Why Trainee Solicitor Tom Langford Chose S&C

During my vacation scheme, I was really impressed by the close-knit atmosphere around the office. Everyone knows everyone else in the office, and lawyers are always willing to help each other out. This atmosphere creates an excellent working environment, and increases the quality of the office’s work, as lawyers are frequently popping into each other’s offices to discuss ideas and strategies, and more senior lawyers are always happy to explain concepts and background to junior lawyers. This is especially important for trainees, as the fact that everyone is always willing to take the time to explain and discuss things massively increases the opportunities to learn and develop.

Another aspect of this is the small deal teams that S&C operates with, often with only one trainee working on a deal. I have even had the opportunity to work directly with partners on matters, which has been an excellent opportunity to gain market knowledge and insight into the client-facing aspects of a solicitor’s job. These small deal teams mean that trainees get given a significant amount of responsibility, often taking on direct client-facing work. This in itself creates enhanced opportunities for development, but it also means that trainees are truly considered ‘part of the team’ and are encouraged to contribute ideas as much as more senior lawyers are. The increased exposure to individual deals has also meant I have gained a significant amount of commercial background and procedural insights, which will always prove valuable. While the increased amount of responsibility sometimes felt daunting at the beginning, I have found that everyone is always willing to take the time to explain or discuss questions or areas of concern, meaning that I have never felt unsupported.

S&C has a real reputation for being the Firm that will always be able to get the deal done, no matter how complex or unprecedented that deal is. This means that the Firm is always working on cutting-edge deals that contain many moving parts and require a lot of thinking outside the box. The opportunity to train at a firm where I would be exposed to this kind of work was a big draw to me, as I felt it would put my creative and critical thinking skills to the test, and constantly challenge my legal and commercial knowledge, leading to great development opportunities.

For example, the cutting-edge deals that the Firm works on almost always contain a significant cross-border element. Since I have started my training contract, I have worked with local counsel in fifteen different jurisdictions, becoming acquainted with the laws of jurisdictions such as Slovenia, Pakistan and the Cayman Islands. No two days are ever the same, and the opportunity to gain such incredibly broad experience at such an early stage of my career truly sets S&C apart.