How LOD helped Rosh balance career, family and a growing business

Meet Rosh, an LOD lawyer whose career shows what flexible legal work can make possible. Since joining LOD in 2018, Rosh has built a rewarding legal career while also creating space for family life and a growing food business. Working with LOD has given her the freedom to shape her career around the life she wants to build, rather than the other way around.

Can you tell us a little about your career before joining LOD?

I worked in private practice until I was around three years qualified. I then moved in-house to Sainsbury’s, where I stayed for a couple of years before going on maternity leave.

After having twins, I took some extra time out. When I was ready to return, I knew I wanted to work three days a week, but it was incredibly difficult to find an employed role that offered that kind of flexibility. A neighbour suggested LOD and referred me, and my first assignment began in February 2018.

How has working the LOD way helped you keep building your legal career while making room for life outside work?

When I joined LOD, flexibility was important because I wanted to return to legal work in a way that worked for my family. What I didn’t realise at the time was how valuable that flexibility would become as my life evolved.  

In 2019, I started a food business alongside my legal work, using the days I wasn’t working with clients to build it gradually. Over time, it has grown from catering and food truck events to meal kits and, more recently, retail products based on my mum’s recipes.

The reason I’ve been able to keep both careers going is that I’ve been able to adapt my working pattern as my circumstances have changed. At different points, I’ve worked different hours and different numbers of days. That flexibility has meant I haven’t had to choose between being a lawyer and pursuing something I’m really passionate about. For me, that’s what has been most valuable. I’ve been able to continue doing high-quality legal work and developing my career, while also making space for the other things that matter in my life.

How has working with LOD shaped the kind of legal career you have been able to build?

It has shaped my whole legal career. Since joining LOD in 2018, this has been the longest I have worked in one place since qualifying, even though I am a consultant. I’ve had the opportunity to work on different matters and with different stakeholders, which has helped me continue to develop as a lawyer. Although my work is remote, I am always speaking to my team and clients, so I still feel connected.  

Some lawyers worry that consulting means giving up stability or high-quality work. What has your experience been?

I think people can worry that consulting means constantly bouncing from one assignment to another every few months, and that it’ll feel insecure. My experience has been different. While my work has evolved over time, I have had the consistency of long-term client work alongside the flexibility that first drew me to LOD.

How are you seeing the legal profession evolve, and what does your current assignment show you about the future of legal work?

The legal profession is definitely changing, and AI is a big part of that conversation. At the moment, I see AI as a tool rather than a replacement for lawyers, whether junior or senior. It can still hallucinate and get things wrong, so you need a lawyer to review the advice before it goes out.

The big question is whether AI can ever replicate the judgement calls that lawyers are trained to make. That is the key difference. It is not just about language; it is about judgement. We will have to watch this space.

Being in my current assignment also means I’m close to how AI is being used in a legal department, so in that sense I feel like I’m seeing some of those changes first-hand. That said, I’m excited by it because I can already see the benefits in the way I work. Even compared with a year ago, it’s hard to imagine going back to not using it in some way.

For lawyers thinking about a different way of working, what would you want them to know?

I would 100% say give it a try. LOD has moved on a lot since I joined in 2018. There are Managed Services teams, on-call work and secondments, so there are many ways to work with LOD.

If you want flexibility and a career that supports the life you want to build,  rather than dictating how your life works, it is worth exploring. For me, that has made all the difference.