​Delegation is one of the most important — and trickiest — skills to get right in legal practice. Done well, it helps you manage matters efficiently, build capability in your team, and free yourself up to focus on the work that really needs your attention. Done poorly, it creates delays, confusion, and missed learning opportunities.

Here are a few practical lessons on delegation, drawn from real experience:

1. If you're a junior, don’t delegate without checking first.
Early in your career, it’s all about learning by doing. Unless your supervising lawyer has specifically asked you to, delegating work to someone else isn't the move. It’s important to show that you take responsibility for your tasks and are willing to put in the time to build your technical skills. Some of the best development comes from wrestling with a tough first draft or having the first go at a contract.

2. As you become more senior, delegation becomes a more important part of managing matters — and people.
As your scope of work grows, so does your responsibility to use your time (and your team’s time) well. Delegating becomes less about offloading tasks and more about matching the right job to the right person, based on complexity, urgency, budget and availability. It’s also a way to develop others — giving juniors stretch opportunities just like you had.

3. Clear instructions are key: the why, what, how and when.
Delegation often falls down not because the task is too hard, but because the person receiving it doesn’t have enough context or clarity. Be clear on why the task matters, what you need done, how it should be approached (if there’s a particular way), and when you need it by. If you're the one receiving the work and one of those things isn’t clear, ask.

4. Be ready for the task to evolve and to adapt accordingly.
Delegated work can shift as new information comes in. You might get an answer that leads to more questions or realise you need to take a different approach because something has changed on the matter. Build in some buffer time to deal with this and don’t be afraid to pivot if needed. Delegation isn’t “set and forget” — it’s an ongoing process.

5. Own the outcome and share the credit.
If something goes wrong, take responsibility. If it goes well, give credit where it’s due. Being a good delegator means being accountable, but also generous. Tailor your style to the person you're working with, and wherever possible, give clear, useful feedback — not just on the work, but on how they handled the task overall.

Got tips of your own? We’d love to hear how you approach delegation — share your thoughts below.

And if you’re earlier in your legal career and figuring this all out, feel free to reach out or connect.

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