Mentor Meetings

During my time as a Trainee Solicitor, I have been assigned a mentor. At my firm, the general rule is that the mentor must be at Partner level.

The aim of having a mentor is to have someone to go to when you have any worries and stresses, or if you just fancy a chat with someone that has experience and has been through the same process as you. The meetings are extremely informal and it's just a casual chit chat with someone in the workplace.

Being a Trainee is a very daunting experience and sometimes it can become overwhelming, so it's good to have someone to talk to. For others, it may be that they feel that they can't speak to those that they currently work with, so it's a good opportunity to separate this part of the training process and have someone to confide in.

I always enjoy having the occasional meeting with my mentor, one of which we held recently. We always talk about how I'm getting on and if I've had any problems. Luckily for me, I haven't had any problems so far so I don't really need to talk about much in that respect.

At this meeting we were able to talk about my Supervisor's comments at my mid-seat appraisal and how I found the Professional Skills Course.

I also talked about my worries of not knowing much again when I move on to my second seat, it's strange to think that this is just around the corner, time goes so fast when you're training.

For me, having a mentor keeps me reassured that although the training process can be hard at times, everything will be ok in the end.

Our next meeting will be held when I am at the end of my first seat to see how well I got on in the Corporate and Commercial department. I look forward to reflecting on my experience in this area of law.

Back to School

If any of you reading this post commute to London every day from a long distance, I salute you!

Over the past week I've been attending a course called the Professional Skills Course. For those that don't know this is a course that all Trainee Solicitors must attend and pass before qualification.

The course consists of both core and elective modules.  The core modules include Advocacy and Communication Skills, Client Care and Professional Standards and Finance and Business Skills.

The core modules that I took during the past week were Advocacy and Communication Skills and Finance and Business Skills.

My first three days were the Advocacy and Communication classes, my worst nightmare! How I hate to stand up and speak in front of people.  To my surprise however, the course was actually rather enjoyable and fun. Over the three day period it was our task to practice the skills of interim applications, cross examinations and examinations in chief.  On the last day, the class had to run a full trial where we were also able to play witnesses.  

I really enjoyed this module, it was very interactive and the teacher was enthusiastic.  It was definitely my favourite of the two topics.

The Finance and Business Skills classes were on Thursday, Friday and the next Monday.  This is because on the Monday I had to sit an exam, albeit only an hour and a half, but all exams make me nervous.

On the Thursday and Friday you are given a study manual and various practice questions with the answers included. Once you have finished these classes it is the intention to revise over the weekend for the exam on Monday.

This class focused on topics such as regulated activities, investments and accounts. Unfortunately, as I suspected, I found this topic less enjoyable than advocacy. The days definitely seemed a lot longer! But I am glad that I have got it out of the way now. 

It was great to mix with other Trainee Solicitors, particularly as we all work for a wide selection of law firms, it was interesting to share our experiences with one another

It was also nice to get out of the office and travel somewhere. However I don't think I could ever commute to London. The days are so long and draining, I honestly don't understand how people do it, they deserve a medal. For now, I'll stick to my regional firm!

How am I doing?

The time has come already, my mid-seat appraisal! The last three months have completely flown by, I can't believe we're in March too, where does the time go?

The appraisals are something that Trainee Solicitors are always worried about. We may feel that our work is fine and we're doing ok, but an area of concern could be brought up, which can sometimes feel like a knife to the heart!

As part of the appraisal process, I am required to fill in a form to highlight the skills I have used during my seat and how I've managed to handle things such as client care and case management. My Supervisor also completes an appraisal form to note my good and bad points. It's at this meeting that I also have the opportunity to raise any issues and discuss what I would like to gain more experience of, for example, client contact.

So I was expecting to receive quite a few comments on areas where I could improve, but overall the feedback was really good! My Supervisor said that I was doing well and that he was really pleased with my work. The relief!

There were only two areas of concern, the first being my confidence, which is expected of a new Trainee and second, that I write too many words when writing letters (woops!).  Confidence in my work has always been a problem of mine and hopefully that will come with time, but I'm sure correcting my writing shouldn't be too hard, I just need to stop babbling.

So I'm extremely pleased at the moment, all I need to do now is continue doing what I'm doing, with less words and more belief in myself. But now that's over, it's time to transform into a London commuter for next week and attend the Professional Skills Course.