We caught up with Ella, who is currently completing RPC’s Training Contract at their Bristol office. She shared insights into her Law journey, what RPC looks for in your application and how the culture truly sets the firm apart. Keep reading to discover more…
Tell us a little bit about yourself and your background
Hi, I’m Ella. I completed a Law degree at the University of Bristol with a year abroad, which I spent studying in Japan at Kyushu University – this was really exciting! Once I’d graduated, I decided that being a Lawyer wasn’t for me at the time, so I worked in HR at a Law firm. However, working in the firm made me realise that practising Law wasn’t the same as studying the subject. Completing a Law degree is very intense and involves lots of theory, whereas practising Law is very different – it’s a lot more interesting! After that, I wanted to take some time out and I decided to move to Australia to work and travel. When I returned to the UK, I then felt ready to take the next step. I was a Paralegal in Family Law for 3 years in total and quickly after starting that role, I knew for sure that Law was what I wanted to do. I then applied for some training contracts and secured the one at RPC, which was great!
What inspired you to apply to RPC?
The first time I heard about RPC was when one of my friends from my old firm had secured a job here as a paralegal. They would sing their praises and I thought it sounded like a great place to work. I attended a talk at The University of Law, where someone from RPC was on the panel of the event speaking about the firm. As part of the networking session at the event, I spoke to one of the current trainees and I came away thinking it sounded like a great fit for me! We spoke about the culture at RPC, which I came to realise is integral to the firm. I went away and did some research and then decided to take the plunge and apply for the training contract. As well as the culture, the work that RPC do specifically appealed to me. It’s very litigation heavy and at the time I was working in that kind of paralegal role, so I knew already that’s what I wanted to do. It’s also very rare that you get to do all four of your seats in litigation so that was very attractive to me.
Any tips for anyone who’d like to apply for a role at RPC?
RPC like people to be themselves and show their personality. Try and demonstrate in your application that there’s more to you than just your work skills. For instance, when you’re asked for specific examples of your skills, you can use some that are not work based – this should put you in a good position as it’s something RPC look for.
Make sure you have a good answer for why you applied for RPC specifically. Try avoiding saying that you are only applying to RPC, unless that is really true, as they’ll know that’s not usually realistic. You should be demonstrating you’ve applied for firms that either do similar work or are of a similar size. Being able to explain why that’s what you’re looking for in a firm is so important!
When you’re doing research, look at the Legal Directories and see what RPC's strongest practices areas are and who their competitors are - this is something I got asked in the interview and you should know this information! Also, if you know someone at the firm speak to them and don’t be afraid to mention your discussions in the interview if it's relevant. If you don’t know anyone, connect with some people on LinkedIn – I’ve had people connect with me and ask me questions and most people will be receptive to this.
Finally, my number one tip when you’re completing applications is to make sure you look at the list, they’ve included in the job description or advert – what skills they want and any specific values or experience. When you’re drafting an application or doing interview prep, make sure you keep checking the list and use it as a sort of "tick list" to help you think of examples that show what they are looking for in candidates. The more you can demonstrate that you meet all of the criteria in the job description, the better!
What do you find most interesting about the sector?
I’ve done two seats so far; I’ve been in the Professional and Financial Risk team, which involved defending solicitors and financial professionals that are being sued and I'm currently in the Construction team. It is my last day in Construction, and I am then moving to the Medical team.
The thing I found most interesting about solicitor negligence was going through the file and trying to unpick what’s happened – maybe because I’m quite nosey! Also, you’re working on all different types of cases, whether that be for a commercial or family solicitor, so you get a great exposure to lots of different practice areas.
I have really enjoyed my seat in Construction. My favourite part about it is when you first get a claim in, you don’t always understand it immediately as it's very technical and we’re lawyers, not builders! It’s very expert-led so you usually instruct an expert very early on to advise you on the technical aspects of the claim. You often don’t know if the client has been negligent until you have that first meeting with the expert. Once you meet with the expert, it all starts to click and make sense. I really enjoy trying to piece it all together.
What have you learnt on the Training Contract?
There’s been so many things I have learned. Number one is communication. As a trainee, you’re always going to be busy and doing lots of work for different people. So, it’s important that you can communicate with everyone you’re working with. For instance, other members of the team will ask if I can complete something for them, but I may have to go back and say that I haven’t got the capacity today, but I can do it next week. Sometimes they’ll say there’s no rush but other times it can be urgent so communicating effectively is important. It’s easy for trainees to get buried under their work and not communicate – it’s something I learnt early on. One of my supervisors said to me that when you get an email, respond straight away to say that you have received the email and, even if you don’t have capacity to do the task right away, indicate when you expect to be able to complete it. This has helped me manage my workload throughout.
Another thing is resilience, I know it's a bit of a buzzword, but you really do need it. As you regularly move teams when you change seats, you’re having to start from scratch every few months which can be quite daunting. You have to learn a new area of law and how the team works quite quickly and it’s usually a case of just having to get on with it and learn as you go!
What’s the culture like at the firm?
The culture is the best thing about the firm, it’s not just something they say – it’s such a good place to work!
As a trainee you’re given responsibility early on, but you’re never made to feel like you’re in the deep end. All the partners are supportive. We sit in an open plan office, so if you have a question, you can just pop your head round to ask or send a quick message if you're working from home. Everyone across the firm is so nice. It seems that the firm recruit people who embrace the culture so that it continues.
In terms of work-life balance, it’s been great. I work from around 9ish and normally finish by 6pm, which at some firms is unheard of as a trainee. Of course, there are some exceptions to that, and you do work longer hours occasionally, but partners will say to you that they want you to have a life outside of work and they don’t expect your whole life to be work. This is really important to me. Socially, the firm holds lots of events such as monthly drinks in the office, office parties, rounders day and I even attended a BBQ at a partner's house. There are also a lot of social groups you can join; for example, a choir, a running club and a netball club – so lots to be getting involved with! As a trainee it’s a great way to get to know everybody across the firm.
How would you sum up your experience at the Bristol office so far?
It feels like a very close-knit office, but we’re not actually that small anymore - we’ve had lots of recruitment and growth! I’ve tried to get involved in everything so I can to get to know people across the firm and I've been made to feel so welcome. It’s the kind of place where if you see someone in the kitchen you have a quick catchup, and it makes going into the office really enjoyable!
We have a smaller intake of trainees at the Bristol office which means we are all quite close. There are now 7 of us in total - 3 in our second year and 4 in their first year. It's nice to have that support network at the same level as you to ask the silly questions you might not want to ask your supervisor!
We get an interesting and broad range of work in the Bristol office. I think there is a misconception that regional law firms get the "rubbish" work, but I don’t think that is true at RPC. Lots of interesting, complex and sometimes high-profile work is done out of the Bristol office which makes it a really exciting place to work.
Have you faced any challenges in your role?
When we first started most people were working remotely. It was quite hard to get to know people and interact only online, especially as a new trainee when it’s key to make relationships across the firm. I did find that quite tricky, but now we’ve moved into our new office (which is lovely) and everyone has been coming in a lot more which has made such a difference.
I also found that when you move seats and you start from scratch again, it can be tricky. So, you just get comfortable and then it’s time to move on again. However, I have learned to speak to people in the team early on. For example, this time before I moved seats, I had a meeting with my new supervisor and the current trainee and I had lunch together, so this time I have more of an idea what to expect!
Keen to discover more about RPC? View their profile here.