BEST TRAINER – MEDIUM CITY FIRM
It struck me that people were happy to be at Farrers and excited and energised about the work they were doing
impress. Originally from the west coast of the United States, she read English literature at the University of California, Los Angeles, before completing her law degree at Pepperdine University in Malibu, taking the California bar exam and practising family law there for two years. However, she always felt she would end up in the United Kingdom, having fallen in love with the country while on an Erasmus year at the University of York as part of her undergraduate degree; so she made the move to cross-qualify. “All in, it took me nine years to dual qualify,” she laughs. “But it was worth it.” She was always inclined towards private client work, which put Farrers on her radar straight away: “I knew I wanted somewhere friendly, with a real work/life balance; not just somewhere that simply claimed to have a good work/life balance.” Her first stop was a written application and then the open day. “It sounds really mad, but I had fun!” she recalls. “The people I met were all friendly and gregarious, and I really enjoyed the exercises. I just instantly got a good vibe. I felt I could ask real questions and get intelligent,
meaningful answers. It struck me that people were happy to be at Farrers, and excited and energised about the work they were doing. People stay here – they don’t just bounce around between firms, they put down roots. My final interview was with two partners; it was two-and-a-half hours, but it flew by – it felt like a conversation and like they were trying to get the best out of me. They asked me about my English literature degree, which was right back in 2006, so I was really having to stretch to remember. But it was nice not to be asked, ‘So why do you want to do law?’ It felt a lot more wide ranging and personal.” As training principal, Paul is responsible for trainees from day one – he shares the role with Anthony Turner, with each of them taking alternating years. As an example, Paul took the intake starting September 2014 and will oversee them until they qualify. “It gives them great continuity, having someone overseeing the whole of their training contract,” he explains. Paul is also the point of contact between trainees and departments when it comes to the delicate negotiation of where they will qualify. Farrers’ training contract has six
seats, rather than the usual four. Trainees must spend a seat in each of the firm’s four practice areas: private client, contentious, commercial and property. In most cases they get to choose their fifth seat, while the sixth is in the department into which they intend to qualify. “It’s a time of great uncertainty for trainees,” Paul points out of the months leading up to qualification. “That is not much fun for them.” He thinks it fair to describe his role as a matchmaker – managing expectations between what the firm needs and what trainees want. But he is clear that when push comes to shove, he is on the side of the trainees, considering it his job to help them end up where they want. Qualifying department aside, what trainees tend to want above all is real work that matters; and at Farrers, they are not disappointed. “The firm really focuses on throwing people in at the deep end,” Kate explains. “But we give them a life jacket too.” “It’s not about photocopying or making cups of tea,” Paul agrees. “It’s proper work right from the start. In property we have trainees doing sales contracts and transfers, preparing reports on title, and carrying out
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