In-house: Democracy behind the scenes

Tell us about your career path to date?

I trained at a “top five” Edinburgh firm, staying on as an assistant in their commercial property department. They were quite forward thinking in their support for part-time working when I started my family in the early 1990s. I enjoyed the work among lovely colleagues, but realised the traditional route to partnership was not motivating and seemed incompatible with the family life I wanted.

I took a career break after my third son was born. With great serendipity, within a few months I was offered an opportunity in the Scottish Office Legal Department property team. In 1999 I became a team leader in the newly formed Government Legal Service for Scotland (“GLSS”). Having spent time at the Scottish Law Commission and in advisory roles for the Food Standards Agency and Scottish ministers, I joined the Parliament team on GLSS secondment in 2007, becoming Solicitor to the Parliament in 2015.

As Solicitor to the Parliament, what are your main responsibilities?

The Scottish Parliamentary Corporate Body (SPCB) is responsible for providing the services the Parliament needs to function effectively as the devolved legislature, to hold the Scottish Government to account and facilitate democratic debate and engagement with the electorate.

Essentially my role is to ensure the legal team provides a high-quality advice service that meets the SPCB’s needs across the full range of its responsibilities and which demonstrates our values of stewardship, excellence, inclusiveness and respect.

You head the Legal Services Office, a relatively new team for the Parliament. How has the team evolved?

It is an exciting time to be leading the team (23 staff, including 20 solicitors). We are going through a period of change, growth and development.

The Legal Services Office was established as the Parliament’s in-house legal team in September 2019. Prior to that our solicitors were seconded from the GLSS pool. We retain strong, constructive links with the GLSS, but are now employed within the Scottish Parliamentary Service (SPS). This means we are fully integrated into parliamentary culture and operations.

We began by agreeing the values we wanted to embed as the foundation for our team culture. All being signed up to caring for one another and supporting team success has been a powerful cohesive force during a challenging period of change. Around two thirds of the team transferred from the GLSS and one third are new, but we all share that team ethos and growth mindset.

I am very proud of how our new team supported the Parliament and its staff to adapt our services and sustain parliamentary business throughout the pandemic. I was delighted to see their hard work recognised at the 2021 Scottish Legal Awards as winners of the Public Sector In-house Team of the year.

What was your main driver for working in the public sector? Would you encourage new lawyers to consider such a career?

From an early age I found being part of a team that worked for the benefit of the community very rewarding. It made sense to follow a similar career direction. I wasn’t surprised to find myself surrounded by collaborative colleagues proud of their contribution and committed to delivering excellence. What I was surprised by was the calibre of the work, the buzz of supporting change that aims to improve people’s lives and the breadth of opportunity to develop as a more rounded adviser.

Public sector lawyers should not usually find themselves in the spotlight – but that does not mean we are not essential to good governance and supporting the operation and observance of the rule of law. Both are fundamental to ensuring a healthy and cohesive society. If you are looking for a challenge, the opportunity to learn in centres of excellence and to feel engaged in making a difference for people, then I encourage you to spend at least some of your career in public service.

What makes a good in-house lawyer? What advice would you give lawyers who want to start a career in-house?

Do everything you can to really understand your organisation’s business, what it needs to achieve, how it operates and why. Our trusted business partner model is built around providing objective but solution focused advice that supports colleagues to achieve their strategic objectives within the rule of law. That, and in-house practice in general, requires appreciation of the principles underpinning the legal framework and sound governance and their resonance for your business, as much as application of the law itself.

You are also head of the Business Assurance Group. What is this group and why is it important?

As head of Business Assurance, I am a member of the SPS Leadership Group. As such I am responsible for the development of strategy and plans to achieve the Parliament’s objectives, and accountable for the operation of services within the group (legal and procurement). I am accountable to my group colleagues for embedding SPS policies and building an environment where our values come to life.

The most important element of this for me is role modelling our culture and values as best I can. Pride in and commitment to how we do our job is as important as the quality of the professional skills we deploy. Our group name reflects what I hope is our brand – a reputation as excellent trusted business advisers who support our colleagues to make informed decisions based on sound legal advice and risk management.

You are senior sponsor for the Mental Health Network at the Parliament. How can solicitors build good mental health, increase resilience and manage stress?

I am very proud to have been given this opportunity. The Mental Health Network encourages a working culture that is open about, and mindful of, mental health and wellbeing. I think creating that foundation is the place to start. We began by raising awareness of what can affect mental health, practising listening, and through that built trust to share our experiences and become comfortable speaking about how we are feeling.

Begin by learning – as a team if possible. We are all different: understand what you need to feel and live well – walking breaks, social interaction, quiet time for reflection – and work with your manager/colleagues to build that into your working life. Of course, we have deadlines to deliver, but if we can optimise the workplace to offer as much support for each other as possible, it becomes a positive force to manage stress and build our resilience. Be appreciative of others, but also be kind to yourself – often we can be our own worst critic. Volunteering positive feedback and appreciation should make you feel good and is likely to be reciprocated.

The pandemic has had a significant impact on people’s mental health and wellbeing. Have you seen any positives coming out of this period?

The restrictions placed on our daily lives have been of an order most of us had never experienced, but I am optimistic. I think we have raised awareness of the importance of addressing staff wellbeing within the scope of our duties to protect staff from exposure to risk. Discussion of how people are feeling, and coping, has been embedded as part of our performance management conversations and tailored wellbeing plans developed to support us. Working remotely from colleagues has challenged us to connect and communicate in different ways and allowed us to be more flexible in when and how we work. Not all of these effects are helpful, but I hope we can use this experience to shape a workplace of the future that recognises personal wellbeing as a key enabler of excellence and effectiveness.

How does the future look for in-house lawyers? What are the key challenges and opportunities?

Each in-house service will be different, but we are all looking to add value in the way we deliver our service, pursuing operational excellence and supporting innovation of our client’s “product” within financial parameters. For some teams, using technology to integrate legal functions within processes will be the growth area in improving value.

Our core strength is in our personal interaction with our clients and tailoring solutions to fit our unique circumstances. Emerging from the pandemic and navigating the complex post-Brexit legislative framework, we have seen a rise in demand for our input. To sustain that demand we are strengthening team resilience and agility through expanding our team at team leader, solicitor and assistant solicitor level and investing in diversifying our skills base. It’s an exciting time.

You’re also a career mentor. Where do you see the value in that mentoring relationship, both for the mentee and the mentor?

It sounds like a cliché, but I hope that sharing my experience of balancing a career and family life, and working in a range of different power dynamics, is of use to someone in the earlier stages of their career. Often it is not the lightbulb moment you need, but affirmation that you are already on the right track and building confidence in the skills you already have. I would have found more opportunities for that helpful earlier in my career.

Learning is also not a one-way street. I am still engaged in and motivated by it every day. It is refreshing and rewarding to listen to my mentee’s experience and how they are working through their challenges.

How have attitudes and working practices changed in the law since you started out?

The most significant (and welcome) change since I qualified in 1990 is the diversity of roles available, and recognition that it will deliver positive results for your business (whether public or private sector) if you support people to balance their work and home life. I have been lucky to benefit from managers who shaped roles and processes in ways that supported you to perform well, but I have also experienced resistance to sensible adjustments and flexibility. We have done much to improve our appreciation of emotional intelligence and people skills as part of our professional toolkit, but there is still room for improvement.

What are your thoughts on training in-house versus training in private practice?

I can see benefits from both – I think it would be interesting to explore whether new structures would help support more hybrid training opportunities.

What is your most unusual or amusing work experience?

It was always clear there were important and interesting legal principles in play in the case brought by the SPCB to remove a permanent camp on the Parliament’s grounds. But if you have read media accounts of the proceedings, you will see that there were several unexpected and unusual events during the case which made it a great learning opportunity.

Finally, what do you love about your role and what do you love doing when the working day is done?

I love working within such a supportive, caring and committed team. Their ability to embrace challenges, deliver excellence and look out for one another with grace and good humour is truly inspiring.

You can’t beat sitting down in front of the fire with a chilled glass of wine after a long country walk with the dog.