The current state of the offshore legal market in the Cayman Islands, BVI, Bermuda, and the Chanel Islands could perhaps best be described as gentle. It seems BVI and Bermuda are experiencing longer ill-effects from the recession than Cayman. However, a steady trickle of hires occurs at the leading players in the Channel Islands, particularly in Guernsey.

Offshore Issues

Candidates with training and post-qualification experience from London’s top 10 or top 20 law firms continue to hold the strongest attraction for these larger offshore law firms.

The relative scarcity of vacancies and the surplus of suitable candidates have created intense job competition. With many good candidates, London’s law firms are spoilt for choice. This means the recruitment process has taken longer than expected. But who can blame? There are so many great candidates.

It would not be unrealistic to say that the standard to be reached for securing a job at a large offshore firm at the moment, certainly out here in the Caribbean, is akin to trying to secure a position at a top 10 London law firm. Litigation jobs, understandably, continue to crop up with relative frequency while banking, corporate, funds, and trusts jobs remain, on the whole, thin on the ground.

Salaries in the Cayman Islands continue to remain very competitive with the island’s top firms but with the apparent advantage of there being no income tax. Furthermore, whether the offshore legal market will pick up significantly or decline again continues to depend almost entirely on the speed of the global economic recovery.

Related to Offshore Jurisdictions

Are you seeking to relocate to the Cayman Islands, BVI and other offshore jurisdictions? CML make it easy! Learn more about the offshore legal market and how you can elevate your career by contacting Graham Blyth at Grahamn.blyth@cml.ky.