IT & communications law
IT and communications law (ITC) involves advising on contracts that govern how organisations acquire and use technology and those services that relate to, or depend upon, the exploitation of technology. ITC transactions can range from a contract for the design of a website to a contract for the supply of a multinational’s global networks. The industry is generally averse to litigation (except in the intellectual property field) but significant disputes do arise from time to time.
Graduate careers in IT and communications law
Instructions can come from the customer or supplier side. Customers can be from the public or private sector: government departments, public services and financial services companies are particularly large consumers of technology. Suppliers can be of any size – a supplier that is small one year can be huge in three years (and vice versa). You will often be instructed by an in-house legal department and will have to adapt to your client’s way of working: lawyers may be asked to provide support in the background or may be asked to spearhead the whole transaction.
Clients are generally mobile and expect you to be. E-mail, phone and text are the dominant means of communication but face-to-face meetings are surprisingly common and projects may require temporary residence in a distant (and rarely glamorous) location – usually as part of a team. The size of team depends on the transaction. Advice on a software licence may take a single lawyer a couple of hours and involve only their specialist skills; working on a government procurement can involve a team of ten ITC lawyers for 18 months and involve lawyers from IP, employment, procurement and other disciplines.
A particular feature of the area is its propensity to spawn new areas of law and practice at a lively rate – for example, e-commerce and data protection – thus requiring lawyers to keep up with the rapid pace of change within the industry. Business process outsourcing (buying-in accounting, HR, procurement and other services) is only peripherally IT related but is often carried out by ITC departments because of the skills acquired by ITC lawyers in IT outsourcing.
Working hours tend to be long. All-night sessions and weekend work are no more common than in other areas of practice, although travelling is often part of the job. When working for customers you are often part of a project team. When working for suppliers you may develop a long term relationship with your client’s business and its goals.
What is it like doing a trainee solicitor job in IT and communications law?
ITC attracts lawyers who are interested in the commercial aspects of a transaction and who enjoy keeping up with a changing marketplace. At its best it is one of the most exciting areas of the law because you often work with clients who are doing a new thing in a new way – and who expect you to tell them how to make it work legally. On the downside, the pressure can be unnerving and the hours tend to be long.
The work has an air of unpredictability so the workflow for a trainee can vary significantly. Trainees may be asked to cope with a large number of small transactions or alternatively become involved in a single project that absorbs all their time.
What skills does an IT and communications law solicitor need to do the job?
- Adaptability.
- Commercial common sense.
- The ability to work in a team.
- Technical literacy.
- A practical and intellectual interest in technology.
Types of law practised
- Agency.
- Company.
- Competition.
- Contract.
- Consumer.
- Data protection.
- Employment.
- Intellectual property.
- Procurement.
- Tort.
About the author
IAIN MONAGHAN is a partner in the outsourcing, technology and commercial group with PINSENT MASONS. He graduated with a degree in English literature from the University of Cambridge.
