 days before that. But look at the week-by-week trend and the picture is more mixed: the week of 28 September saw 74 new roles, the most of any week on record here, and the most recent week (26 Oct) brought only 49, a 34% drop from that peak.
Half of all open roles sit at employers with recent filings on the UK Home Office sponsor register. Among the biggest hirers, Clydeco (35 open roles), Freeths (26), Addleshaw Goddard (17) and Freshfields (16) are all on that list. Between them, the eight biggest employers account for 18% of all open roles, so the market is not concentrated in just a handful of names.
Jobs in this market tend to sit open a while: the median listing has been live for 28 days. Most roles are aimed at the middle of the ladder, with half labelled mid-level and 21% senior. Only 15% are junior and just 2% are labelled lead, so entry points are not common. Where years of experience are stated, which is only 44% of postings, the typical minimum asked is 4 years, and 10% of roles want 10 or more.
Working from home is rare here: only 4% of open roles are remote. Pay is hard to judge too, since only 11% of postings mention a salary at all, too few to say what the market typically pays.
A few themes stand out in what employers ask for. Financial services experience appears in 14% of postings, AML in 8% and insurance in 7%. AI and machine learning is mentioned in 11% of listings, well ahead of other tools and software named. On the certification side, nothing dominates: qualified lawyer status appears in 3% of postings, and CIPP and CIPM each in 2%.
What this means for you
Three things you can act on this week
- Check the visa sponsor register
Half of open roles are at employers with recent visa filings, including Clydeco, Freeths, Addleshaw Goddard and Freshfields. If you need sponsorship, these are worth checking against the UK Home Office register first.
- Don't rule yourself out on years
Only 44% of postings state a minimum years requirement, and where they do it's typically 4 years. Only 10% ask for 10 or more, so a long track record is not the norm here.
- Remote options are scarce
Just 4% of open roles are remote, so if location flexibility matters to you, expect most searches to lead back to office-based roles.
Momentum
New Legal roles each week
Last 30 days: 252 new roles, against 228 the 30 days before (+11%). Each week counts the same companies, and a role counts as new only in the week it was posted, so a careers site we start reading never shows up as growth.
See the numbers
| Week starting | New roles |
|---|---|
| 7 Sep | 46 |
| 14 Sep | 60 |
| 21 Sep | 45 |
| 28 Sep | 74 |
| 5 Oct | 65 |
| 12 Oct | 62 |
| 19 Oct | 73 |
| 26 Oct | 49 |
Who is hiring
The companies with the most open Legal roles
447 companies are hiring. The top eight hold 18% of the open roles.
| Company | Open roles | Change in new roles | Sponsor register |
|---|---|---|---|
| Clydeco | 35 | On the list | |
| Freeths | 26 | On the list | |
| Simmons & Simmons | 23 | ||
| Capsticks | 20 | ||
| CMS | 20 | ||
| Addleshaw Goddard | 17 | On the list | |
| Freshfields | 16 | On the list | |
| Penningtons Manches Cooper | 15 | On the list |
Change compares new roles in the last 30 days with the 30 days before, shown where a company posted 25 or more in the earlier 30 days. Staffing agencies are left out. A company name links to its Ashney company page where there is one.
What they ask for
The technology Legal roles ask for most
Ask Rate is the share of roles that name a skill, from 928 postings read in full. Ways of working (methods such as Agile, tools such as Jira) are listed apart; office tools and soft skills are left out.
Ways of working
Industries named most: Financial services 14%, AML 8%, Insurance 7%. Certifications named: qualified lawyer 3%, CIPP 2%, CIPM 2%. 4% of open roles say they are remote.
Cite this report