How prominent should PQE be on a Solicitor CV?

Put it in your headline next to your name and practice area. UK legal recruiters and partners filter on PQE before they read anything else. '5 PQE Commercial Real Estate' tells me your seniority, your specialism and where you sit in the salary band before I have read your summary. If you are newly qualified, write 'NQ (qualified September 2025)'. If you have a non-linear path (paralegal years, career change, secondment), address it briefly in the summary so the partner reading it does not have to do the maths.

Should I list every matter I have worked on?

No. Pick four to six representative matters that show range, value and your role. A magic-circle Senior Associate listing 30 deals looks like a brag sheet; the same lawyer listing six well-described matters with their level of involvement looks like a partner-track candidate. Always make clear what you did versus what the team did. 'Led drafting and negotiation of the SPA, reporting weekly to the client GC' is far stronger than 'Worked on the Project X transaction'.

How do I move from private practice to in-house on my CV?

Reframe your experience around the work in-house teams actually do: commercial advisory, contract negotiation, regulatory horizon-scanning, supporting the Board. Lead the summary by stating you are seeking your first in-house move and name the sector. Strip out the BD and origination bullets that do not apply, and add anything you have done that resembles in-house work — secondments are gold here. If you have done a six-month client secondment, give it its own section, not a single line.

CV Example · People & Legal · UK 2026

Solicitor CV Example UK

Legal hiring runs on convention. I have placed Solicitors into magic-circle, regional and in-house teams, and the CV format that wins is the one that respects the rules: PQE first, practice area second, firm tier and matter detail third. Vague generalist CVs get rejected at the gate. If you are 4 PQE in commercial property, lead with that. If you are seeking your first in-house move, address it head-on in your summary rather than hoping the recruiter joins the dots. Education matters here in a way it does not for most other professions, so do not hide your university and grade.

By Alex · 12-year UK recruiter · Updated April 2026

Example header

Olivia Hartley · Senior Associate (5 PQE) · Commercial Real Estate · Leeds

Personal statement / Professional summary

Senior Associate, 5 PQE, qualified into the Commercial Real Estate team at a UK Top 50 firm and now leading mid-market investment and development matters across the North. Recent work includes a £42m portfolio acquisition for a listed REIT and a £14m forward-funding deal for a logistics developer. Comfortable running matters end-to-end with one trainee and a paralegal. Seeking a move to a national or City firm with stronger institutional client base, or a first in-house role with a real estate investment platform. Open to relocation to Manchester or London.

Bullet point examples

Strong bullets follow the same shape: action verb, specific scope, quantified outcome. Use these as patterns, not as copy-paste templates — the numbers must be your own.

Recent matters

Led a £42m portfolio acquisition of seven multi-let industrial estates for a listed REIT, managing due diligence across two firms and reporting weekly to the client's Investment Committee.
Acted for a logistics developer on a £14m forward-funding deal, including site assembly, planning condition negotiation and the funding agreement.

Practice area depth

5 PQE in Commercial Real Estate with deep experience in investment, development and asset management; secondary experience in landlord-and-tenant disputes.
Run an average matter book of 18-22 live files at a value of £80k-£500k each, billing 1,420 hours in 2025 against a 1,400 target.

Client and BD

Originated £180k of fees from two new clients in 2025, both introduced via the firm's Property Investment Forum which I co-chair quarterly.
Authored four published articles on the Building Safety Act for the firm's client newsletter, generating 11 inbound enquiries and three new instructions.

Supervision and training

Supervised one trainee through a six-month CRE seat and a paralegal across the full year, including SQE-route trainee assessments and quarterly reviews.
Designed and delivered the firm's internal CPD session on the Leasehold and Freehold Reform Act 2024, attended by 38 fee earners across two offices.

Process and risk

Reduced average matter-opening time from 9 to 4 days by working with the COLP on a streamlined conflict-check and AML onboarding workflow.
Zero professional-indemnity notifications across 5 PQE; clean audit on file reviews in both 2024 and 2025.

Skills section — what to list

Mirror the skills exactly as they appear in target job ads. The ATS reads this section literally — synonyms hurt match scores.

Solicitor of the Senior Courts of England and Wales (admitted 2020)5 PQE Commercial Real EstateInvestment acquisitions and disposalsDevelopment and forward fundingLandlord and tenant (commercial)Building Safety Act 2022 advisoryDrafting and negotiating leasesLand Registry and Land Charges practiceAML and source-of-funds complianceSRA Code of ConductTrainee supervisionPractical Law and LexisPSLiManage / NetDocumentsClient business developmentConditional Fee and CFA structures

Solicitor-specific CV mistakes that get you binned

× Burying your PQE — it is the single most important fact on a Solicitor CV. Put it next to your name.
× Listing every supervisor you trained under — recruiters care about practice area depth, not approval-by-association.
× Naming clients without checking confidentiality — listed REITs and household names are usually fine; mid-market private clients almost never are. When in doubt, describe by sector and value.
× Padding with academic prizes from undergraduate study if you are 5+ PQE — your university degree class still matters; the Land Law prize from 2017 does not.
× Skipping billable hours — if you bill above target, lead with the number. If you bill below, give context.

Common questions

How prominent should PQE be on a Solicitor CV?: Put it in your headline next to your name and practice area. UK legal recruiters and partners filter on PQE before they read anything else. '5 PQE Commercial Real Estate' tells me your seniority, your specialism and where you sit in the salary band before I have read your summary. If you are newly qualified, write 'NQ (qualified September 2025)'. If you have a non-linear path (paralegal years, career change, secondment), address it briefly in the summary so the partner reading it does not have to do the maths.
Should I list every matter I have worked on?: No. Pick four to six representative matters that show range, value and your role. A magic-circle Senior Associate listing 30 deals looks like a brag sheet; the same lawyer listing six well-described matters with their level of involvement looks like a partner-track candidate. Always make clear what you did versus what the team did. 'Led drafting and negotiation of the SPA, reporting weekly to the client GC' is far stronger than 'Worked on the Project X transaction'.
How do I move from private practice to in-house on my CV?: Reframe your experience around the work in-house teams actually do: commercial advisory, contract negotiation, regulatory horizon-scanning, supporting the Board. Lead the summary by stating you are seeking your first in-house move and name the sector. Strip out the BD and origination bullets that do not apply, and add anything you have done that resembles in-house work — secondments are gold here. If you have done a six-month client secondment, give it its own section, not a single line.