Property law

The UK property industry is the most sophisticated in the world. Clients expect complex advice from their lawyers and it's not just about buying and selling property. Thanks to low interest rates, property is an attractive investment proposition while shares on the stock exchange continue to perform poorly - meaning that the property industry remains strong in relation to other areas of the economy. Most national/large law firms have large property departments, reflecting the importance of property to the UK economy.

Find LLM programs in Property Law

What you can expect

Property lawyers can be involved in anything from property developments and investment in property, to acting for landlords and tenants. Involvement in specialised areas such as property taxation, planning, environmental, construction and even overseas project management are common to many modern-day commercial property lawyers.

The work is varied and cases can range from a car-parking licence, or a football stadium, to a massive billion-pound new town development that can take years to come to fruition.

Property work can involve long hours. Deadlines are tight and clients are demanding. Salaries for newly qualified solicitors start from around £33,000 in the big firms outside London to in excess of £46,000 in London.