Law

In-house lawyer CV: example and template

This example is for lawyers working in company legal departments, institutions and organisations, with or without a professional licence, and for people moving from a law firm to in-house work.

The head of legal wants to know which matters you handle on your own, who you work for in the company and how you help the business make decisions. We show you how to describe this.

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Example CV: in-house lawyer

All the details in this example are fictional. Treat it as a model of layout and wording, and replace the content with your own experience.

Krzysztof Wilk

Lawyer, legal department

Gdansk +48 123 456 789 krzysztof.wilk@example.com

Professional profile

Lawyer with 7 years of experience, the last 4 in the legal department of a logistics company with 1,500 employees. I negotiate and draft contracts with customers and suppliers, run compliance and data protection projects and advise the board and sales teams. I cut the average contract turnaround from 10 to 4 working days.

Work experience

Lawyer, legal department

02.2022 - present

Logistics company, 1,500 employees, Gdansk

  • Drafting and negotiating contracts with customers and suppliers, about 300 contracts a year.
  • Contract templates and an approval process; contract turnaround cut from 10 to 4 days.
  • Compliance and data protection projects, training for 200 employees.
  • Coordinating court disputes with external law firms.
  • Advising the board on new projects and acquisitions.

Junior lawyer

09.2018 - 01.2022

Law firm, commercial law, Gdansk

  • Corporate services for companies: resolutions, registry filings, contracts.
  • Drafting court pleadings in commercial cases.
  • Legal analyses for transport sector clients.

Education

Law, master's degree

2013 - 2018

University of Gdansk

Skills

  • Contract and commercial law
  • Contract negotiation
  • Compliance
  • Personal data protection
  • Coordinating disputes
  • Advising the board and the business

Qualifications and training

  • Postgraduate studies in compliance, 2021
  • Contract negotiation training, 2023

Languages

  • English: C1, including legal English
  • German: B1

Additional information

  • Category B driving licence

I hereby consent to the processing of my personal data for the purposes necessary to carry out the recruitment process, in accordance with Regulation (EU) 2016/679 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 27 April 2016 (GDPR).

How to write an in-house lawyer CV

Professional summary

Give your years of experience, the type of company and the areas of law you work in. Add whether you have a professional licence and one result, such as a faster contract process or a compliance programme you introduced.

Lawyer with 3 years of experience at an employment law firm who wants to move to a company legal department. I draft contracts, workplace rules and opinions and run training for HR teams. I know legal English.

Experience: duties and achievements

Describe types of matters, scale and results for the business. In a company, a lawyer assesses risk and helps make decisions, so show your work with the board and departments, not just documents.

Weaker: Drafting contracts.

Better: Drafting and negotiating about 300 contracts a year with customers and suppliers.

Weaker: Improvements.

Better: Contract templates and an approval process; contract turnaround cut from 10 to 4 days.

Weaker: Training.

Better: A data protection programme and training for 200 employees.

Skills worth listing

List the areas of law and practical skills. Under personal skills, show that you translate the law into business language.

Professional skills

  • Contract law
  • Company law
  • Compliance and data protection
  • Employment law or another specialisation
  • Coordinating disputes
  • Foreign legal language

Personal skills

  • Translating law into business language
  • Negotiation
  • Risk assessment
  • Independence
  • Working with many departments

Licences and training

If you are a qualified advocate or legal adviser, show it clearly. Add postgraduate studies and training, for example in compliance, data protection or negotiation.

Junior lawyer CV

Describe placements at law firms and legal departments, university legal clinics and documents you drafted under supervision.

Name the area you want to develop in and your knowledge of legal language. This helps match you to a team.

Tailoring your CV to the job offer

A manufacturer looks for contract and procurement law, a tech company for data protection and intellectual property, and a public institution for administrative law and public procurement. Move what the offer is about to the top.

The most common mistakes on an in-house lawyer CV

Questions and answers

What should an in-house lawyer put on a CV?

Years of experience, the type of company, areas of law, the scale of matters, results for the business, professional licences, training and languages.

Can a lawyer without bar training work in-house?

Yes. Many legal departments hire lawyers without a licence for internal advice, contracts and compliance.

How do I move from a law firm to in-house?

On your CV, show experience with business clients, knowledge of the industry and the ability to assess risk, not just court pleadings.

How do I show a lawyer's results?

Through scale, such as the number of contracts, and improvements, such as faster turnaround or a compliance programme you introduced.

Create a lawyer CV in the builder

In the CV Majster builder you enter your details step by step and see right away what the document looks like. You can copy the wording from this page and adapt it to yourself. The finished CV as a PDF costs a one-off PLN 5, with no subscription, and you see the preview before you pay.

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See also

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