Trainee blog - Kathryn Alexander

Kathryn is one of our trainee bloggers from Brodies LLP. After graduating from Durham University with a degree in German and Spanish, Kathryn returned to her native Edinburgh for the LLB and Diploma. She has completed seats in Commercial Property, Insurance & Risk and the Commercial Services Division (commercial contracts, IP/IT and public procurement). She has now moved into Corporate, where she will qualify as an NQ in August.

Quick-fire Qualification Quiz

Best moment during your traineeship?

Professionally, it would have to be doing my first ever corporate completion meeting solo and actually managing to close the deal without any major hiccups. I was buzzing afterwards! Personally, scoring my first points for the Brodies netball team was a definite highlight. You can call me Kobe.

Any nightmare moments?

Of course! Forgetting to ask the sellers for the garage keys in my first residential property deal was pretty embarrassing, especially when the client rang to ask why she couldn’t get into her new garage. But it’s times like those when you learn the most. I will never forget about garage keys again!

Any big surprises about your traineeship?

I wasn’t expecting to have so much client contact from such an early stage, but within the first few weeks I was emailing and phoning clients. It was daunting at first (I rehearsed a couple of conversations under my breath before actually picking up the phone!), but my confidence quickly grew and now I speak to clients daily. Being thrown in at the deep end is the best way to develop.

Favourite seat?

I have loved different things about each seat. Commercial Property combined pure legal problem solving with learning about the commercial realities of property investment. Moving into Litigation, I got a real buzz from appearing in the sheriff court and soaking up the traditions and history of the Court of Session. The Commercial Services Division (CSD) offered huge variety – one day working on a high-value technology contract; the next, advising a local authority on procurement. Last but not least, Corporate has allowed me to get involved with local and international deals which are shaped by all kinds of economic and political factors. You really need to understand both your client’s business and the market in which it operates.

Top three tips for new trainees?

1. Don’t panic! Everything you see will be new and no one expects you to be an expert on your first day. An early tip someone gave me was to use the ‘20 minute rule’: if you don’t know how to do something, spend 20 minutes thinking about it yourself, then ask if you’re still not sure. You will be astonished how often you manage to answer your own questions if you just give yourself time to think.

2. Say yes to everything. I’ve already blogged on this but take advantage of every opportunity to learn something new, whether it’s a legal task or a networking prospect. It will help you build your CV, but more importantly, it will allow you to work out where your interests lie.

3. Keep an open mind. So many of my friends are qualifying into areas they never would have considered two years ago. Law in practice is so far removed from the academic pursuit, so don’t despair if you’re given a seat in your least favourite practice area. Even if you don’t love it, you will learn a lot regardless. Equally, don’t worry if you don’t get your dream seat – I hadn’t done a corporate seat before I applied for the corporate NQ job.

What’s next?

A two-week holiday in Slovenia and Bosnia before returning to the corporate team as an NQ!