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‘I want to quit my fashion designer job to become a corporate lawyer’

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By Legal Cheek on

9

Career changer needs advice

catwalk with models
In the latest instalment in our Career Conundrums series, a former fashion entrepreneur is seeking a change in career and the best route into the legal profession.

“I’d like to change my career from fashion to law. I studied fashion design and interned at prestigious fashion houses such as Givenchy. I went on to start my own fashion brand in my home country. I recently moved to the UK, however, I have lost my joy for fashion and have been thinking about a career in law for many years but always concluded it was too late for me. I don’t have any legal qualifications, and my main area of interest is corporate law particularly in tech but I am open minded.

I would like some advice on what to do, what path to take, I’ve been out of school for several years and I’m afraid no law firm would consider my application due to my background. Thank you!”

If you have a career conundrum, email us at team@legalcheek.com.

9 Comments

Tired Lawyer

You’re insane, please seek professional help.

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(57)(4)

Anon

If you’ve lost your joy for something you once felt passionate about, corporate law is ideal for you. No one here has any joy for anything.

Explain to the partners in TC interviews that you feel an aching emptiness where once you had joy and that you’d like to try fruitlessly to fill that emptiness with ever increasing amounts of money and status. They’ll recognise a kindred spirit who can be flogged for thousands of profitable hours and offer you a TC on the spot.

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(35)(0)

Anonymouse

Of course you can become a lawyer if you want. Anyone with even a moderate amount of intelligence, a good work ethic and enough persistence will eventually get a training contract somewhere and doing IP for firms that represent fashion houses would be a good way of leveraging your background.

Beyond that, you’ve given us very little detail about your motivations and goals which makes it impossible to give you meaningful advice. You say your main area of interest is “corporate law particularly in tech” but what does that actually mean?

I get the sense you haven’t really thought this through. I think you’re just in a rut and feel like doing something else. Please give a career change as drastic as this the consideration it deserves.

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(17)(1)

Anon

In the words of Joe Biden…Don’t

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(10)(0)

Katie

I was a lawyer who worked in the fashion industry as an in house lawyer. But now I’m an interior decorator! So I’ve gone from law to the creative industries. If it’s something you are interested in, then have a chat to various people and law firms. See if you can do some work experience too. Don’t discount the experience you have.

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(2)(4)

Hypocrates

Firms like NRF, Addleshaw and Price Prior tend to take people from “non-traditional” backgrounds. Would consider looking at their open days.

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(6)(1)

Hmm

Huh, Price Prior….

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(4)(0)

Attempt at a useful comment

– Skills are transferrable. It is borderline irrelevant what you did before, because if you’re right for law almost any previous career would have allowed you to demonstrate the skills you need here. You can find out online broadly what they want you to have.
– wild career changes are not that rare in city law. Former hockey players, playwrights, engineers end up getting TCs. Use the enterpreneurship angle, and the fact that you’ve had experience in how businesses operate. I’m also sure making clothes required attention to detail and quality, so use examples to show that to them.
– age isn’t a problem for getting a TC, as long as you’re happy with being a junior at [insert your age]. The opportunity cost is obviously that you’re starting over
– you don’t need to know the law. City firms will pay for your conversion degrees etc so that you can learn the law, and then teach you more law. You need to understand how their business operates and show them that you can thrive in it
– the legal profession can be really rewarding, but it’s really hard work and quite a pedantic endeavour. Do it if you think you’re going to love it, otherwise you run the risk of ending up hating it
– you only realistically get one shot at a career change (because we only get so many years on this green earth) so think this through.
-if you end up in a transactional department it will be less about the law and more about business, so there’s also that
– LONG hours — again, you need to love it
-definitely aim high. The legal landscape is very wide. Solicitor or barrister? (Do you wanna be an advocate or work in the city?) maybe criminal law (are you sure???)? Are you a very empathetic person? You can go into family law. Are you already rich? Human rights. Jokes aside do a ton of research to figure out what you want — legal cheek can only help you so much

Please don’t do a conversion course unless you’re definitely going into law, it’s completely useless otherwise

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(3)(1)

San

If it is something you really want to do and have enough self-discipline, you can do it. I also done fashion design for my undergrad and worked 15 years for retailers and brands in UK.
Last year I started MA SQE Law conversion degree. I have successfully completed ‘conversion’ part or PGDL and now on SQE prep course to sit exams in Jan.
It is very hard, very intense, a lot is crammed into short space of time. But it is doable.
As to whether companies will want you, yes they will. You have a lot of transferable skills, experience. If you find the way to translate this well into your applications, they will be interested.
Also ensure you stay commercially aware of what’s happening in the world. Read news daily.

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(0)(0)

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