Engage lawyers on demand in Australia

Why should you fill your capacity gaps with a secondee lawyer on demand?

As much as we wish it would be, our function headcount is never enough.

Or rather, it never remains the right level for the amount of legal work that needs to be done to adequately support the business throughout the year.

Whether it is as simple as needing to fill a gap left due to long service or parental leave, or extra pair of helping Legal hands as you go through a busy spell one thing is for certain, you’ll need a secondee lawyer on demand.

Luckily, just as you might find an on-demand service filled with experts ready to tutor your kids or walk your dog, you can find expert secondee lawyers on demand with legal service providers like Plexus Engage.

Think AirTasker, but for your perfect lawyer. Instead of swiping, one phone call to our team is all it takes for a brief of the perfect lawyer to be sent to your inbox for your consideration.

How does Plexus Engage work?

For almost ten years, Plexus Engage have been partnering with Australia’s leading in-house Legal functions. In that time, we have placed top-tier lawyers on demand in Melbourne, Sydney and Brisbane to fill capacity gaps.

At Plexus, we pride ourselves in maintaining a full bench of lawyers with a range of specialty skill sets and experience levels so we will always be able to find your perfect legal match.

Simply contact our team by phone or email and after a short conversation about what you envision your perfect lawyer is, our Legal Team Managers will send through our top picks.

You’ll then be able to meet them via phone or video interview, and of course the Plexus team will be with you every step of the way.

Once you are happy with your lawyer, we can have them in place within your function within a matter of days.

Lawyers on demand in Melbourne

Plexus and ACMI

The Australian Centre for the Moving Image (ACMI) celebrates, explores and promotes the cultural and creative richness of the moving image in all its forms – film, television and digital culture. When its Legal team of four Lawyers in Melbourne were trying to improve the productivity of their team, they needed a solution that was mindful of their tight budgets.

They hadn’t used secondees before and as a relatively small government agency they were wary of the financial impact.

Losing their GC, however, became a sudden catalyst for action. Their HR team struggled to find a suitable replacement, work was backing up, and they needed an urgent solution.

As the Legal function supports a diverse group of internal and external stakeholders, they needed to continue leading the review, management and control of all key contracts, including corporate sponsorship agreements, touring agreements and joint ventures despite their capacity gap.

ACMI reached out to Plexus to meet their need for a lawyer on demand in Melbourne.

Initially ACMI worked together with Plexus to scope the problem and help them understand whether using a secondee was the best option. Based on their current and projected workload, they concluded that engaging a secondee was the optimum solution.

We reviewed our bench of nearly 100 Lawyers and found someone who wasn’t only a great Lawyer, but happened to be moonlighting as a Hollywood scriptwriter, making him the perfect cultural fit!

Within 24 hours, our Lawyer met with ACMI who were immediately sold on his experience and profile, so we helped them to build a compelling business case for funding the secondment.

The initial three-month engagement was such a success that it turned into 12, and the Plexus Engage lawyer became a key adviser to the CEO and has played a central role in transforming ACMI’s Legal function.

Plexus Engage Frequently Asked Questions

Who is responsible for training?

Plexus Engage lawyers undergo a vetting and training period when they join the Plexus team, so they are all set to start within your Legal function when you need them.

How long do I need to have a secondee lawyer on demand in my function?

The beauty of Plexus Engage is that your lawyer on demand can be with your Legal function as long or as little as you would like them to be.

We have had clients only need their secondee lawyer on demand once a week for three months, another client whose secondment period was four days, and another for a 12-month maternity leave cover.

We are under a tight budget and cannot increase headcount. How do I position a secondee to my business?

Businesses and Legal functions everywhere are feeling the pinch right now. When you partner with Plexus Engage, your secondee lawyer on demand is less like a new employee which increases headcount costs, and more like a consultant.

For your fixed fee, Plexus covers their superannuation, training, practising certificate and all other costs.

Over to you

Legal secondments are not new. But engaging with a specialty secondee lawyer on demand is key to ensuring your secondee will make maximum impact in the time you have with them.

By engaging with a legal services provider such as Plexus you have a guarantee that your secondee is ready to implement the law with an understanding of the intricacies of an in-house Legal function.