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Senior attorney skills for your resume and career

Updated January 8, 2025

4 min read

Quoted experts

Jason Cieslik,

Brenda Wakefield

Below we've compiled a list of the most critical senior attorney skills. We ranked the top skills for senior attorneys based on the percentage of resumes they appeared on. For example, 14.3% of senior attorney resumes contained litigation as a skill. Continue reading to find out what skills a senior attorney needs to be successful in the workplace.

15 senior attorney skills for your resume and career

1. Litigation

Here's how senior attorneys use litigation:

Experienced litigation attorney, with emphasis on management of civil and matrimonial litigation, from initial interview through trial or settlement.
Represented matters of general business practice including Corporation/LLC formation, filings, share issuance, stockholder meetings and business litigation.

2. Law Firm

Here's how senior attorneys use law firm:

Administrated the trust for the founder of the law firm, upon his death, and dissolution of the law practice.
Directed audits of law firm bank accounts as well as estate accounts and successfully developed an understanding of audit reports.

3. Legal Advice

Here's how senior attorneys use legal advice:

Provided specific legal advice, and assisted in integrating e-commerce with complementary services existing in this Fortune 500 Company.
Provide legal advice concerning protection of personally identifying information (PII), information security management and FOIA.

4. Juris

Here's how senior attorneys use juris:

Work with Word, Microsoft Outlook and JURIS computer programs
Career note: Attained Juris Doctorate and Mediation Certification during 1997-2000.

5. Legal Research

Here's how senior attorneys use legal research:

Drafted and issued decisions after obtaining/ reviewing relevant medical, education and other evidence and conducting legal research.
Conducted case specific legal research and analysis and prepared all necessary motions.

6. Legal Support

Here's how senior attorneys use legal support:

Provided tactical legal support to Global Information Security teams in security breach reporting, investigation and management and client response.
Provide principal legal support to development of BGE's environmental management program.

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7. Legal Services

Here's how senior attorneys use legal services:

Provided legal services to corporations, international clients from seventeen different countries.
Provided business legal services to various company departments.

8. Intellectual Property

Intellectual properties refer to individuals' intangible or non-physical wealth, which results from their imaginations and intellect.

Here's how senior attorneys use intellectual property:

Managed complex IP litigation, and drafted well-received intellectual property management agreements to comply with international laws.
Managed intellectual property portfolio; obtained and reviewed patent invention disclosures and first level trademark clearances.

9. Legal Issues

Here's how senior attorneys use legal issues:

Managed all e business related legal issues and software licensing agreements for Carrier Corporation.
Trained and coached business unit staff on legal issues, particularly remedies/dispute resolution.

10. EEO

Here's how senior attorneys use eeo:

Conducted training programs for managers and supervisors in labor/employee relations, EEO, contract administration, performance evaluation and employee counseling.
Provide training to senior management on EEO, joint employment, Ethics, Safety Conscious Work Environment.

11. Internal Clients

Here's how senior attorneys use internal clients:

Provided guidance to internal clients on existing contractual rights and obligations, and interpreted regulations, policies and statutes.
Provided general legal representation and advice to internal clients, both at corporate headquarters and to its subsidiaries.

12. Excellent Interpersonal

Here's how senior attorneys use excellent interpersonal:

Leveraged excellent interpersonal skills to earn trust and gain credibility with clients, judges and professionals.

13. Risk Management

Risk management is the method of recognizing, evaluating, and managing risks to an organization's resources and profits. Financial insecurity, regulatory liability, strategic management mistakes, incidents, and natural hazards are just some of the challenges or dangers that could arise. For digitalized businesses, IT security vulnerabilities and data-related threats, as well as risk management techniques to mitigate them, have become top priorities.

Here's how senior attorneys use risk management:

Coordinated with risk management to ensure that appropriate certificates of insurance and safety related approvals had been obtained.
Authored numerous in-depth reports for multinational employers regarding risk management in overseas operations.

14. Regulatory Compliance

Here's how senior attorneys use regulatory compliance:

Displayed problem-solving and evaluation skills when assessing regulatory compliance and interpretation of rulings and case law, wrote judicial action documents.
Collaborated with cross-functional teams to resolve complex problems such as global regulatory compliance, competition, business development.

15. Securities

Here's how senior attorneys use securities:

Coordinated with Department of Banking and Financial Services on state securities violations by illegal insurers.
Defended securities firm against executive's wrongful termination claim.

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What skills help Senior Attorneys find jobs?

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What skills stand out on senior attorney resumes?

Jason Cieslik

Assistant Professor & Academic Advisor of Legal Studies, Illinois State University

Proofread, proofread, proofread! This is one absolute that the pandemic has not changed. The legal profession places a high value on written communication. Grammatical mistakes are an easy way to guarantee that you will not receive an opportunity to interview.
Since many employers are permitting their employees to work from home, the resume should demonstrate the ability to be a self-starter, ability to resolve a problem on their own, and computer literacy. Legal professionals that have training in specific legal technology platforms should make sure they emphasize those skills on their resume. Most ABA Approved Paralegal Programs require their students to take a course in legal technology. These skills should be emphasized, especially if they are going to be expected to work from home. On the flip side, employers should be as specific as possible in their job advertisements as to what qualities and skills they are seeking in a future employee.

When applying for any legal position, the applicant should modify their resume to the job that they are applying for, emphasizing the skills and qualities that the employer is seeking. Obviously, no applicant should stretch the truth, because those "facts" will eventually become exposed. Thus, if an applicant were applying for a position as a litigation paralegal, the applicant should emphasize the discovery experience they obtained during their internship, as opposed to their familiarity with probate law.

What soft skills should all senior attorneys possess?

Brenda Wakefield

Director, Philip C. Cook Low Income Taxpayer Clinic, Mark and Evelyn Trammell Professor & Clinical Professor of Law, Georgia State University

A tax attorney's most important soft skills are a willingness to listen to their client's overall goals and understand how tax planning or a tax dispute fits into the client's overall business or personal financial plan. In addition, tax attorneys should have a strong ability to communicate complex concepts in straightforward terms, as a large part of the tax attorney's job ix making the tax law more accessible to their clients by explaining how clients can achieve their goals while complying with one of the most complicated bodies of law that exist.

What hard/technical skills are most important for senior attorneys?

Brenda Wakefield

Director, Philip C. Cook Low Income Taxpayer Clinic, Mark and Evelyn Trammell Professor & Clinical Professor of Law, Georgia State University

Regarding hard/technical skills, there is a misperception that tax attorneys need to have strong backgrounds in mathematics, accounting, or finance. While these backgrounds can certainly be useful, they are by no means required. Really, the most important technical skills are an ability to read statutory language very closely and carefully; the ability to recognize when the tax code provides a clear answer to a question and when the code might suggest multiple answers; strong research, writing, logic, and problem-solving skills; and keen attention to detail.

What senior attorney skills would you recommend for someone trying to advance their career?

Hanna Royce

Assistant Dean of Career Services, University of New Hampshire Franklin Pierce School of Law

The key to success is to add new and relevant legal experience to their resume. If graduates are not taking on full-time roles, this could mean completing document review or project work on a contract basis.

Do you want to know more?

List of senior attorney skills to add to your resume

The most important skills for a senior attorney resume and required skills for a senior attorney to have include:

Litigation
Law Firm
Legal Advice
Juris
Legal Research
Legal Support
Legal Services
Intellectual Property
Legal Issues
EEO
Internal Clients
Excellent Interpersonal
Risk Management
Regulatory Compliance
Securities
Human Resources

Appeals
Due Diligence
Employment Law
Subpoenas
Legal Opinions
Non-Disclosure Agreements
Social Security
HIPAA
Trial Preparation
Administrative Hearings
Financial Institutions
Business Development
Corporate Governance
ERISA
Federal Courts
Legal Memoranda

Pro Bono
Administrative Law
Legal Guidance
Family Law
Civil Litigation
Real Estate Transactions
Arbitration
Settlement Agreements
Commercial Litigation
Federal Agencies
Confidentiality Agreements
Product Liability
Settlement Negotiations
Service Agreements
Staff Attorneys
Contract Disputes

Updated January 8, 2025

Zippia Team

Editorial Staff

The Zippia Research Team has spent countless hours reviewing resumes, job postings, and government data to determine what goes into getting a job in each phase of life. Professional writers and data scientists comprise the Zippia Research Team.

Updated January 8, 2025

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