A lawyer’s resume consists of past work history and qualifications for a job in the legal industry, but that isn’t all that it takes to make it effective. A lawyer resume should drive a narrative that tells law firm hiring managers about an applicant’s achievements, evidence of his or her legal acumen, and experience in the field while highlighting potential contributions.
The lawyer’s resume is how an aspiring legal professional makes a first impression on a prospective firm or employer. Lawyers are expected to demonstrate a certain skill set in terms of communication and professionalism, and that exhibition begins with the resume. That means concise, clear, and skillful wording that conveys expertise in various litigation and past work experience that highlights an ability to negotiate, represent high-profile clients, and manage complicated caseloads.
Therefore, each of the resume’s sections must be presented in an ideal manner to raise the applicant over others interviewing for the job. This guide will walk you through how to put together a well-crafted resume while explaining why each portion is important and providing lawyer resume examples of how to best approach it based on some best lawyer resume writing practices. It will also address common errors applicants often make to help you steer clear of these missteps.
The Lawyer Resume Sections
There are 5 essential components to every lawyer’s resume. They include:
- Contact Information
- Professional Summary
- Legal Work Experience
- Education and Credentials
- Skills
- Licenses and Certifications
Additionally, many applicants include another section detailing their interests and professional affiliations to add depth to their pitch to sell their potential future employer on their value. Now, let’s take a look at each of these sections individually and discuss their importance.
Contact Information
A candidate’s contact information is an essential inclusion at the start of a lawyer’s resume as it serves as a formal introduction and provides the hiring manager with the necessary means of communication. There are key pieces of information that must be included here, including the candidate’s name, phone number, email address, and LinkedIn profile or website that contains a working portfolio.
While it is vital to include those pieces, they cover the multitude of ways in which a hiring manager can reach the candidate, and therefore should not be any more excessive. Needless to say, the included information should be accurate and current, to avoid presenting the hiring manager with any hardships if expressing interest in making contact to set up an interview.
Here is a sample of what a contact section may look like:
Michael H. Simmons
mich*****ns@gmail.com | (123)456-7890 | LinkedIn.com/in/mi234ns
Professional Summary
The next section is the professional summary and it helps to explain this in legal terms, it serves as the opening argument for the candidate’s resume. This is a concise, impactful summation of a candidate’s qualifications and intents. Once a hiring manager reads this section, he or she should determine whether the candidate’s background aligns with the needs of the firm.
Recent law school graduates or those looking for an entry-level position in the legal realm should use this section to highlight their legal education and internships, emphasizing their potential, while experienced lawyers should utilize the professional summary to showcase noteworthy accomplishments, areas of expertise, and longevity in the profession.
A recent graduate may write a professional summary section in a manner such as:
Recent Harvard Law graduate with extensive legal research background and criminal defense-focused internships. Dedicated to meticulous preparation of cases and delivering proficient advocacy.
A more seasoned attorney should frame this section in the following manner:
Corporate attorney with 7+ years of experience in advising Fortune 500 clients regarding regulatory compliance and managing multi-million dollar transactions. Experienced and recognized for navigation of successful acquisitions, complex mergers, and actionable involvement in high-stakes negotiations.
These summarize one’s potential and value to the employer while aligning with job postings. The secret is the use of keywords in the summary section that reflect the firm’s priority and role in the legal sector.
Read More :- Resume summary Examples
Legal Work Experience
What is a legal professional with legal knowledge or the ability to demonstrate its application in impacting the real world? If one were to choose the most crucial part of a lawyer’s resume, it would be the legal work experience section, not just to showcase past job titles, but to show that the contributions in those roles carried a quantifiable impact. These should be listed in brief, yet informative bullets, each reflecting clear, actionable accomplishments.
Far too commonly, candidates list the tasks they perform in a prior employment position. The key focus, however, should be on measurable achievements and the value of their result. This holds even for entry-level and seasoned applicants. For instance, contextualizing contributions during a clerkship or internship is important in showing the hiring manager tangible, relevant experience, even in a supporting capacity. For instance:
- “Worked with senior attorneys to conduct witness interviews and prepared trial briefs for high-profile civil litigation. “
- “Assisted with in-depth legal research, supporting a precedent-setting argument.”
An associate corporate law firm attorney, for instance, could represent a bullet of their experience as follows:
- Represented more than 35 clients in litigation cases, with upwards of a 90% success rate in negotiated settlements.
- Drafted and reviewed commercial contracts valued at over $25M, ensuring federal and state law compliance.
Education And Credentials
The importance of the next section, which highlights the lawyer’s education, cannot be overstated. It is critical for establishing the credibility and authority of the applicant as a legal professional, with law firms relying on it to verify that the candidate has the foundational tools and meets the core requirements of the role. The reputation of the schools attended is particularly scrutinized in the legal realm, as are any earned degrees or honors. Additionally, activities participated in also weigh heavily in hiring decisions.
The education section should be structured in a manner that lists the candidate’s highest degree first (usually their Juris Doctor), with undergraduate degrees as subsequent trailers as a list. Each should include the educational institution’s name, location, title of the degree earned there, and the graduating year. Any leadership roles or honor-roll graduations should also be highlighted here to serve as evidence of dedication and excellence.
While this section is important for seasoned lawyers, it is even more pivotal for recent law graduates because they do not have the extensive work experience to lean on. Therefore, showcasing their academic achievements, as well as related activities (like internships, moot court, and legal clinics), can demonstrate focus, drive, and potential.
An example of an education listing that works ideally for a seasoned, experienced lawyer’s resume would be:
Juris Doctor (J.D)
University of Chicago Law School, Chicago, IL | May 2015
- Honors: Cum Laude
- Activities: Chicago Law Review editor, Environmental Law Society president
Bachelor of Arts in Political Science
Yale Law School, New Haven, CT | May 2012
Recent graduates are advised to list their educational history as per the following example:
Juris Doctor (J.D.)
Harvard Law School, Cambridge MA | May 2023
Bachelor of Science in International Relations
Duke University, Durham, NC | May 2020
Additional Resource :- Resume Summary for Young Adults
Skills
Another crucial component is the skills for a lawyer resume. Since the legal field is highly competitive, hiring managers look for candidates with a healthy mix of specialized knowledge, technical expertise, and interpersonal skills. The skills section of the resume communicates a candidate’s professional capabilities quickly, demonstrating if the application’s qualifications match the need of the job at the company.
The best approach to writing a skills section on a lawyer’s resume is to include those skills that are listed in the job description of the desired position. These may include contract drafting, negotiations with clients, or legal research, complimented by soft skills like problem-solving, communication, time management, and other essential, highly valued skills in the legal profession. It is best to have an equal balance of technical and soft skills to draw a hiring manager’s attention.
They should be organized in a readable format that is clean and backed up by the candidate’s professional experience from an earlier section. It is best to list these in bulleted form because hiring managers scan resumes expediently, and they typically check the skills section first, especially with the candidate is applying to specialized positions. The list of skills can quickly identify experience in niche legal areas, so being specific is key. Therefore, mentioning “contract drafting” is not as impactful as “experience drafting complex commercial contracts.”
An example of a skills section could be listed in the following manner:
- Legal Research & Analysis
- Experience Drafting Complex Commercial Contracts and Legal Memoranda
- Detailed Validation of Regulatory Compliance
- Client Relationship Management
- Development of Case Studies
- Negotiation and Meditation
- Prioritization & Time Management
- Proficiency In Advance Legal Software
Click Here :- Top Resume Skills
Licenses And Certifications
The licenses and certification section is an applicant’s formal validation of his or her ability to practice law and is, therefore, a mandatory inclusion in a lawyer’s resume. After all, a law firm will not waste resources on a candidate who is not licensed or certified to practice law. If this section is omitted, extensive professional experience and a stellar set of academic credentials will not lead to the obtainment of the desired position in a legal firm. Many candidates opt to place this section toward the top of their resume, sometimes right after the education section.
This section should be structured prominently and must include the places where the candidate is licensed to practice law starting with the primary state listed with the most recent certification at the bottom. The complete name of the certifying body, year of admission into the Bar, and relevant, specialized certifications must all be included. Any additional legal certifications are a plus, including mediation training, legal tech certifications, and any other expanded skill sets.
An example of how a license and certification section would look is as follows:
- Certified Specialist in Family Law, State Bar of California, 2020
- Licensed Attorney, State Bar, State Bar of New York, 2022
Interests And Professional Affiliations
This section is not mandatory, but it can allow an applicant’s professional affiliations and interests to be noted, bolstering insight into their engagement with the legal community and their personality. This is a great way to highlight a commitment to the legal profession, especially through voluntary legal work or memberships in the ABA (American Bar Association). Moreso, it helps to humanize a candidate’s resume, illustrating values and interests to the hiring manager.
An example of an interests and professional affiliation section would be something like this:
Volunteer legal advisor for a nonprofit supporting women’s rights
Active member of the American Bar Association’s Corporate Law Section.
Errors To Avoid
Now that we have covered the “dos” of a lawyer resume, we should address some of the “don’ts” as these common errors can undermine the strongest applicant’s profile. Let’s address the three biggest mistakes candidates make on lawyer resumes:
- Lack of Keywords: More times than not, hiring firms use applicant tracking systems when screening resumes, and without keywords like “client representation” or “litigation strategy” the resume may not even be afforded consideration.
- Generic Phrasing: Achievements listed in the resume should have a quantifiable achievement tied to them if possible. So rather than saying: “responsible for drafting contracts” describe that part of skills or work experience as “drafted contracts worth over $15M, leading to a 20% client retention.
- Too Much Information: While details are key, they need to be listed only when relevant. Excessive verbiage only distracts from the lawyer resume’s goal, so it is important to tailor each resume to the specific position sought by the applicant.
A Blueprint Of Success
More than just a professional document, a lawyer resume is an opportunity to persuade a law firm about a candidate being the ideal fit for the role. Therefore, the resume should be structured in a concrete, concise way, starting with the contact information, through the work experience, education history, and skills. All of these play a pivotal role in aligning a candidate’s qualifications with the firm’s needs.
Additional Resources :- “How to Write Attorney Resume”