Global law firm Herbert Smith Freehills (HSF) is set to extend its innovative Alternative Legal Services (ALT) business to Johannesburg.

The business will combine a mix of legal expertise, process efficiency and technology to handle high-volume or document-intensive work more efficiently and cost effectively for clients, and will be housed at the firm's existing Johannesburg office.

The new team will initially be staffed by about five lawyers and 20 legal analysts, who will form the first cohort of the firm's new international legal learnership programme (ILLP), which will launch alongside the opening of the Johannesburg ALT business.

Speaking to Engineering News Online, HSF partner and ALT global head Libby Jackson said the company was “very excited” about recruiting team members for its first 18-month ILLP, which will offer up to 20 legal graduates the opportunity to gain employment and work experience through a structured programme.

“We are looking for technically excellent legal graduates who have the capacity to work effectively as part of a team and to learn quickly as part of our innovative and fast-growing global ALT team,” she said.

HSF is seeking applications from graduates with a strong academic record, who are committed to investing in legal and business skills training.

“Successful candidates will have excellent attention to detail, the ability to review, analyse and organise documentary and factual evidence, along with an aptitude for learning and becoming proficient in the use of leading edge software and information technology applications to intelligently navigate large databases and document management systems,” Jackson explained.

Participants in the ILLP will develop client and commercial skills, increase their technical capability and improve their personal leadership qualities.

They will also work with the firm's disputes, corporate and finance practices, alongside partners and associates across the firm's international network, giving them exposure to global clients.

Jackson noted that the company chose South Africa to launch the programme, as it has a “solid talent pool” from which to recruit and “very good law schools”.

“There’s clear demand for this type of learnership programme for legal graduates in South Africa. When we engaged with young legal graduates [here] recently, it was clear that they would relish the opportunity to develop their legal and commercial skills through taking part in our ILLP and that, in tandem, HSF would be helping to address the ongoing challenge of high youth unemployment rates in South Africa,” she highlighted.

Looking ahead, HSF is planning a further intake in 2018. “The size of our second intake will be determined partly by the way in which our global ALT business evolves over the next year, including what service offerings our clients are seeking from our ALT team, and also the way in which we might refine the programme.”

HSF believes graduates will complete the programme with a deeper understanding of legal processes and a stronger CV, thereby increasing their chances of securing a candidate attorney position, or other roles in the legal sector, in the future.