Qualification!
July 2011
Having qualified into the Construction & Engineering Group in January, my first six months as a solicitor have been both exciting and challenging. Looking back on my first day as a law student in UCD, right through to my traineeship in Arthur Cox, this day always seemed too far away to think about. And yet here I am.
Following a four month rotation in the Construction & Engineering Group I knew this was were I wanted to practice law. Because the Group provides a full legal service to all parties involved in the Construction industry, the range of work is incredible, from resolving disputes and litigation to negotiating and drafting contracts. I was also attracted by the size of the Group, with two partners, two senior associates and four associates, it is relatively small by Arthur Cox standards. However, despite its size, the other associates in the Group, range in experience, from six to two years PQE, meaning there is support available on every level.
Since qualification, it has been a busy few months, and I am involved in a wide range of matters for a multitude of clients. From dealing with contentious matters before the Courts to reviewing contracts and advising on discrete Construction law issues, no two days are the same. As is the case across the firm, as a junior associate I am given significant responsibility to manage cases and partake in client facing work and initiatives. Having been qualified for only a few months I was delighted to be asked to speak at a client seminar in April.
I am also a member of the Arthur Cox Procurement Group, delivering procurement and public law advice to Clients. This opportunity to work in an area that’s different but very closely related to Construction, gives me a 360 view of the construction process, from tendering right through to the delivering of the finished project.
Being qualified is very different from being a trainee. Its an opportunity to finally settle in one place, build expertise in one area of law, and develop strong relationships with a team. After a long transition phase with the firm as a trainee, its nice to settle down. Although it could equally be said, now I’ve settled in, the hard work is only beginning!
PPC1 (Blackhall)
There are quite a few rumours about PPC1. Apparently there was a newspaper “expose” a few years ago. However, having just spent 8 months in Blackhall, I can report that the reality is quite different. While there are great fun nights out, there are also lectures, tutorials (both of which, surprisingly, people attend), exams and assignments, all which require hard work.
The first day of PPC1 was quite daunting, but with 34 trainees from Arthur Cox and a lot of familiar faces from my UCD days, I quickly adjusted to the pace of life in Blackhall. From the four different tutorial times, I chose the 11.15 class, which meant I had lectures at 10am and 3.15pm. With only three and a half hours a day, I thought that I would have a lot of time on my hands, but the reality is that Blackhall is quite time consuming, with so many one and two hour gaps that it is pretty hard to actually do anything during the day except go for coffee or nip down to Topshop in the Jervis Centre.
That aside, I managed to derive some benefit from what free time remained by enrolling in the Law Society Finance Diploma course, which was funded by the firm. And yes, it was a struggle attending a 3 hour lecture every Wednesday evening, while the rest of Blackhall was living it up in Ryans but in hindsight it was definitely worth it as I learnt a lot!
We were the first year to partake in the new compulsory skills module, where we got to practice public speaking skills and eventually take part in a mock trial with actors as witnesses. I was only back in work a matter of weeks, when a Judge spoke to me in the district court and I was frantically trying to remember my civil advocacy skills class.
PPC1 was a lot of fun, and there were great events organised by the social reps including big nights out at Halloween and Christmas and of course the Blackhall Ball, which was in the Royal Hospital Kilmainham. There are also a few competitions run for students by the Law Society and myself and another trainee from the firm, Deborah Delahunt, entered the Moot Court competition as a team. From a pool of 56 competitors we managed to progress into the semi final, which was held in Cork Despite a fantastic time spent mooting our hearts out in Cork Courthouse we didn’t get through to Final.
After 8 months of Blackhall, I’ve made it back to the office in one piece and with a nice picture of myself in the April edition of the law society gazette (impressive I know). My advice for anyone yet to begin PPC1, is to try to attend as much lectures as you can, put a bit of effort into your tutorials and a lot of effort into your assignments. Work closely with your tutorial group, and above all, enjoy yourself! Is any of my advice worth listening to? The exam results are out in August, I’ll keep you posted!
