A day in the life of a Trainee Solicitor at Pannone LLP

Clare Durkin trainee solicitor, Pannone LLP
University: Newcastle upon Tyne University
Departments to date: Personal injury, commercial litigation and corporate
Degree and class: LLB Hons Law 2(1)

8.30am - I arrive in the office to have my breakfast and cup of tea before the rush of the day starts! I read through my emails and check my list of things I need to do today and in what order (always written the night before as I'm leaving).I'm a second-year trainee doing my final, non-contentious seat in corporate before qualifying into commercial litigation in September. The corporate department is broadly split into two areas - corporate law and commercial law. Within those areas we have a variety of specialisms, for example IP/IT, banking, competition, environment/energy. Although a trainee in a corporate team, I actually get a good mix of corporate and commercial work.

9.15am - I meet with my supervisor to discuss what needs to be done today. I am currently assisting on a group reorganisation for well-known high-street retailers and there are matters that I need to update my supervisor about and vice versa. We agree to meet again later in the morning to discuss other matters relating to the reorganisation.

09.30am - I exchange emails with a commercial manager of the bank involved in the reorganisation in relation to documentation that is required in order to complete. I email my supervisor and the banking team with a summary update of what the current position is.

10.15am - I draft a letter of engagement for a new corporate client who requires advice on restructuring their business due to financial difficulty in the current economic climate. They have appointed administrators so a large part of our job will involve liaising with the administrators and our own insolvency department on the restructuring. This type of restructuring inevitably raises employment issues and so it is likely that we will also liaise with our employment department on some specific, technical issues. As a trainee, you move around but it is a good way to get to know others in different departments within the firm.

11.00am - Once a week, for about 20 minutes, we have a departmental coffee morning. It is a good opportunity to catch up with people and have informal chats with partners and other fee-earners and encourages intra-departmental communication. The coffee and pastries ensure a large turnout!

11.30am - Have a further meeting with my supervisor about drafting various board minutes in relation to the reorganisation. There are currently eight companies within the group so that is a lot of board minutes!

11.50am - A solicitor in my team comes in and asks me to help out with a completion that is due to take place at 12pm. Quickly assist in drafting some last-minute documentation and then meet with the clients, the other party and the other party's solicitors. I go through the disclosure list and bundle with the other party's solicitors and then make numerous trips to and from my office to obtain additional documentation that is being disclosed by the other side via email before completion.

02.30pm - Transaction completed - time for a quick bite to eat before drafting the board minutes. This will take the remainder of today and most of tomorrow due to the complex intra-group structure and the new provisions introduced by the Companies Act 2006.

05.15pm - Early finish tonight as I am attending a networking event with some colleagues from the litigation department at a local bar with some barristers from London that we use from time to time. It is a good opportunity to catch up with the colleagues who I will be working with upon qualification in September. A variety of colleagues will be attending, including partners, and as they are all a very sociable crowd it should be a good event.

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