We recently caught up with Grace about how she secured her training contract at Mishcon de Reya. Grace explains how she built her commercial awareness for the interview, how Bright Network helped her secure the role and some top tips to follow in her footsteps.
Why a role at Mishcon de Reya?
I applied for a vacation scheme at Mishcon de Reya because of their high-profile client base, diverse range of practice areas and invaluable training opportunities. I first met representatives from Mishcon at the Bright Network Future Lawyers Top 100 event in September 2019, and I was made aware of the kind of work I could be involved in at such an early stage in my career. Provided you demonstrate your capabilities, I was reassured that I would be given responsibility during my training contract.
I believe Mishcon offers something that is truly different; it offers practice areas such as family law in the private client department and white-collar crime, alongside your more traditional corporate and dispute resolution seats. It is such a respected firm and there is a very different vibe when you walk through the doors of Africa House – it is not your traditional law firm, housed in a sky-scraper with large glass windows. The décor matches the kind of clients Mishcon attracts.
How did you build your commercial awareness before the interview?
It sounds so basic but read the news every day and take a critical attitude to recent news stories. It is not enough to show that you have watched the news – everyone does that. What you need to do is show that you have genuinely thought deeply about the news story you have decided to talk about. You must link it back to the firm, think about the implications it has for a particular practice area or client, and be ready to answer questions confidently. Commercial awareness is nothing more than being aware of what is going on in the world, tying it back to the business or firm, and thinking critically about what it might mean. Is it a positive development, or one that could cause real challenges for the legal world? Who will be the winners and losers? (Trust me, there are always both!)
Finally, try not to get overwhelmed with this whole question of commercial awareness. It is something firms assess you against, and of course they want you to be aware of what is going on – after all that is what clients will come to lawyers for. However, it is not something you can have a ‘right’ answer to. As long as you have a few business or legal issues or developments up your sleeve and are confidently able to talk about them and their implications, you will be just fine.
How did Bright Network help you secure this role?
Bright Network has helped me secure my training contract with Mishcon de Reya in three important ways:
- They introduced me to Mishcon at the Bright Network Future Lawyers event. They provided me with the opportunity to network with the graduate recruiters and trainees; gain a real insight into their work and get tips from the very people who would be reading my application.
- I had a dilemma I had to confront, and Bright Network really helped me through this. Before I received my Mishcon offer, I had another offer from a different firm, and Bright Network reassured me that it was important to do what is best for me and informed me of my rights and options when it came to accepting the offer. This is the kind of one-to-one support you receive from the team at Bright Network. They take a real interest in your situation and success and support you each step of the way.
- As a Bright Network Campus Champion for King’s College London, Bright Network provided me with the opportunity to develop key transferable skills that I could discuss in my interviews. I organised an event with the other campus ambassadors (allowing me to emphasise my teamwork skills, communication and organisation skills) as well as attending freshers fairs and managing the social media pages for KCL. To thrive in interviews, you have to show that you are more than a student with ambitions to be a lawyer. You need to have experiences or hobbies that make you stand out. Being a Campus Champion helped me do just that.
What top three tips would you give Bright Network members looking to follow in your footsteps
- Very cliché but be yourself. I can honestly say that I have gotten where I am today by being my bubbly, quirky self. Graduate recruiters and interviewers deal with people every day, and they are very good judges of character. They will pick up on the fact you are being someone you are not in an instant. Plus, why would you want to work at a firm who hired you because you put on an act, rather than being your true self?
- An assessment day is an assessment DAY. Everything you do will be assessed, even if you don’t think it will be. On the day of my final interview for Mishcon de Reya, I was sat in reception waiting for my interviewers to come and pick me up. A lady sat by me, and we started having a chat. She ended up being a very important client of Mishcon’s, and she actually ended up telling the partner who she was working with ‘how lovely I was.’ One of the early careers advisors specifically mentioned this when she rang me to offer me the training contract at Mishcon. She told me that (due to COVID-19) the vacation scheme was not taking place, but that I wouldn’t have to have a further assessment day like the other candidates because of the positive impression I made overall.
- Do your research, know the firm and know yourself. You need to know what differentiates the firm from other firms in the market; who their competitors are and why you chose that firm; and most importantly, you need to know why that firm are the best fit for you. Know your strengths and weaknesses and be able to talk about them confidently.
What’s been the toughest interview question you have faced?
The toughest interview question I have faced was during my final interview at a different firm. (Luckily my interview at Mishcon de Reya was very focused on me, my interests and what I could bring to the team – so I have no horror stories to tell regarding Mishcon!)
During my final interview for a direct training contract at another City firm, I was asked a scenario-based question. At the time, I was a third-year law student who had limited work experience in the commercial law environment, and I was asked what I would do, as a trainee, if I had made the fatal error of sending our clients information/submissions to the opposing solicitors. Me being me, the first thing I said was ‘I’d panic!’ and the partner agreed with me. In all honesty, I didn’t know what I would do. I said I would go to my supervisor and tell them of my mistakes, emphasising that communication and seeking help was important to get out of this mess. But the partners were looking for a more practical, legal solution to this problem. He actually ended up telling me that there is etiquette between solicitors where, should this happen, you can call the opposing solicitors and ask them not to open the document, as it would harm solicitor-client confidentiality. At the stage I was at, I did not know about this etiquette, so couldn’t talk about this in my response to this question. I talked about demonstrating professionalism and remaining calm and communicating with my supervisor. But the partners wanted a more technical response to this question.
I want to emphasise that law firms are not looking for the finished product. This is what a training contract is all about. Why would they spend so much money and effort to train you up if you were already perfect? I actually was successful in securing a training contract with this other firm – and I mention this fact to prove that, even though I didn’t know the answer to this question, I was responsive to what the partner said, made sure he knew I was listening and understood and would use this as a learning curve.
As a result of this experience, I would advise students to pay attention to scenario-based questions: think things through as a lawyer, and question whether there are any technical solutions available to you. Secondly, if you don’t know the answer, don’t panic! As mentioned, this is all about learning.
