Traded a six-figure salary for backpacking
A popular legal influencer has swapped billables for backpacking, announcing her departure from BigLaw just months after qualifying at a Magic Circle law firm.
Liberty Miles, who has racked up millions of views documenting her life in City law, studied at the University of Exeter, graduating with a first in 2022. She went on to secure a training contract with Freshfields, completing her SQE before starting at the firm in 2023.
During her training contract, Miles shared glimpses of trainee life, from early starts and late finishes to the reality of 12-hour days in the office. As a result, her fan base steadily grew to nearly 150,000 followers and subscribers across Instagram, YouTube and TikTok, who tuned in for her candid take on corporate life.
But Miles, who qualified in 2025 and joined the London office of a US law firm, has shifted her content in recent weeks after announcing her decision to quit earlier this year.
@libbiemiles Part 1
part 2 with more context coming tomorrow
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Explaining her decision, Miles says the job “didn’t feel like what I was supposed to be doing at this point in my life, so I decided to step away”.
In another video, she was frank about the toll life as a lawyer had taken. “The stress of work has consumed me and has tainted my enjoyment for a while now,” she tells her followers. “There’s so much more to life than work but honestly I didn’t feel like it.”
@libbiemiles Part 2
Where followers once saw ‘day in the life of a corporate lawyer’ vlogs, they’re now getting travel updates. Miles has left her London flat behind, packed her life into a backpack and travelled to Latin America.
She describes herself as being “in paradise”, adding that “no part of me would rather be sat at a desk in rainy London”. While travelling, she plans to complete a yoga instructor course and improve her Spanish, using the time to “think, reflect and figure out what I want my future to look like”.
@libbiemiles Do I regret quitting my job in Big Law…
“I have no idea what’s going to come next,” she admits — though she’s confident that “all of the skills I’ve developed and experience I’ve gained are going to be valuable in whatever I choose”.
But Miles has stopped short of closing the door on law altogether. “I don’t think this is the end of my legal career. I just need to figure out what’s next,” she says.