Legal Support Co-ordinator Review

I had a fantastic time on my placement. My responsibility steadily increased throughout my placement, culminating in visits to client offices, either independently or with a trainee solicitor. I would highly recommend the Gap Year scheme, as you do experience real life in a law firm.

I got to know my team very well, as we were a fairly small department. We chatted a lot and team lunches also helped us bond! I felt as if I was an intrinsic part of the team by the time I left and actually did not want to leave when my placement ended.

My supervisor was always on hand to answer any questions I might have had, and I knew the other members of the team would also be happy to help if I found myself struggling. Regular appraisals gave me the chance to discuss any problems I had encountered during the month in a non-judgmental atmosphere.

Of course, there were days when I was not at all busy and days when I was rushed off my feet from the moment I got in to the minute I left the office to dash for my train! But generally I had work to do every day, and I also knew who to ask if I didn't have any.

Obviously, you are not a qualified solicitor, and therefore cannot give advice or properly work on official documents. That being said, however, I was often asked to do very similar tasks to the trainee when they were busy. That meant I worked on one matter with only the Senior Associate, and also had the opportunity to work with the Partner on another matter. It is a strange contrast going from that work to a task similar to a Legal PA's work, but it is a balance and sometimes you were glad to move to something easier!

I learnt myriad skills, from how to conduct myself in an office to how to write concisely and precisely about complicated points of law. I also learnt time management skills - prioritising jobs and not procrastinating on something just because it's not the most interesting job you've ever done (useful for revision!).

As it is a law firm, people work hard and often have to be at their desks in case a client calls. But otherwise, people you meet in the kitchen are more than happy to have a chat and I never had any hesitation in approaching anyone at their desk. Floor drinks were relatively rare but fun!

Although the induction had its hiccups, in general organisation was very good. I knew I could contact Graduate Recruitment if I had any problems, but in general you were expected to be independent and work with your team, not to rely on someone else organising your time.

We had regular team training sessions in London, often with external speakers, and presentations on current issues were given every week at the team call (mostly by trainees, but I did get involved in this once). Other training sessions were available for you to attend if you were free.

I loved my time at Pinsent Masons and will hopefully keep in touch with the people I have met. Working at Pinsents in the future is a very attractive prospect, as the work I completed was interesting and varied.

Friday drinks were a regular occurence, or you could organise your own! Otherwise, there were Christmas events, trainee seat move events...The Birmingham Trainee Solicitors Society (of which every trainee in Pinsents is automatically a member) also organise lots of events, including the Winter Ball.

Some places were fairly expensive and some more reasonable - you got to know where was cheap and where to avoid! Cost of living was fine, too - lots of (more expensive) sandwich places, or Tesco Express and Sainsbury's Local were also around for cheaper lunches.

Lots of bars and clubs around. Didn't sample many clubs, but really liked some of the bars I visited for various events. Birmingham is buzzing on a Friday night as everyone leaves work, so if you were out you knew there would be a good crowd.

Starfish (our Corporate Responsibility programme) provided many opportunities for us to get involved in, from visiting the local primary schools to a quiz at the local Chinese restaurant for Cure Lukaemia!