Law

Legal counsel CV: example and template

This example is for legal counsels (radca prawny) at law firms, in-house legal departments, public offices and institutions, and for counsels who after a few years at a firm want to move in-house or change specialism.

The employer wants to know which areas you specialise in, which clients or company you serve, whether you handle court cases and what your results are. We show you how to describe this on your CV without breaching professional secrecy.

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Example CV: legal counsel

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.

Piotr Laskowski

Legal counsel

Krakow +48 123 456 789 piotr.laskowski@example.com

Professional profile

Legal counsel with 9 years of experience, on the list of legal counsels since 2019. I specialise in commercial law, trade contracts and employment law, serve manufacturing and technology companies and handle litigation. For the last 3 years I have led the legal team at a company with 1,200 employees.

Work experience

Legal counsel, head of the legal team

02.2023 - present

Technology company, Krakow

  • Leading a team of 4 lawyers and providing legal services to a company with 1,200 employees.
  • Contracts with clients and suppliers, about 300 a year, templates and negotiation rules.
  • Handling 15 court disputes and supervising external law firms.
  • Employment law: workplace rules, employee matters and HR support.
  • Training for managers on contracts and protecting trade secrets.

Legal counsel, earlier trainee

09.2016 - 01.2023

Legal counsels' firm, Krakow

  • Corporate services for companies and trade contracts.
  • Court representation in commercial and employment cases.
  • Legal opinions and due diligence.

Education

Master's degree in law

2011 - 2016

Jagiellonian University

Legal counsel traineeship

2016 - 2019

Regional Chamber of Legal Counsels in Krakow

Skills

  • Commercial law and contracts
  • Employment law
  • Company law
  • Litigation and court representation
  • Negotiation
  • Leading a legal team

Licences and training

  • Entry on the list of legal counsels, 2019
  • Technology law training, 2024

Languages

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

Additional information

  • Author of articles in the legal press

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 a legal counsel CV

Professional summary

Write since when you have been on the list of legal counsels, which areas you specialise in and where you work: a firm, a company, an institution. Add the scope of your work, for example contracts, disputes or employment law, and the scale. An in-house employer looks for a counsel who understands the business, a firm for one with litigation experience.

Legal counsel since 2024 after a traineeship at a firm specialising in employment law. I handle court cases for employees and employers and prepare workplace rules and opinions. I am looking for work in the legal department of a manufacturing company.

Experience: duties and achievements

Describe areas, types of cases, the number of contracts or disputes, clients in general terms and your role. Show results, for example cases won in general terms or shorter contract negotiations. Do not name clients or give case details.

Weaker: Legal services for the company.

Better: Leading a team of 4 lawyers and providing legal services to a company with 1,200 employees.

Weaker: Contracts.

Better: Contracts with clients and suppliers, about 300 a year, templates and negotiation rules.

Weaker: Disputes.

Better: Handling 15 court disputes and supervising external law firms.

Skills worth listing

List areas of law, types of cases, negotiation, court representation and languages. In your soft skills show understanding the business, explaining risk clearly and resilience under pressure.

Professional skills

  • Commercial law
  • Contracts
  • Employment law
  • Litigation
  • Company law
  • Legal opinions

Personal skills

  • Understanding the business
  • Explaining risk clearly
  • Negotiation
  • Resilience under pressure
  • Discretion

Licences and training

List your entry on the list of legal counsels with the year, the traineeship, postgraduate studies and specialist training. In Poland you become a legal counsel after the legal counsel traineeship and exam, or another route set out in the law.

Newly qualified legal counsel CV

If you have just been entered on the list, describe your traineeship, the cases you handled under supervision and the areas you want to develop in.

Add publications, moot courts and legal languages. Employers are glad to hire young counsels with a clear specialism.

Tailoring your CV to the job offer

A law firm looks for court representation and many clients, an in-house role for contracts, employment law and business understanding, and a public institution for administrative law and public procurement. Move to the top what the job ad is about.

The most common mistakes on a legal counsel CV

Questions and answers

What should a legal counsel put on a CV?

The year of entry on the list, specialisms, types of cases, scale of work, role in the team, languages, publications and training.

How do you become a legal counsel in Poland?

Most often after a law degree, the legal counsel traineeship and exam, followed by entry on the list of legal counsels.

Can a legal counsel work at a company as an employee?

Yes, a legal counsel can work under an employment contract, unlike an advocate.

Should you give cases won on a CV?

Only in general terms, without client names or details covered by secrecy.

Create a legal counsel 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.

Go to the CV builder

See also

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