Helen P.
About me
| Helen P. | |
| Economics and Related Studies | |
| Economics and Economic History | |
| Undergraduate | |
| Alcuin | |
| 2004 | |
| United Kingdom |
My employment
| Associate solicitor | |
| Langleys Solicitors LLP | |
| United Kingdom | |
| Large business (250+ employees) | |
| 2007 |
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A day in the life of a Associate solicitor in the United Kingdom
My career goals when I graduated
I had no aspirations to be a lawyer when I left uni. I didn’t know what I wanted, so I got a job to pay the bills. That job happened to be at York Magistrates’ Court and it was working there that inspired me to go to law school.
My career history
Since finishing law school in 2007 I have always worked at Langleys. First as a paralegal, then a trainee, a qualified solicitor and more recently as an associate.
What has helped my career to progress
Determination, a genuine enjoyment for the area of law I work in and hard work.
Courses taken since graduation
Graduate Diploma in Law and Legal Practice Course. Both with the Collegd of Law (now the University of Law).
How my studies have helped my career
My degree was an excellent springboard to the Graduate Diploma in Law. It also gave me the right foundation for developing analytical skills and skills in writing persuasively. My degree also gave me confidence in my own abilities.
My advice to students considering work
Work hard and get as much experience as possible, paid it unpaid. Keep banging on the doors you want to open.
My advice about working in my industry
It’s very competitive and it may take longer than you think to get a training contract. Don’t ignore paralegal or administrative job opportunities as they may lead to a training contract.
Contacting me
Drop me an email, I’m happy to help.
What I do
I am an associate in the insurance law division at Langleys. I am the deputy manager of the Langleys Claims Services team, offering claims handling services to the London and Lloyd’s insurance market.
Skills I use and how I developed them
I started as a paralegal in the motor claims team and moved into employers and public liability defendant litigation before moving across to the claims handling team. I use analytical skills and negotiating skills daily both verbally and in written communication. I developed these skills firstly on the LPC and then “on the job”.
What I like most
Getting the right outcome on a case for the client.
What I like least
There is a reasonable amount of administration and data entry required to provide data to insurers in the format required.
What surprised me most
That defendant insurance litigation was the department for me. At law school I thought I’d go into family law.
Next steps...
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