Dispute resolution
Commercial litigators represent and advise commercial clients when disputes arise from joint venture projects, civil fraud, commercial and banking transactions, corporate governance, financial services regulation and professional negligence. Disputes can be decided through adversarial processes like litigation or arbitration, or parties may reach a negotiated settlement. How do you know which part of the profession you’ll be most suited to? The collaborative nature of solicitors’ work is a popular pull for many aspiring lawyers and dispute resolution associate Sean Cannon is no exception. Sean explains that he was drawn to the idea of being part of a trainee cohort and “being among peers who were in the same position” as he was. Plus, having compared the typical assumptions that come with life as a solicitor and barrister, Sean recognised that, while there seemed to be significant opportunities for collaboration at the Bar, he was keen to “join a large firm where you work with a wide range of people at varying levels of seniority across a number of different teams and practice areas” – cue a training contract at RPC. After completing his training contract, which involved a good mix of contentious and non- contentious work, English graduate Sean qualified as an associate in September 2020.
Although the legal world can occasionally seem somewhat opaque, Sean suggests the core of his job as a commercial disputes lawyer is easy to grasp: “It’s essentially working on disagreements involving a range of commercial parties.” The types of task you might find yourself involved with “are largely driven by what stage the particular disagreement may have reached: you could be working with a client in the early stages to explore the possibility of a claim, or, if things have progressed, assisting with the preparation of the key documents necessary to prepare the case for trial – for example, the statements of case, witness statements or expert reports”. Disclosure can be a big part of a junior dispute resolution associate’s role, and Sean has been heavily involved with a large disclosure exercise during his time in the team. A junior associate may find themselves responsible for “arranging the collection of documents, liaising with external document storage and review platform providers, and undertaking the review of the documents themselves under the supervision and guidance of more senior team members”. “As a junior associate, I think you can add a lot of value to a case through this type of disclosure work. By doing it well – reading the documents, processing the information, keeping track of how the review is progressing – you’ll have a great overview of I enjoyed working towards and around court deadlines and the various stages of litigation. I like having that level of structure in place – the fact you’re always heading towards a defined end point, like a big filing or a hearing date
Heading to court Sean sits in the commercial disputes
department at RPC, having gravitated to this area of law during his training contract: “The firm is quite litigation heavy, so I completed three litigation seats – two in the commercial disputes department and one insurance seat. “I enjoyed working towards and around court deadlines and the various stages of litigation. I like having that level of structure in place – the fact you’re always heading towards a defined end point, like a big filing or a hearing date,” Sean says.
For more firms that work in this practice area, please use the ‘Training contract regional indexes’.
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