As romance-starved lawyers wait for cupid to draw back his bow, Catherine Baksi finds help for those who have limited time to meet the love of their life


If you have just spent another Valentine’s day working late at the office, and going home to a microwave meal for one and the only card was from your mum, then don’t despair – you are not alone. We are not all Camillas who have finally snared their Prince Charming, and thankfully help is at hand.


There are roughly 11 million singletons in Britain, wanting love but unable to find it. For many lawyers, the pressures of work sadly leave little or no time for unearthing Mr or Miss Right.


Annalisa Checchi, chairwoman of the London Trainee Solicitors Group (LTSG), says: ‘It can be tough because people are working such long hours, sometimes 16-hour days. It’s especially hard for those who have moved to firms in places where they have had no connections.’

Ed, a corporate solicitor in the north who prefers not to be identified, says: ‘You spend all day working and miss out on the real world. You don’t want to have a relationship with your colleagues or clients.’


Some are happy to look no further than the person on the other side of the photocopier, of course, although certain firms frown on relationships with colleagues. According to one Leeds trainee, people are often wary about mixing business with pleasure, because ‘you can get in a pickle when things go pear-shaped’.


Tessa, a 32-year-old commercial solicitor in London, turned to one of the many dating agencies – rather, introduction agencies – that specialise in matchmaking for professional people.


She explains: ‘I had a fabulous career. I was just where I wanted to be, but now my priorities have changed – I want a husband and children. I realised after spending all my time and energy pursuing a career, there was no time to wait for Mr Right to turn up and I wasn’t going to bump into him. I had to do something to make it happen.


‘It is all very polite and honourable. It’s not like going to a bar where someone asks for your number then never calls. You all have the same agenda – to find a long-term partner – which cuts out a lot of the rubbish.


‘I went on a date with another lawyer and found it absolutely fascinating. He worked in a different area of law to me and it was like going out with someone from another profession.’


Karen Mooney, who set up Sara Eden Introductions, the agency Tessa went to, says using an agency makes sense, although the company does charge a £1,350 fee. She says: ‘It can be hard for professionals to meet people outside work – they work long hours, life is more stressful and less social than it used to be, and often you don’t want to go out with people you work with. If you want a house, you go to an estate agent; if you use an agency, you know you are swimming where the fish are.


‘The sexes are more equal today. Women are financially self-sufficient and don’t need to find a provider. And people generally are more demanding and selective. They will not settle for Mr or Miss OK, but they do want a one-to-one monogamous relationship.’


Ms Mooney boasts a high success rate with lawyers, especially with the men. ‘Women find lawyers very attractive – they think it’s an exciting, sexy job. For female lawyers, though, it can be harder; men can find them intimidating and often they attract weak men who need someone to lean on.’


This is borne out by a survey released last week by upmarket introduction agencies Drawing Down the Moon and Only Lunch. Lawyers came second only to surgeons in the list of male careers considered the most attractive to women. They did not even make it into the top ten of the list reflecting men’s preferences.


The growth in demand for introductions means that those who dread the idea of a one-to-one with a complete stranger have options to find their perfect partner in a group situation. It could be at a singles party in a swanky hotel; an organised dinner party of like-minded individuals; a ‘chemistry’ event that combines salsa with matchmaking and flirting workshops; on the slopes with a singles ski holiday; or at a lock-and-key party, the content of which is best left to the imagination.


For those still too busy for such events, perhaps speed dating is the answer. The phenomenon of spending three minutes trying to make an impression on your prospective date before moving on to the next lonely heart has established itself rapidly, to the extent that somewhat less romantic speed networking events for lawyers are emerging.


In an effort to hurry love in the capital and raise money for charity, the LTSG hosted a Valentine’s speed-dating evening earlier this month in aid of the Tsunami Disaster Relief Fund.


If successful, Ben Rigby, vice-chairman of the Young Solicitors Group (YSG), says lawyers dating each other can be a match made in heaven: ‘It can be hard to keep relationships going. You need someone who understands that dates may be cancelled at the last minute.’


He adds: ‘I know many happy stories where people from the YSG have got engaged and married. I even know of stories of love between solicitors and members of the bar.’ Perhaps this is the backdoor route to fusion of the professions.

However, the anonymous trainee from Leeds prefers to do it the old-fashioned way, ‘meeting people through friends, like we did 100 years ago. Who says lawyers don’t have time to meet people anyway? We have lives at the weekend’.