Why Flexible Law is Essential to Sustainable Australian Legal Practice

For much of its history, the Australian legal profession has equated commitment with endurance. Long hours, constant availability, and the quiet acceptance of pressure have often been seen as markers of professionalism. But that model is showing its limits.

Across the profession, from sole practitioners to large firms, lawyers are increasingly questioning whether the traditional structure of practice is sustainable. Not because they care less about the law, but because they care deeply about doing it well, for the long term.

Flexibility in legal practice is no longer a “nice to have”. It is becoming a structural necessity.

The pressure points are no longer isolated

Legal pressure is not new. What has changed is its persistence.

Many practices now operate under sustained, overlapping demands:

• Growing caseloads without proportional increases in staff

• Clients expecting faster responses and greater accessibility

• Increased regulatory, compliance, and risk pressures

• Lawyers balancing professional responsibility with personal realities

These pressures are not confined to one segment of the profession. Sole practitioners feel them acutely, often without internal support. Small firms carry them through lean teams and limited buffers. Large firms experience them at scale, where even short gaps in capacity ripple quickly across matters and teams.

When pressure becomes constant rather than cyclical, something has to give.

The myth of resilience

Much of the conversation around lawyer wellbeing has focused on individual resilience; how lawyers can “cope better” with pressure. While personal strategies matter, they are only part of the picture.

Burnout is rarely a failure of resilience. More often, it is a systems issue.

When responsibility accumulates without relief, even the most capable professionals struggle. Decision-making becomes harder. Risk tolerance shifts. Empathy erodes. These outcomes don’t just affect lawyers, they affect clients, firms, and the integrity of legal work itself.

Sustainable practice requires structural solutions, not just individual endurance.

Flexibility as a professional standard

Flexibility in law is sometimes misunderstood as informality or compromise. In reality, true flexibility is highly professional.

It means:

• Having access to the right expertise when demand increases

• Being able to plan for leave, illness, or life events without destabilising a practice

• Protecting continuity of client service during periods of change

• Supporting lawyers to practise at a sustainable pace

Flexible practice models don’t lower standards, they protect them.

Practices that can respond intelligently to fluctuations in workload are better placed to maintain quality, meet ethical obligations, and support their people over the long term.

A changing view of legal careers

Alongside changes in practice structure, the profession is also rethinking what a legal career can look like.

More experienced lawyers are seeking ways to remain engaged in meaningful legal work while reshaping how practice fits into their lives. For some, this means stepping away temporarily. For others, it means practising differently, not less seriously, but more intentionally.

Locum practice is increasingly part of this conversation. Not as a fallback or stopgap, but as a legitimate, professional pathway that allows lawyers to apply their expertise flexibly while maintaining high standards.

This shift benefits not only individual lawyers, but the profession as a whole, by retaining experience, judgement, and institutional knowledge.

Why this matters for the future of the profession

The sustainability of Australian legal practice depends on more than recruitment and retention. It depends on how work is structured, supported, and shared.

Practices that embrace flexibility are better positioned to:

• Respond to growth without overloading their teams

• Protect client relationships during periods of transition

• Retain experienced lawyers who might otherwise leave the profession

• Foster healthier, more resilient practice cultures

Flexibility is not about doing less. It’s about doing legal work well, consistently, and responsibly over the course of a long career.

Where aLocum fits into this picture

aLocum exists to support this evolving model of legal practice.

By connecting law firms and sole practitioners with experienced locum lawyers, aLocum helps practices access reliable, professional support when capacity shifts whether it be due to growth, leave, or unexpected demand.

At the same time, aLocum supports lawyers who want to continue practising law in a flexible, sustainable way, without compromising professional standards or the quality of their work.

In a profession built on trust, judgement, and responsibility, flexibility is no longer optional. It is foundational.