Profile
Annie Chu on helping lawyers build unique careers
Ambition and flexibility aren’t mutually exclusive
Looking back on her time in law school, Annie Chu can recall exactly one lunchtime session on how to build an alternative legal career. Unfortunately, she happened to be baking croissants in her apartment that day and never quite found out.
So, like many of her peers, Annie began her career in a traditional law firm environment. It was only through various pursuits outside of the law (including as a food writer and fine artist), combined with her ability to spot new trends in the legal industry, that she slowly gained the confidence to seek out a different path. Today, Annie serves as Caravel Law’s director of client and lawyer happiness, where she has the privilege of helping other lawyers shape their own unique legal careers. Caravel’s lawyers partner with business and legal leaders at Canada’s leading companies, working alongside GCs, CEOs and founders as an extension of their teams, offering top-tier, cost-effective counsel.
What does a director of client and lawyer happiness actually do?
Not a week goes by without someone jokingly asking whether my job is to stock the beer fridge and keep the ice cream flavours on rotation.
In reality, I spend my days asking people questions, listening closely to how they are really feeling and then trying to make things better for them. When lawyers and contractors join the firm, I support their onboarding, professional (and technological) development, and manage performance issues and conflicts as they arise. Recognizing patterns through my individual lawyer and client interactions then gives me the insight I need to help shape strategic and business decisions for the firm as a whole.
What is the most rewarding part of your job?
Getting to show the lawyers yearning for change that a non-traditional form of practice is not actually so alternative anymore. At Caravel, we have around 120 lawyers on our team who all come from different backgrounds. Some choose to tackle a few giant transactions a year. Some choose to take on exciting fractional roles with Canada’s largest companies. Some simply have a roster of clients grateful for the same high-quality work as their previous firm, but with more transparent billing and a work model that allows legal services to flex with them.
There is nothing better than getting to see that “ah-ha” moment play out, when the full picture of what their life and their practice could look like clicks into place.
What’s the biggest misconception about your work?
That people come here to do less. It’s not that our lawyers are running away from work—they love the work! What they can no longer stomach is the way it has traditionally been packaged. My job is not to talk people into a smaller version of their career, but to show them that ambition and flexibility were only ever treated as mutually exclusive because no one saw how they could be bundled together.
Our lawyers often share with me that this model has finally made it possible for them to care for their aging parents, travel meaningfully or play in a rock band, without jeopardizing their career.
What advice would you give to a new lawyer at the start of their career?
Think about the partners and senior lawyers at your workplace. If you don’t admire their lives, change your environment. If you can’t do that right away, talk to as many people in the industry as you can. The beginning of your career is the best possible time to try new things and learn from others.
What’s the most important item in your desk drawer?
As a stationery aficionado, I care deeply about the pens and paper I use. At any given moment, I have roughly 200 pens and pencils in my desk drawers, sorted by style, colour, brand and function. I cherish every one of them.
Annie Chu is available to meet with any lawyer who is considering a career shift.
Connect with her today
Caravel Law
Caravel Law has spent 20+ years doing law differently. A full-service business law firm, their lawyers combine Big Law training with practical in-house experience to advise Canada’s leading and fast-growing businesses. With no billable-hour targets, flexible engagements and cutting-edge technology behind them, Caravel’s lawyers can focus on meaningful work while building a practice that fits their lives. We focus on happy clients and happy lawyers.