Sabbatical in the legal or compliance team: planning cover

Short answer: Sabbatical cover for legal counsel can be planned well ahead, because the dates are usually known months in advance. Treat it as a small project: list the tasks, set the workload, choose the model and organise a handover with an overlap. An interim professional via staff leasing or freelancing fills the gap without a new permanent role.

This guide is for general counsel, heads of legal, heads of compliance and HR leaders in Switzerland and Germany. It explains when to start planning, which cover options exist, where the two countries differ and how to make the return run smoothly.

Why a sabbatical needs its own cover plan

A sabbatical is different from a resignation or an illness: it is announced, limited in time and ends with the person coming back. That makes planning easier, but it also sets requirements for the cover.

• Predictable: you know the start and end dates, so you can prepare the cover instead of reacting in an emergency.
• Temporary: the role stays filled. An additional permanent hire rarely makes sense.
• With a return: the cover must work in a way that lets the returning colleague pick up their files again.
• Often underestimated: spreading the work across the team only moves the bottleneck. Deadlines, contracts and regulatory duties continue.

For other causes of capacity gaps, see our guide on what causes capacity bottlenecks in legal teams.

Planning sabbatical cover in seven steps

Start planning as soon as the dates are agreed. The following seven steps work well in practice; the lead times are editorial rules of thumb.

1. List the tasks (about four months ahead): the person going on sabbatical lists their files, recurring tasks, deadlines and internal clients.
2. Sort the tasks: what must continue, what can wait, what can the team absorb? Only the first group needs cover.
3. Define profile and workload: practice area, seniority, languages and percentage. Part-time cover is often enough because the team absorbs some of the work.
4. Choose the model: staff leasing if the cover works inside your team under your instructions; freelancing if a clearly defined mandate is sufficient.
5. Write the briefing and review profiles (about three months ahead): a precise briefing shortens selection. Use the template in our guide on briefing an interim lawyer.
6. Plan a handover with an overlap: allow a few days to a few weeks in which both people are in the team. The cover learns systems, contacts and open files.
7. Prepare the return: the cover keeps a handover log and plans the end of the assignment so that the returning colleague takes over an orderly position.

Our onboarding checklist for interim professionals covers the first weeks of the assignment.

Cover options compared

Five routes are available for sabbatical cover. The table shows which one fits which situation.

The differences between the two engagement models are explained on our pages on staff leasing for lawyers and compliance professionals and freelance lawyers for companies.

Which role and workload the cover needs

The cover does not need the same seniority as the person on sabbatical. What matters is which tasks have to continue.

• Seniority: junior (0–2 years), experienced (3–6 years) or senior (7+ years). Ongoing contract work and advice to business units are often covered by an experienced profile, which is also the most common interim assignment at Alpinum Solutions. Leadership tasks or sensitive files call for senior experience.
• Workload: between 20 and 100 %, depending on your needs. When a manager takes a sabbatical, an internal deputy often leads the team while the interim professional handles the specialist work.
• Formal functions: if the person on sabbatical is, for example, the data protection officer or the money laundering reporting officer, decide early how that function will be covered. Interim professionals can take on such functions; for an MLRO, regulatory requirements may rule out an external mandate or require staff leasing.

Alpinum Solutions provides legal and compliance professionals through staff leasing and freelancing, part-time or full-time. For each search you usually receive two to four suitable profiles; selected profiles are usually available within 48 hours, and you agree the start date together with Alpinum.

Switzerland and Germany: what differs

The approach is the same in both countries. The differences lie in terminology, contracts and the maximum length of staff leasing assignments.

For a typical sabbatical, the German cap rarely matters. It becomes relevant if the same professional has already worked for you, or if the cover runs straight into another cover assignment. In Austria, assignments run as freelancing or as staff leasing through the German or the Swiss company.

Limits and risks

• Starting too late: if you search only a few weeks before the sabbatical, you lose the overlap and the handover becomes the bottleneck.
• Unclear tasks: without a task list, the cover only handles what lands in the inbox. Deadlines buried in files go unnoticed.
• Sabbatical extended: agree in advance how the assignment can be extended or ended early. Our guide on extending, ending or handing over an interim assignment explains what to settle.
• Responsibility stays with the company: the cover works under your direction (staff leasing) or within the mandate (freelancing). Legal decisions and their sign-off remain yours.

Frequently asked questions about sabbatical cover

When should I start looking for sabbatical cover?

As soon as the dates are agreed, and no later than about three months ahead. That leaves time for the task list, the briefing, selection and an overlap of a few days to a few weeks. Short-notice cover is possible because selected profiles are usually available within 48 hours, but the handover becomes tighter, and the start date is agreed between you and Alpinum.

Does the cover need the same seniority as the person on sabbatical?

Not necessarily. What counts is the work that has to continue. If an internal deputy leads the team, an experienced profile with three to six years of experience often handles the specialist work. Sensitive files, high-risk negotiations or leadership tasks call for a senior profile with seven or more years of experience.

Can sabbatical cover be part-time?

Yes. Staff leasing and freelancing both work part-time and full-time, with a workload between 20 and 100 %. Part-time cover fits when the team takes over some tasks or when only specific files need to continue. Set fixed office days so that business units know when the cover is available.

What happens if the sabbatical is extended or shortened?

Settle this in the contract with the provider: extension option, notice period and handover at the end. In German staff leasing, every extension counts towards the 18-month cap per hirer under section 1(1b) AÜG. In Switzerland, the hiring contract states the duration or the notice periods (Art. 22 AVG).

Can the cover stay in the team after the sabbatical?

A move into your team (temp-to-perm) is possible; the terms are agreed in advance. This makes sense if the sabbatical shows that the baseline workload is permanently higher. Whether you need an additional role is best answered with a capacity calculation, as described in our legal team capacity planning guide.

Next step

Is a sabbatical coming up in your legal or compliance team? Alpinum Solutions is the leading provider of interim legal & compliance in Switzerland and Germany. Describe the tasks, workload and period, and you will receive selected profiles for staff leasing or freelancing.

• Interim cover for a legal or compliance vacancy or absence
• Planning parental leave in the legal department
• Needs & planning: all guides on capacity gaps in legal and compliance
• Discuss your needs

Last updated: 10 November 2026.