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Kelly Reid

Associate Director and Private Client Team Lead

Court of Protection Private Client

kelly.reid@realmrecruit.com 03300 245 606

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Meet Kelly Reid

Kelly is an Associate Director and Private Client Team Lead at Realm and specialises in the recruitment of Private Client, Court of Protection, and Contentious Probate lawyers. She primarily works across the North West but also works with some law firms in the West Midlands.

Kelly joined Realm in 2017, with 11 years of legal recruitment experience. She often attends and has spoken at a number of industry events for private client lawyers including those hosted by Women in Wills and Manchester STEP.

Kelly has won the Recruiter of the Year and Lifetime Achievement Awards at our end-of-year awards ceremony, The Realmies.

Tell us about a great result you got for a lawyer.

I could tell you about some big pay rises that I’ve managed to secure for lawyers that I’ve worked with and which happens quite often in private client with the market demand being so high, but the greatest results for me are often finding lawyers exactly what they’re looking for, whether that be part-time or home working or roles with clear progression routes.

It’s also fantastic when I see lawyers that I’ve worked with get shortlisted for awards and win awards and just generally loving their jobs and what they’re doing.

What do you think is the biggest challenge for law firms right now?

I think the biggest challenge that law firms face is attracting and retaining top talent. In a really competitive market, there are few private client solicitors that are actively looking for a move and they’ve often got multiple job opportunities presented to them. Law firms have got the challenge of being attractive to get that talent in, whilst also maintaining the balance with their existing teams.

What drives you as a legal recruiter?

Really, it’s all about building long-term relationships with clients and candidates and really understanding their needs and having a positive impact on their careers and helping their teams.

Tell us why you are so passionate about helping private client lawyers have successful, fulfilling careers.

I think for me it’s about really understanding what lawyers are looking for from their careers because they do play such an important and massive part of people’s lives. So really understanding what they’re looking for and helping them find what it is that they want feels really rewarding. I’ve also worked with some lawyers and law firms for a number of years now, so they’ve also become friends.

Kelly was professional, efficient and supportive throughout. She enabled me to achieve three interviews and the perfect position. I would highly recommend her.

Lucy Fowler

Private Client Solicitor

I have recently worked with Kelly on a difficult role to fill due to a lack of candidates on the market for Private Client. Kelly was really helpful throughout - she listened to what I was looking for and actively applied that to the candidates she was representing so the candidate on paper was perfect and in person even more so! She is responsive and works hard to understand the role and our 'ideal'. It is a refreshing and reassuring approach. I wouldn't hesitate to recommend her services!

Sarah Louise Walker

Head of WTTP Birmingham, Weightmans

Kelly's knowledge of the private client market on a local and national level was invaluable. She was approachable and open throughout the process and I would happily recommend Kelly to anyone considering their next career move.

Helen Gott

Senior Associate

Kelly has been absolutely brilliant to work with over the last 12 months. She quickly understood the culture of our firm, and what we were looking for. In a very difficult and passive market she was able to find excellent candidates for us, who have been a brilliant fit into our team and firm. Kelly has recruited 5 team members for us, and we're going from strength to strength.

Julie Jewers

Specialist Wills, Estate Planning, Trusts, Asset Protection & Probate Solicitor

Kelly was professional and supportive throughout the recruitment process. Kelly helped me secure a fantastic opportunity in being successful in a new role. Thank you for all of your help. I would highly recommend.

Sian Jones

Private Client FCILEx