The question comes up with every round of internship and associate recruitment, and the answers you hear contradict each other. Some partners find a CV without a photo incomplete; others, often in firms of Anglo-American origin, prefer there to be none. In-house legal departments and notarial offices have their own habits too.
No ethical rule settles the matter. This article reviews what the texts actually say, the customs of the different legal recruiters, then how to choose a photo if you include one and how to stay consistent with your online profile.
What the texts say: nothing requires it
The lawyer’s code of conduct is silent
The national internal rules of the legal profession regulate a lawyer’s communication, their specialisation claims, their areas of practice and their advertising. They say nothing about a photo on a CV. An internship candidate, a trainee lawyer or an associate is therefore free to include one or not.
Employment law protects the candidate
Article L. 1132-1 of the French Labour Code prohibits excluding a candidate from recruitment on grounds that include their physical appearance. The Défenseur des droits (the French rights ombudsman) drew a clear recommendation from this in its 2016 framework decision on physical appearance 🔗: an employer should not require a photo with applications, nor discard a CV that does not include one. Its guide recruiting without discrimination 🔗 takes the same approach for recruiters.
In practice, this means two things:
- a law firm or company cannot, in principle, hold the absence of a photo against you;
- the decision is yours: including a photo is a presentation choice, not an obligation.
French firms and Anglo-American firms: two customs
In the absence of rules, custom guides the choice. It varies mainly with the firm’s culture.
In French firms
Photos remain common on CVs received by French firms, from sole practitioners to medium-sized business law firms. Many partners are used to them, and the absence of a photo does not shock, though it is sometimes noticed. A sober, professional photo will not count against you in this context.
In Anglo-American firms
The Paris offices of firms of British or American origin often follow the practices of their head office. In the United Kingdom and the United States, photos on CVs are rare, precisely to limit the risk of discrimination, and some recruitment departments prefer candidates not to include one. For an application in English or to an international firm, a CV without a photo is therefore the safest choice. The article lawyer’s CV in English for an international firm explains the other format differences.
Online application platforms
When a firm asks you to upload your CV to an online platform, a photo adds nothing: the recruiter often sees a form, and the software extracts the text. It may even disrupt some screening tools if it is embedded in a complex layout.
In-house legal departments and notarial offices
In-house legal departments
Large companies often recruit through their human resources department, with applicant tracking systems and diversity policies. Many of them do not expect a photo, and some remove it from the file before it is passed on to the general counsel. In an SME, on the other hand, the CV often goes straight to the head of the company, and photos are more common. The pre-filled in-house lawyer CV can be used in both versions.
Notarial offices
Recruitment in notarial offices often happens through speculative applications and networking, with a notary who receives CVs directly. Photos are common there, and they can help the notary remember a candidate met at a fair or an open day.
Summary of customs
| Recipient | Most common custom | |---|---| | French firm, any size | photo common, absence accepted | | Anglo-American firm, application in English | no photo | | Large company, HR platform | photo optional, often without | | SME, sent directly to the head of the company | photo common | | Notarial office | photo common |
Choosing and framing a professional photo
If you include a photo, it must serve your application. A few simple rules.
A recent photo that looks like you. The recruiter should recognise you at the interview. A photo several years old or heavily retouched has the opposite effect.
Sober framing. Face and shoulders, looking at the camera, neutral and light background. No cropped holiday photo, no selfie, no cut-out group photo.
Professional clothing. What you would wear to a client meeting. The lawyer’s gown has no place on a CV: it is reserved for court and ceremonies, and it looks out of place for a student or trainee lawyer who has not yet taken the lawyer’s oath.
A modest size. The photo takes up a small space in the header, next to or above your contact details. It must not take the place of useful information; if your CV barely fits on one page, the photo is what should give way. The article one or two pages for a lawyer’s CV helps with these trade-offs.
Decent image quality. A pixelated or overly dark photo shows when printed, and printing is still common in law firms.
Mistakes that get noticed
Some mistakes come up often in the CVs received by firms and notarial offices, and they get noticed more than the absence of a photo.
- The photo-booth ID picture, with its grey background and frozen expression: it is not forbidden, but it gives the whole document an administrative look.
- The overly staged photo: a shelf of bound books in the background, folded arms, a magazine-cover pose. The recruiter is looking for a future colleague, not a brand image.
- A photo that clashes with the rest of the CV: a sober black and white CV with a very colourful photo, or the reverse.
- A file that is too heavy: a high-definition photo bloats the PDF, which may be blocked by an email system or misread by an online upload tool. An image of reasonable size is enough.
For a future notary, this matters all the more because the CV is often printed and kept by the office: the pre-filled notary CV shows a sober presentation suited to this audience.
Photo, LinkedIn and a consistent application
A recruiter who reads your CV will almost always look at your professional profile online. Consistency between the two matters more than the presence of the photo itself.
- Use the same photo, or one in the same style, on your CV and your profile. The recruiter makes the connection immediately.
- Align the information: job titles, dates, institutions. A gap between the CV and the profile creates needless doubt.
- Bear in mind the lawyer’s communication rules: once you are admitted, your online profile is subject to the profession’s communication rules, particularly on specialisation claims. Our article a lawyer’s LinkedIn profile explains what you can write there.
If you are unsure, prepare two versions of your CV, with and without a photo, and choose according to the recipient. The AvocatCV builder lets you add or remove the photo in one click, with square or round framing, without breaking the layout; the exported PDF remains readable by screening tools in both versions.
Frequently asked questions
Can a firm require a photo?
The Défenseur des droits recommends that employers do not require one, given the prohibition of discrimination based on physical appearance. If a job offer asks for one, you may provide it or not; the absence of a photo should not justify a rejection.
Is a black and white photo acceptable?
Yes, if it is of good quality and sober. It also prints better on office printers.
Is a photo needed for a master’s internship?
It is not necessary. For a French firm, a neat photo is well received; for an international firm or a large company, it is better to do without.
Should I change my photo between the internship and the associate position?
It is not compulsory, but a photo taken in the early years of your bachelor’s degree quickly looks dated. Use the move to an associate position as an opportunity to take a new one, more in line with your new role.
Can I use a photo taken on my phone?
Yes, if the framing, lighting and background are carefully chosen. Natural light from the front and a light-coloured wall are often enough for a professional result.