Name: Kate Worthington Firm: Stephenson Harwood Location: London University: University of Oxford Undergraduate degree: Law
am regularly going back back to the basic principles of trusts, land and contract law.”
revealing new tax measures as part of the economic response to covid-19. Tax policies are often at the centre of politics and it is relevant to so many different areas of law.” On that front, “the increasing globalisation of tax laws is an interesting trend,” says Kate. “The way that different countries are coming together to tackle the issue of well-known companies that may be taking advantage of tax rules in order to pay as little tax as possible is certainly worth watching closely.”
These insights should be more than enough to pique the interest of someone with the interests and skills to make a rewarding career a tax solicitor. Kate closes with some general advice for those applying for training contracts: “The most important factor when you are applying is to think carefully about the type of firm you want to work for, what broad areas of law might interest you and tailor your application to the particular law firm, rather than cutting and pasting the same application to different employers. It all comes back to having a genuine passion for law and focusing on what and where you want to practise.”
Overall, tax is an area that is highly intellectually stimulating as well as
challenging. “There is no point in trying to do tax unless you are interested in it – keeping up with it all should be enjoyable,” insists Kate. For those who become hooked, it offers an appealing combination of granular minutiae and grand strategy: “You not only need a good grasp of the technical detail of tax to advise clients properly; you also need to be able to fit those technical details into the much bigger picture of the UK and sometimes international tax systems.” You not only need a good grasp of the technical detail of tax to advise clients properly; you also need to be able to fit those technical details into the much bigger picture of the UK and sometimes international tax systems Her advice for budding tax lawyers? “This is going to sound really trite but when I was a student, I didn’t appreciate the extent to which all the areas of law covered in a law degree stay relevant when you are practising – those years at university are not just about passing exams. Especially in tax, for which you need an understanding of a variety of areas – I
159
Sign up to
SOLICITORS
Made with FlippingBook - professional solution for displaying marketing and sales documents online