Finding a way to work flexibly
You can negotiate your current role, move firms, go in-house or start your own practice. Compare what each option would change in your working week, and what you would take on in return.
Here is what each route actually involves.
Negotiate inside the firm.
Best when the firm’s model can flex and the culture has moved with the policy.
You have a statutory right to request if eligible, and the firm has real obligations to discuss it and to justify a refusal. The negotiation is winnable, particularly if you propose anchor days, coverage and an explicit work allocation rule rather than just a day count.
- What it costs: the arrangement is the easy win. Progression is the hard one. A granted arrangement inside a firm that still allocates work by proximity leaves you flexible and slowly sidelined, which is the outcome nobody puts in writing.
- Worth it if: you have a named sponsor, the allocation rule is agreed, and you can point to someone senior who works this way and is still progressing. If you cannot name that person, that is your answer.
Move to a firm with a different model.
Best when the problem is this firm rather than firms.
Smaller and mid-tier practices, and firms built after 2020, often run genuinely different models. Some have no fixed office expectation at all.
- What it costs: you carry the interview risk. Every firm says it is flexible. The useful questions in the interview are how work is allocated, who has made partner while working flexibly, and what happens when an urgent matter lands on someone’s non-working day. Vague answers are the answer.
- Worth it if: your practice area is portable and you can verify the model with someone who works there rather than from the careers page.
Go in-house.
Best when you want predictability more than autonomy.
In-house roles generally offer more schedule stability and no billable hour target, which removes a large part of the pressure.
- What it costs: less control over the work, a narrower practice, and in most cases a lower ceiling on earnings than a successful private practice. It is a genuine solution to the hours problem and a partial one to the autonomy problem.
- Worth it if: the thing you actually want back is your evenings, not your independence.
Go independent.
Best when the work already comes to you.
Independent practice can give you more control over clients and schedules. Court dates, client needs, business responsibilities and professional obligations still shape your working week. Flexibility is possible, but it is not guaranteed.
- What it costs: everything that is not law. A practising certificate and professional indemnity insurance are non-negotiable, and then you own the address, the phone, the filing, the IT, the trust accounting if you need it, and the marketing. That is the real reason lawyers hesitate, and it is a fair hesitation.
- Worth it if: clients ask for you by name. That is the single best predictor. If your work arrives because a partner handed it to you, build that first.
How do lawyers make route 4 survivable?
By not doing the non-law parts themselves.
Some lawyers start from home; others want a professional workspace from the outset. The right setup depends on your clients, costs and the support you need.
What the setup usually needs is a credible CBD practice address, calls answered professionally while you are in court or at school pick-up, meeting rooms your clients take seriously, filing and court deliveries handled, and IT that works without you managing it. Bought separately, that is a lease, a receptionist and an IT contract. It is why the lean version exists.
Clarence was built by lawyers for exactly this. 600+ independent practices work from Clarence across Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane, with reception trained in legal etiquette, in-house IT, CPD included, and no lease at any stage.
Private offices for lawyers →Virtual offices for lawyers →Practising law around a family →
“Court filing when I need it, a letter typed, my calls answered professionally. I don’t have to employ anyone, I get all the help I need.”
Helena Mrmos, Principal Lawyer, Mozaik Lawyers, Brisbane
Which route should I take?
One test cuts through most of it: if your firm disappeared tomorrow, how many clients would follow you?
If the answer is most of them, you have more options than the negotiation suggests, and routes 2 and 4 are genuinely open. If the answer is few, the work is currently the firm’s rather than yours, and route 1 with a real allocation rule is the move, while you build the relationships that change the answer.
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General information only, not legal or career advice.
Jurisdiction and legal sources
This page provides general information, not legal advice. It does not consider your circumstances. Check the current law and obtain advice from a qualified professional before making decisions about your rights or practice.
The Fair Work Act request process applies to eligible national-system employees. Coverage depends on the employer and employment relationship, not simply the state where you work. Some public-sector employees and some Western Australian businesses operate under state systems. Awards, agreements and state laws may provide additional rights.
National employment rules
Discrimination protections can also apply, depending on the facts. These are relevant federal and NSW, Victorian and Queensland sources, not a complete list for every state or territory.
Discrimination legislation
Member stories describe individual experiences, not guaranteed outcomes. If you choose independent practice, separate state-based practising requirements apply.
Independent-practice legislation
Sources checked 11 September 2026. Laws, regulator requirements and commercial terms can change. The links above are selected sources for this page, not an exhaustive compliance checklist.