Trainee & Partner

What's it like to work as a trainee, and what does working life consist of when you have progressed to being a partner? Here are some views from the Bristol firm of Burges Salmon.

Through the eyes of a trainee

Sally Hoare, 26, is a second-year trainee at Burges Salmon. She attended the University of Leicester where she completed an English degree.

Sally decided on a career in law after attending work experience at Burges Salmon a number of years ago, as she explains: 'I very much enjoyed the time spent at the firm and decided on that basis to investigate the CPE and LPC route to the training contract. I became a trainee at Burges Salmon and am currently in my sixth seat.'

Sally's work has covered a multitude of areas with a commercial nature. 'Burges Salmon has an unusual six-seat structure which allows considerable flexibility and choice of seats. We do compulsory seats in company commercial, property, litigation and either EPI or tax and trusts. When these have been completed, we are offered an optional seat and then the final seat is a qualification seat. I am currently sitting in corporate finance and have chosen to do a split qualification between corporate finance and banking.'

The workload of a trainee can be varied and every bit as demanding as that of qualified lawyers as Sally illustrates. 'My day-to-day working life is varied and like all lawyers in such departments, work pressure and hours depend on whether you are involved in a deal or not. The average trainee at Burges Salmon works 9am to 6pm but these hours can be considerably longer if your area is very busy. I am looking forward to settling in the corporate finance department as a qualified lawyer.'

Through the eyes of the Partner

Ian Salter, 33, is a Partner of Environmental Regulation. He has been at Burges Salmon since 1990 and has spent three years as a partner.

Ian decided to stay in Bristol after studying at Bristol University. He recalls: 'All of my friends had applied for articles (as it then was) in the City, but I decided that I would explore staying in Bristol and Burges Salmon stood out as the leading firm in the region. It was the only non-City firm that I applied to but I did take their offer. I have been at Burges Salmon ever since.'

Ian qualified into the planning department of the firm after undertaking his six-seat traineeship. 'Until 1996 we undertook planning and environmental work as one discipline (involving other members of the firm in certain areas) but after a three-month spell in Miami with the environmental department of a US firm, which Burges Salmon has very close links with, I returned to change direction in environmental law. We now have a team of five lawyers specialising solely in that discipline.'

Ian describes his workload as different everyday. He outlines a case he has worked on. 'In 1999-2000 we were involved in the re-contractorisation of the nuclear weapons facilities in Aldermarston and Burfield. The value of the transaction was large (about £2.5bn) and for my part involved assisting the client with managing the process of obtaining radioactive substances consents against a tight deadline.'

Ian says he has no idea what the future holds. 'I am very careful not to take anything in the future for granted. Whilst I do engage in a business planning process at the firm, I find it difficult to predict what is going to happen on a monthly basis, let alone the longer term. This is largely because environmental law is developing so quickly. New opportunities and challenges arrive from the strangest and most unexpected places. I have worked in the last two months in Australia and Budapest. Our latest opportunity is an invitation to do some work on waste licensing structures in Kosovo. Having said that I would not have it any other way!'

Sally Hoare and Ian Salter:

Burges Salmon