Writing a legal CV

Brought to you by CV Writers in association with Guardian Jobs 

How to write a legal CV

Whether you are an experienced corporate lawyer or a graduate just about to embark in your legal career it is important your CV showcases your expertise effectively. A CV needs to work for two audiences. Firstly, it needs to get through ATS (applicant tracking system) filters. Secondly, it needs to catch the eye of the human recruiter and provide a compelling case for calling you to interview.

Lawyer, barrister, legal secretary….?

Your legal CV needs to be focused to the job you are applying for. This starts in the professional profile at the beginning of the CV which should position you clearly inline with your target role. For example, starting ‘A versatile family solicitor with expertise in…’  will immediately demonstrate your relevance to the recruiter who will then read on with keen interest.  

The right legal CV structure

In a 2-page format you want to get all the most valuable information on the first page. If you are a fresh graduate with little or no legal work experience then put your qualifications after the professional profile at the front of the CV. Expand on the modules, projects and dissertations you have completed. As an experienced legal practitioner your work experience will be more important, and qualifications can go to the back of the CV with your most recent work history prominent on the first page.

Make your CV ATS friendly

With over 200 ATS systems out there all with different algorithms, there is no magic wand to getting your CV through filters that it is estimated will sift out 70% of CVs before being read by a human. The best advice is to tailor your legal CV for every application and mirror the key terms and phrases contained within the job description and person specification. ATS systems prefer Word documents to PDFs and make sure all the information is contained within the main body of the Word document. ATS systems can struggle to read information within tables, headers and footers.

Keep the CV to 2 pages

Less than 30 seconds is spent on average reading a CV. With many time pressed recruiters scan reading a CV it simply does not make sense to include lots of detail over many pages. A long and detailed legal CV actually makes it more difficult for the reader to home in on your most recent, relevant achievements. No matter how long your career, stick to two pages.

Achievements

It is not enough to simply state a list of duties and responsibilities in your legal CV. A generic job description could look like anyone. You need to show the difference you have made in your role. Therefore, include specific examples of achievements. An effective way to decide what to include is to think about the things you would like to discuss at interview. Your CV can act as a cue, feeding potential topics for discussion when you get to meet your potential employer face-to-face.

This article is written by Neville Rose, Director of CV Writers.

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