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ONE TRAINEE'S EXPERIENCE BY MATTHEW DIX LLB - NOW AN ASSISTANT SOLICITOR WITH WILKIN CHAPMAN
In August 2000, following the completion of my Legal Practice Course, I was invited to the offices of Wilkin Chapman for an interview for a training contract commencing in September 2002.
24 months later, after spending time travelling and working, I arrived at the Lincoln Office for my first day on the 16th August 2002.
The first week was spent on an induction course allowing me to familiarise myself with the office systems and administrative functions of the firm, this included the accounts and IT systems. I also spent time with each head of department as well as the Practice Director which gave me an insight into each individual department, as well as an overview of the firm as a whole.
My first training seat at the Lincoln office lasted 12 months and was split between Personal Injury and General Litigation. I was able to put into practice all I had learnt at Law School about these areas of law. During this seat I was able to attend court on behalf of clients, who were often advised under the legal aid scheme. I was also lucky enough to gain experience of high-value personal injury work, particularly involving the MOD which included attending conferences with barristers and taking initial instructions from our clients.
My second seat took me to the smaller branch office in Cleethorpes, to work in the Domestic Property Department. Here I gained experience in drafting contracts for sale of residential property and transfer deeds, together with post completion matters, such as registering our clients as new owners of their property.
For my third seat I moved to the Debt Recovery Department at the Grimsby office. I gained experience in both general debt recovery, involving suing people on behalf of clients who were owed money, and enforcing judgments once obtained. I also gained experience of insolvency proceedings, especially bankruptcy matters.
Ultimately I found myself exclusively doing bankruptcy and insolvency work, mostly for local authorities. At the end of my third seat I was offered a full time position as a Assistant Solicitor within the Debt Recovery Department, responsible for bankruptcy and winding-up matters. Towards the end of my training contract I was gradually given more responsibility and a greater degree of freedom to take on and run my own cases.
As an Assistant Solicitor in the firm I have a number of files for which I am solely responsible and there is the reassurance of continued support from the Head of Department, who is always available to assist should I have a question.
Wilkin Chapman is accredited as an Investor in People and can award Continuous Professional Development (CPD) hours for its own internal training. Every department has a number of training sessions each year and trainees are encouraged to attend them all. In this way, I learned about developments in all areas of law, regardless of whether that was my current seat or not.
Throughout my training contract I had regular meetings with the Practice Director to discuss my progress from the firm's perspective but also from my point of view. The discussions we had were very much two way. Another younger Solicitor was also appointed as a "mentor" to help me settle into the firm and to provide help, advice and guidance on all aspects of being a trainee.
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