The Conscious Lawyer: Courageous leadership for high-performing professionals

What makes the leader of any organisation good, and which skills and qualities are required to be a good leader of a law firm in particular?

As we are all aware, the legal profession faces many new pressures in the post-Covid world, ranging from different work patterns to changing expectations among clients. Kiran Scarr’s book examines the qualities and values that are essential for leadership, and explores how to unlock them.

We can all recall examples of the leadership we have experienced in our careers, most of which we would probably want to avoid rather than copy.

Examples of poor leadership include people who are unapproachable, uncommunicative or remote, or who want to do as little work as possible but expect juniors to contribute much more.

It is certainly true that people cannot lead if they are unwell, and this includes both mental and physical health. Scarr encourages leaders to examine their own characters and to look after themselves.  

Lawyers are not usually taught how to lead, so those who lead law firms probably developed this skill along the way. Often, deciding what works and what does not is a matter of personal choice, or the result of experimentation.

We have probably all known control freaks. Scarr quotes a writer who believes some jobs tend to attract people with psychopathic tendencies: chief executives are top and lawyers are second! No comment.  

Is it better for a leader to be liked or loathed? Personally, I am not sure. Some good leaders do not seek to be popular and others who are well-liked are not always good at leading. This question is timely, as the legal profession is grappling with issues of personal behaviour that are also relevant to leadership.

Financial and other constraints have made it increasingly difficult to be a successful leader. Technology has created a world where clients expect a 24-hour service seven days a week. I can remember a time when offices closed for lunch and had an extra day off after a bank holiday. Business was done during strict office hours.

Leadership is something we all experience when we are at an early stage in our careers, and have to develop as we progress. This interesting book handles the subject well – encouraging us to unleash our potential without letting our egos get in the way.

David Pickup is a partner at Pickup & Scott Solicitors, Aylesbury