Bloomsbury May 2013 edition

Welcome to the May editionWe know that exams are fast approaching, but do take some time out from revision to carefully plan what you will do once your course finishes and the summer starts. Whether you’re finishing the LPC or BPTC and leaving the University, finishing the GDL with the intention of returning in September, or about to embark on the second year of the LL.B, the Careers Service can offer you something. Throughout May, we will be offering a series of workshops and employer talks intended to help you begin your hunt for paralegal work, as well as get you thinking about viable short-term and long-term alternative work options if you haven’t yet secured a training contract or pupillage, and even if you have secured a training contract or pupillage, you might still want to attend to find out what you can do beforehand. Remember that the 31st July deadline for many training contract applications is not too far away, so gaining any extra work experience before then is always a plus!

Inside this month’s newsletter, you will find details of some of the Pro Bono projects that will be running over the summer.

For those of you who are interested in working in-house, have a look at the article on this in this newsletter.

Good luck in your exams!!

Candy Kobrak

Editor

page 1 of 8

Careers Centre opening timesMonday 9am - 7pmTuesday 9am – 7pmWednesday 9am – 5.30pmThursday 9am – 7pmFriday 9am – 5pmSaturday 10am – 5pmSunday 10am – 5pm (teaching weekends only)To make an appointment, call in at the office on the ground floor of Ridgmount Building, or call us on 01483 216681

Pro Bono department opening times:Monday - Friday 9.00am - 5.30pmCome to see us in S126 on the 1st floor of the Store Street Building, call us on 0148 3216528, or email us on probono-bloomsbury@lawcol.co.uk

Employability newsletter

Which one of these recently won an award?

a) Steps b) Steps

c) Steppes d) StEPs

e) Steptoe & Son

Answerd) StEPs, The University of Law’s 10-step Student Employability Programme on the Future Lawyers’ Network, was awarded first prize for Best Preparation for Work (Higher Education) by the Association of Graduate Recruiters.

page 2 of 8

Quick Queries:Normally Monday to Friday at either:

12pm -1pm and 3pm – 4pm

or

12pm-1pm and 2pm-3pm

(these times are subject to change, so please check on Elite or with the Careers Service if Quick Queries are running, and for the times that day)

Quick Queries are short 20 minute drop-in sessions for you to speak with a Careers Adviser face-to-face or by telephone. Sign up for these 5 minutes before the start of the session (unless you are a part-time student – in this case you can just sign up on the day) either in person at the desk, or by phone. These are provided on a first-come first-served basis.

New in Pro Bono this month……We are running a sign up for Pro Bono activities taking place throughout the summer within the Legal Advice Centre (LAC):

New telephone advice lines • Family law advice clinic – assist Irwin Mitchell solicitors giving telephone

advice• Personal injury telephone advice – assist Irwin Mitchell solicitors giving

telephone advice • Employment telephone advice sessions – assist volunteer solicitors giv-

ing telephone advice

Face-to-face advice • Legal Advice Clinic– have a go at interviewing a real client and then pre-

paring a written advice, and maybe even discrete pieces of casework!• New! ELF @ UoL – join us in this new venture, giving legal advice to

clients with environmental and planning issues, and then preparing an advice letter

• Triage @ the LAC – practise client care skills by taking a client’s instruc-tions and learn a bit more about everyday law

• New! CABx volunteering – working exclusively with the local CABx to start a new project assisting clients with completing complicated benefit forms by applying the law to the facts, in order to complete the form!

Sign up via Elite, or drop us an email on probono-bloomsbury@law.ac.ukand we will do it for you!

In-house training contractsLaw firms are usually the sole port of call for the majority of students seeking training contracts, but did you know that in-house training contracts are available in various organisations and local government authorities? Competition for these training contracts is fierce, but for those who make it, working in-house at the start of your career is an excellent way to learn your trade in an entirely business environment. The main feature of working in-house is that you only have one client – your employer – and so you deal exclusively with its legal work. Other advantages of working in-house:

• In-house legal departments tend to hire fewer trainees than law firms, so there is frequently more flexibility regarding which seats you do, and you may be able to remain longer in a department that you are more inter-ested in.

• In-house lawyers are not generally required to record their time and achieve billable hour targets.

• Surveys show that, compared to solicitors in law firms, in-house lawyers’ hours are more predictable and there is very seldom any weekend work.

• Training in-house tends to be more on the job, and less formal.• In-house counsel are usually responsible for selecting (and firing!), in-

structing and managing outside legal counsel to provide more in-depth / more specialist advice, and so you may find yourself in the enviable posi-tion of having law firms try to obtain your favour.

• Because there are fewer trainees, you may be able to move quickly through the ranks of a company to corporate management, and then to senior boardroom positions.

page 3 of 8

Check out these links for useful information about working in-house:

www.legal500.com/books/l500/in_house_lawyers

www.inhouselawyer.co.uk/

www.cigroup.org.uk/ContentPage.aspx?menuid=204&pageid=203

www.ultimatelawguide.com/in-house.html

www.legalhub.co.uk/legalhub/app/maind1d1tdqerevjwu.cloudfront.net/resources/2013/In_house_orgs_registered_to_take_trainees_-_summer_2012.pdf

• After qualification, if you wish to join private practice, your experience in-house will be impressive to law firms because you will have worked with the clients that they are seeking to cultivate. You will be able to bring inside knowledge as to how they think and what they require, as well as contacts within those clients. As an in-house trainee, you will be a rarity.

Commerce and IndustryIn-house legal departments within commerce and industry can be very big or very small, usually reflecting the size of the companies they belong to. It is not uncommon to have a department that consists of one solicitor and two paralegals.

If the department is large, you may become a specialist in a particular practice area; if the department is small, the role will be comprehensive and high-profile, and you will most likely get to directly influence commercial decisions and end up handling each legal issue as it arises within the company.

In-house lawyers in this sector are typically involved in the entire commercial rationale, implementation, execution and fallout of a transaction; but in contrast, a trainee at a law firm may only be brought in once all the decisions have been made, or at the dispute stage, meaning that they miss out on a large portion of the deal.

In-house legal departments, even more so than law firms, look for a ‘personal match’ with candidates – it is very important that they believe you will be able to succeed at their specific type of work and in their particular organisation. Apart from a company cultural fit, you will also need to show an excellent knowledge of how their business works, and all recent developments in the wider industry.

Usually, employers recruit trainee solicitors only when the need arises, either from current paralegals or legal secretaries; or they advertise for trainees internally. However, many companies do advertise and recruit annually and externally, and some even offer formal vacation placements to law students.

The Commerce & Industry Group (C&I Group) represents solicitors in industry, and further information on this topic is available from this organisation.

Local Government AuthoritiesWith local government authorities, the specialist areas that you end up practising in would be wholly dependant on the authority’s responsibilities. The general practice areas likely to arise are property law, employment law and contract law. In order to be a successful applicant, it is important to have: • A decent understanding of how local authorities are structured• A genuine desire to make a positive contribution to the community at

large • Good knowledge of local government law• An ability to provide objective and impartial advice in a politically sensi-

tive environment• Evidence that you want a long-term career in local government

If you are interested in obtaining a training contract with a local authority, you need to have undertaken some work experience or shadowing in this environment before making applications. Certain councils have formed partnerships with each other in order to offer ‘shared

page 4 of 8

Allianz Claims Graduate Scheme

If you are a law student who does not wish to pursue a career in law, and you are looking for an alternative career, Allianz has a great opportunity for you to put your legal skills and knowledge to good use in a corporate and dynamic environment, as a Graduate Claims Trainee.

Allianz is one of the largest general insurers in the UK, and part of the Allianz SE Group, one of the leading integrated financial services providers worldwide. The Claims Division of Allianz UK has an annual claims spend in excess of £500m and you could be working at the heart of this to help drive our business forward.

The Claims Graduate Programme is a 2-year technical scheme designed to equip you with the necessary skills and practical hands-on experience to accelerate you through to a senior role within the company. Allianz will fund your study towards the ACII professional qualification with a great network of support. Alongside technical development you will be given the opportunity to get involved in project work, giving you great exposure to senior management, and you will be encouraged to contribute fresh ideas and challenge current processes. The role will give you experience in dealing with wide variety of claims, including liability, motor and property.

Allianz are seeking analytical thinkers capable of making informed and timely decisions, with the ambition to become technical leaders. Negotiation skills are key to the role, and you will develop relationship management skills through interacting with external partners and customers. Your legal studies will from an excellent foundation for the development of technical expertise.

For more information, go to www.allianz.co.uk/home/careers-at-allianz/graduate-careers-recruitment/graduate-schemes/graduate-schemes.html#

training contracts’. This shared training contract scheme, approved by the Law Society, involves a trainee spending agreed periods with each council’s in-house legal department. Recruitment of trainee solicitors at local authorities is fairly ad-hoc and not on the same strict cycles as law firms – it can take place from two years to only a few weeks in advance of starting work. Some local authorities take individuals on as paralegals with no expectation of a training contract, but if they prove themselves, then create a training contract for them. It can be a lot about making your own luck if you are interested in working in this arena, and you will need to exercise discretion when trying to obtain a training contract from within as a paralegal – a soft approach works better than an aggressive push.

The official recruitment website for local government is www.lgjobs.com/occupations . Note that vacancies are not always placed in the categories you think, so you may find trainee solicitor and vacation placement vacancies under ‘Professional’, ‘Training’, ‘Criminal Justice’, or ‘Policy’, as well as the usual ‘Legal’ category. Local authorities also advertise on localgovernmentlawyer.co.uk/ and www.slgov.org.uk/careers/vacancies.

Don’t forget to keep checking the usual legal jobs websites such as Law Gazette, Legal Week, The Lawyer, LawCareers.Net, The Times, The Guardian and The Independent, as well as checking the local authorities’ own websites.

Case study

Constantine Christofi – GDL FT 2012-2013(History degree from University College London)

Training contract with: Reynolds Porter Chamberlain (RPC) 2014

There is no doubt that trying to find a training contract is a challenging task that requires developing specific skills in order to complete applications for firms. As well as this, it will certainly test your ability to stay motivated. There is no secret that competition is fierce, and if you’re going for one of the bigger City firms, you’ll often be competing against over a thousand applicants. There are a few essential tasks, therefore, that you need to get through in order to put yourself in a good position to compete.

At the end of the day law firms want to know (i) Why you want to work for them or why you are passionate about the work that they do (ii) What you have that you can offer them.

Saying why you want to pursue a career in law and why you want to work for a particular law firm is at the heart of the application process. You should eventually have a good idea in your head of these issues, but being able to present them in applications and interviews is again a skill that you need to hone. Do things like looking at practice areas on various legal websites or on the Future Lawyers’ Network in order to get a better understanding of what lawyers in their respective fields do on a day-to-day basis.

Packaging yourself for a law firm is a critical skill in itself that you must find time to develop. The Careers Service is essential in this process. You don’t go through life noting down times when you’ve demonstrated skills such

page 5 of 8

as teamwork or organisation, so going through your experiences with a Careers Adviser in order to extract the detailed evidence for these key skills is essential. Using tools such as the key competencies chart in StEP 2 of theFuture Lawyers’ Network is also useful.

There are a few key tips for interviews, such as researching your prospective firm in detail or knowing your application well. In addition, using feedback forms on ELITE to get a better understanding of an individual firm’s/chamber’s application processes is vital. Finally, having a mock interview with a Careers Adviser is an absolute MUST in this process. Only through practice can you really sharpen the essential skills for interview. The Careers Advisers are able to accurately replicate the pressurised interview environment. Having answers at your fingertips and responding to curveball questions has to be practised.

I can’t stress enough that you really need to stay up-beat throughout the whole process because law is competitive enough as it is, and in the current economic climate it’s harder than ever to secure a training contract. This is a massive cliché coming from a History student, but I found myself often referring to Churchill’s famous quote that success equals the ability to move from one failure to the next with enthusiasm. You’ll need to keep that close to your heart if you’re going to survive this process!

Pro Bono case studyA typical case in the LAC this month was a client facing homelessness after a shady deal with a friend who unlawfully had sublet his council flat. Some 17 years on, and he is facing possession proceedings for rent arrears. Our challenge was trying to establish her right to stay, given that she did not legally have a right to occupy the property, and she did not technically have the permission to present herself in court.

The students had to research technical housing legislation and case law, as well as consider the practical implications of the client not being the tenant in the property.

A very interesting case where equitable considerations were being weighed up against ‘the law’.

page 6 of 8

The University of Law Limited 14 Store Street, London, WC1E 7DE. 0800 289997

1V92

11/0

313

Save the date!

Leavers’ FairFriday 21st June 2013

1-4pmWe will be running our annual Leavers’ Fair on Friday 21st June. The Fair aims to introduce those students who are finishing their courses to a wide range of employers who have short-term opportunities, voluntary work or long-term career options for law students. We are aware that over the next few weeks, the approaching exams are likely to be the sole focus of your attention. However, it is imperative not to lose sight of your next steps and your future career. You will get a great opportunity to talk to a broad variety of practitioners by attending the Fair.

How can you get the most out of attending the Fair and optimise your chance of job success?

1. Research on Elite who will be attending.2. Draft a list of the employers/organisations you are interested in, and

research their websites and the general press to obtain more information about them.

3. Consider the questions you would like to ask each one. Ask sensible questions, and ensure that you frame these questions to demonstrate to them an interest in their work. Enquire about their present situation and future plans, how they train new staff and what you could realistically expect to be doing.

4. Dress smartly. Allow the employers’ representatives to imagine you in their working environment from your appearance.

5. Bring along copies of your CV, so that the representatives can quickly get up to speed with your qualifications and experience.

6. Consider the best times to attend. The Leavers’ Fair runs from 1 to 4pm, and usually opens with a big rush - attendance declines later in the day. You may receive more attention from the recruiters during quieter times than when they are very busy, but don’t leave it too late!

7. Be aware of your body language. Ensure that you look confident and engaged with what you are discussing with the recruiters.

8. Listen! Be attentive to what the recruiters have to say.9. If a company genuinely interests you, do not be afraid to ask the repre-

sentative how you should take your interest forward.

This event is now the largest annual gathering of lawyers and the judiciary, with over 6,000 in 2012 walking 10km after work around some of London’s best-known legal landmarks. Leading from the top of the English hierarchy will be the Lord Chief Justice, the Master of the Rolls, the Presidents of the Law Society and CILex, the Chairman of the Bar Council, and many more. In 2012, the walk raised £540,000 - help us to make 2013 bigger and better!Who does it benefit?Free legal advice agencies in London and the South East, and therefore the often socially excluded and vulnerable client.This is particularly important at this time when the Legal Aid changes are taking effect, and more and more advice agencies cannot afford to subsidise advice on welfare benefits, housing, immigration, employment and family law. Advice agencies and Law Centres face closure, as they are no longer funded to give advice in these areas, despite people’s rights and entitlements continuing to be infringed.

Join us: anjali.kemwal@law.ac.ukSponsor us : http://uk.virginmoneygiving.com/UniversityofLawBloomsbury

page 7 of 8

The University of Law Limited 14 Store Street, London, WC1E 7DE. 0800 289997

1V92

11/0

313

May careers workshops and employer talksPlease go to Elite>My Employability>Bloomsbury Employability Service>Careers events for further details and instructions on how to sign up.

page 8of 8

The University of Law Limited 14 Store Street, London, WC1E 7DE. 0800 289997

1V92

11/0

313

Date Event Type Name of Event Time

Thurs 9 May Talk Robert Walters paralegal talk 6pm

Mon13 May Talk Paralegal panel event 6pm

Tues 14 May Talk What next: Paralegal and other options 12-1pm

Thurs 16 May Talk What next: Paralegal and other options virtual talk 5.30-6.30pm

Sat 18 May Talk What next: Paralegal and other options 2-4pm

Tues 21 May Talk Confidence and networking 1-3pm

Tues 21 May Talk Understanding the legal landscape from a commercial perspective

6-8pm