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Chambers Student Guide
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Chambers Student Guide 2008The Facts Location: Manchester, Hale A Pat on the Back Is it really possible to balance the drive to be a thriving and profitable law firm while maintaining a reputation as “a very friendly, down-to-earth and sociable” workplace? Well, after chatting to some of Pannone’s trainees we sense this firm has achieved the almost unachievable. “Everyone tries to keep your motivation and morale up, you’re constantly patted on the back,” said one loved-up interviewee. It may sound like a cliché, but the “work hard, play hard” attitude really seems to cut right through the firm with a precision not matched by many. Life as a trainee is certainly no easy ride: “You do have to graft and put the hours in.” It is made clear to trainees that they are expected to work an eight-hour day (excluding their lunch hour). As one positive source concluded: “A lot of firms don’t say what they expect you to work, so you might be stuck doing 12 hour days; here, as a general rule, you stop at eight hours,” and while “everyone has a strong work ethic, there is none of the pretentiousness of hanging around to be seen to be working.” Pannone styles itself as “the complete law firm,” something emphasised by its near “50-50 split” between private client and commercial practice. Trainees cited this as one of its main attractions, one telling us: “There are so many different areas of law covered, and a broad range is exactly what I wanted.” The training scheme offers the standard four six-month seats, and provided there is availability, recruits can decide which seats they’d like. “They are very very accommodating and do their best to make sure you get the seat you want.” Although “they might say, ‘Have you thought about trying this seat,’” they definitely will not “push” you into a department in which you’ve no interest. It is perfectly possible to stay on one or other side of the business, say trainees - “Some of us take completely private client seats, some take completely commercial seats.” All trainee seats are to be found in the main Manchester HQ as the small Hale office is merely an outreach branch for the benefit of private clients living on the south side of the city. Clinical Finishing We’ll look first at the services for individuals. Pannone has exceptionally well-regarded clinical negligence and personal injury departments, each enjoying tier-one status in our parent publication Chambers UK. In the “technically and medically complex” clin neg department (which is purely claimant), regular tasks include drafting instructions to counsel, reviewing experts’ reports and medical records, writing detailed letters to clients summarising the firm’s advice and findings, and disclosure exercises. One lucky trainee told us: “I can hand on my heart say I did very little in way of admin.” The quality of the cases that come to the department is described as “brilliant” due to a “rigorous screening process,” although there are also some “lower value cases kicking about.” The team has handled numerous multimillion-pound claims for children suffering from cerebral palsy as a result of negligent midwifery and one case is now before the European Court of Human Rights. All those who experienced this seat found that, although it is a busy department, they had “no qualms” going to a supervisor and discussing things with them should their workload get too hectic. During their seats in the renowned and ever-growing PI department trainees “do everything,” including drafting pleadings, visiting clients, taking statements and liaising with experts. Being given a lot of responsibility while you’re learning the ropes is both invaluable and daunting at the same time. “They don’t just throw you in and say, ‘Right go deal with this’ - you get the experience [by observing] first and then test it out yourself.” Anyone eager for court time should make a beeline for this department as “you get to go and watch a few hearings… and I have done a couple of things myself. It was slightly nerve-wracking, but you just need to bite the bullet and do it!” There is also a chance you may get to see the work of the specialist travel litigation team when in this department. The lawyers here handle group actions, sometimes involving several hundred claimants in foreign jurisdictions. The firm has just secured Carole Nash Insurance as a lucrative client, and it is expected Pannone will be advising on upwards of 1,500 claims a year. Corporate Exercise If you get your kicks out of commercial law then rest assured there are plenty of seats where you could flex your corporate muscles. The coco team is continually expanding (for example, the number of assistant solicitors rose from nine to 16 in 2007), and its latest turnover figures are expected to be in excess of £5.6m. Within this department the firm offers specialist advice in IP, e-commerce and tax as well as mainstream corporate finance. An impressive client portfolio includes Texaco, Rentokil and Kellogg, and the firm has also secured a spot on the legal panel of Greater Manchester Passenger Transport Executive, which will see it advising on major transport projects such as the Manchester Metrolink £640m expansion. Should you choose a corporate seat, your to-do list will include drafting share purchase agreements and tonnes of research as well as a fair whack of basic admin and co-ordination. If you like the sound of “endless client meetings, conferences with counsel, attending trials, preparing trial bundles and doing case management conferences,” then you might enjoy the commercial litigation department. In this “fast-moving” area of the firm, you are “constantly busy as the work comes flooding in,” but trainees still “don’t feel too pressured” as supervisors “always ask if your workload is manageable.” Spend time in commercial property and you’ll be liaising with everyone from investors and developers to public sector organisations and leading financial institutions on the property lending side. The employment seat offers contentious and non-contentious work, and you can be involved in one or other, or both, depending on “what you express a preference in.” The department also has a “good blend of clients,” ranging from chief executives and directors to major employers like The Bank of England and Edexcel. The regulatory seat (formally known as ‘business crime’) sounds like an exciting one, and here trainees help the head of department with trading standards matters and fraud investigations, as well as liaising with the police and Environment Agency. A Spoon Full of Sugar... Pannone makes it very clear that it is proud to be a Manchester firm and gets straight to the point by insisting it is not interested in candidates who see the firm as a “safety net” application. Indeed Pannone goes a step further and actively states a preference for applicants with some kind of North West connection. If you’re serious about wanting to work here, then a vacation scheme is highly recommended as the firm is aiming to recruit primarily via this route. Our sources spoke enthusiastically about it, saying it was a great way to see “the type of people that work there.” As to who these people are, our sense is that the combination of increasing profits and turnover, together with the growing reputation as a much-loved employer, is making it ever easier for Pannone to recruit top-flight candidates. Amusingly the recruitment process involves a lunch with partners, each candidate being seated with a partner either side of them and the partners then moving round the table. “It’s a novel process,” admitted one trainee, adding: “I don’t really have a problem speaking to complete strangers.” We rather like the idea, but then again we do wonder how easy it is to impress a managing partner while shovelling down forkfuls spaghetti or peas. Let’s hope they choose the menu sympathetically. We were constantly told about the friendly and approachable atmosphere at the firm, be it the “welcome lunches” whenever you join a new department or the “Starbucks vouchers if you win an award.” Other perks include going home early on your birthday, Easter eggs and cakes. “I have to mention the cakes,” said one source; “you get them all the time - birthdays, targets, year end…” If all the sugar isn’t enough to keep you on a high, then maybe sweet words in appraisals will do the trick. These take the form of mid-seat reviews with the training partner, monthly or weekly (depending on department) meetings with supervisors and an end-of-seat appraisal. The meetings are great for requesting new experiences: “If you want to try something else and your partner doesn’t have anything, then they put the word round.” Decamp to the Nou Camp Just because the firm, and indeed the trainee intake, has a higher female-to-male ratio, doesn’t mean everything at Pannone is made of sugar and spice and all things nice. ”The amount of lunchtime training sessions is a downside,” said one otherwise content source. “Rarely a week goes by where you don’t have one lunch interrupted.” Although after checking with the firm, it appears most of these are departmental, as there were only four lunchtime trainee sessions in the last year. Another contentious point is the (“bloomin''”) annual mooting competition, which is compulsory for second years and sees Rodger Pannone make a guest appearance as one of the judges. “Bizarre,” “embarrassing” and “pointless” were some of the words used to describe it, although a minority saw a point to the exercise. Pannone’s social calendar is bursting with good stuff. The trainees will often get together for lunch, birthdays and general nights out: “We can quite often be found in Prohibition” said one recruit. Bar 38 and Relish are also favourites. Among the many events organised by the firm, there are departmental meals and regular drinks set up by the social committee in a different venue each month. The firm has its own football and netball teams, and last year there was a football tour to Barcelona, where the team played against a member firm of the Pannone Law Group (a collection of independent European law firms that work in association with each other). This year the team went off to Milan, and most of the trainees tagged along for the ride. “We go to support and have a few drinks and the firm subsidises the cost of the trip by £50.” And Finally... Pannone is an expanding and successful firm, but it is also keen to stick to its Manchester roots and (Hale aside) remain a single-site operation. In this close-knit organisation, if you are “keen and eager, then they are willing to help you progress.” Yes this is a hard-working place, but be warned: “If you’re overly ambitious and the kind of person who will walk over other people to get to where you want, you won’t fit in.” The qualifying trainees of 2007 obviously took to the firm’s culture like ducks to water, because 14 out of 15 took jobs at the firm. |
