Fractional Legal Support
for Australian Organisations
Access the expertise of a senior in-house lawyer — without the cost or commitment of a full-time hire. Fractional legal support puts the right counsel in place for exactly as long as you need it.
The smarter way to resource legal expertise.
What is fractional legal support?
Fractional legal support is an arrangement where an experienced, independent lawyer provides legal services to your organisation on a part-time, project-based, or interim basis — rather than as a full-time permanent employee.
The term "fractional" describes the relationship: you engage a fraction of a lawyer's time and expertise, paying only for what you need. This might be a fixed number of days per week, a defined project scope, or an interim arrangement while you recruit a permanent hire.
In practice, fractional legal support encompasses several engagement models — each suited to different needs, timelines and organisational structures.
"Fractional legal support is not a compromise — it's a deliberate choice to access senior expertise flexibly, at a fraction of the cost of a full-time hire."
The three forms of fractional legal support
Contract lawyer engagement
A qualified lawyer engaged for a defined period or project at a fixed day rate. Ideal for workload surges, specialist needs, and defined project work.
Hire a contract lawyer →Legal secondment
A lawyer embedded within your team for a defined period — typically 3–12 months. They attend your meetings, work on your matters, and operate as a member of your in-house team.
Learn about secondments →Fractional General Counsel
A senior lawyer — often with GC or partner-level experience — who acts as your part-time head of legal. Suited to high-growth companies and organisations that need strategic legal leadership without a full-time GC.
View GC-level rates →Who uses fractional legal support?
Fractional models work for any organisation that needs quality legal expertise without permanent overhead.
High-growth startups & scale-ups
Too much legal work for ad-hoc advice but not yet ready to hire a full-time GC. Fractional legal counsel provides strategic guidance and day-to-day support at a fraction of the cost.
In-house teams under pressure
Established legal teams managing workload spikes, parental leave absences, or specialist project work. Fractional support fills gaps without the delay and cost of permanent recruitment.
Law firms managing capacity
Firms that need additional resource for large matters or specific practice areas can engage fractional lawyers without committing to permanent headcount expansion.
Government & public sector
Agencies requiring project-specific legal expertise — regulatory programs, procurement, legislative reform — can engage fractional legal support for exactly the duration needed.
Corporate teams in transition
Organisations between GC appointments, undergoing restructures, or managing M&A programs benefit from fractional GC-level support to maintain continuity.
Mid-market companies
Companies that regularly need senior legal advice but can't justify a full-time in-house team. A fractional arrangement provides access to experienced counsel at a predictable cost.
Fractional support vs. the alternatives
How fractional legal support compares to other ways of accessing legal expertise.
Fractional / contract lawyer
Best value- • Pay only for time used — by the day
- • Senior expertise available immediately
- • No recruitment process or notice periods
- • Scale up or down as needs change
- • Full-time quality at part-time cost
- • Managed through a single platform
Full-time permanent hire
- • Available full-time with deep knowledge
- • 3–6 month recruitment process typical
- • Higher total cost: super, leave, benefits
- • Risk if work volume declines
- • Difficult and costly to exit
- • Long notice periods on both sides
Traditional law firm
- • Wide range of specialist expertise
- • Strong for highly sensitive matters
- • Typically 3–5x higher cost
- • Hourly billing creates unpredictability
- • Work done outside your team
- • No ongoing knowledge transfer
What does fractional legal support cost?
Day rates vary by seniority, practice area and engagement type. All rates on Synera Lex are transparent and fixed — no hidden margins.
Day rates include the platform fee. No recruitment fees or agency percentages. For a full breakdown by practice area, see our rate guide.
How Synera Lex fractional support works
Tell us what you need
Describe the role, required seniority, practice area, engagement type and preferred duration. Post directly or speak with our team.
Review matched candidates
We surface pre-qualified, verified candidates within 48 hours. View full profiles, PQE depth and previous engagement history.
Agree terms and start
Confirm the day rate, start date and duration. The engagement agreement is signed digitally within the platform.
Manage seamlessly
The lawyer logs timesheets weekly. You approve, and invoices are generated automatically. Everything in one place.
Related guides
What is a legal secondment?
A deep dive into how legal secondments work, what they cost, and when to use one over other models.
Read guide →How to hire a contract lawyer
A practical guide to engaging an independent lawyer for your organisation on a contract or project basis.
Read guide →Contract lawyer day rate guide
Transparent rate benchmarks by experience level and practice area, updated for 2025.
Read guide →Ready to explore fractional legal support?
Post a role and receive matched candidates within 48 hours, or speak with our team to discuss the right model for your organisation.