A reminder

The Safe Hands service, by another name is a contract position. We will be retained, usually as part-time temp employee, for a short period of time to fill a gap. This could be to fill a spot in a team whilst somebody is being recruited, maternity leave cover, or even to help with BAU for a sole counsel who can then focus on a bigger project.

For who

Technically it could be any business with a legal function and legal team already in place but we think the most value is for Sole Legal Counsels as they would get the most value and also where our strengths and experiences lie.

Also, we are happy to work with recruitment agencies but we are not sure our interests are necessarily aligned: they are often focussed on maximising a placement (higher number of hours, longer contracts, limited remote working) because that justifies the 20%-25% uplift on day rates whereas we are focussed on short, sharp interventions and support.

In our view, the biggest benefit of the Safe Hands service is not the first time it is used but the accrued know-how from a placement. Getting to know people in a business and the business itself is a big part of an effective in-house counsel but in our view, the best part of being an in-house counsel. This means that we are in a good position to support in the future again.

Name and object

The name for the service “Safe Hands” is what other General Counsels’ have actually described us as and recognising our ability to just get on with it.

The object: a bit more literal ie a hand and then a padlock to symbolise keeping something “safe” and secure. It may feel a little tortured, but we like the image even if it did take AI a few efforts to make sure the number of fingers was right!