Hi everyone! My name is Jake. You might know me from the weekly commercial newsletters that TCLA circulates every Wednesday.
Moving ahead, I am going to be taking a more active role in the commercial discussion threads given how much I enjoy keeping up with commercial news.
My background
A little bit about me: I am due to start my TC in August at a UK firm known for its work in international trade, shipping, maritime, and disputes.
I am a career changer, having worked as a recruitment and management consultant in London for a few years before switching to law. I primarily worked in the investment management space with private equity and credit fund clients, focusing particularly on distressed and special situation investment strategies, which also meant I worked closely with investment bankers. In the process of applying for TCs, I also worked as a paralegal for a US firm in London in its Restructuring practice group, which overlapped considerably with my previous career. Happy to discuss this if anyone has any questions.
As an American, I was an international applicant when applying to TCs, so I am also happy to discuss the unique challenges and opportunities other international applicants often face.
My philosophy on developing commercial awareness
Regarding commercial news and building our commercial awareness — I take the view that the commercial world is best understood by staying on top of a few areas that interest you and checking in regularly. Staying engaged is important because commercial developments typically move fast. The landscape is dynamic and often unpredictable. New factors emerge that can change the news narratives, which can make perspectives and opinions quickly outdated unless we try and keep up.
A great example of this how quickly inflation in 2021 went from being "transitory" to "entrenched". If you read a couple of articles in September 2021 about inflation, you might have concluded (as many did) that inflation would ease on its own. However, by November, the evidence began to suggest otherwise and suddenly the threat of inflation became something of a crisis.
Once you immerse yourself in the areas of the commercial world that interest you, you will find that you will start to form opinions on the commercial developments and that previously unfamiliar concepts start to make more sense. This in turn will help you tremendously in interviews, because at the end of the day, sound commercial awareness in an interview context just means being comfortable enough with the landscape to form well-reasoned opinions. Rarely is there a straightforward right or wrong answer to the themes that dominate the headlines. It is more important to demonstrate that you understand the different perspectives at play and their implications for law firms.
Honing your commercial awareness for interviews
Though they go hand in hand, it is one thing to be engaged with commercial developments generally and another to ensure that you can demonstrate your commercial awareness to graduate recruitment and your interviewers.
Remember — law firms are businesses at the end of the day. If you can link back your answer to any question that touches upon commercial awareness to how the commercial development impacts law firms and their clients, you will signal to interviewers that you appreciate this dynamic.
To ensure that I am integrating commercial developments into the perspective of law firms as a business, I have developed a little mantra I use every time I tune into commercial developments:
1. What is the story about generally?
2. What sorts of law firm clients stand to be affected by this?
3. What does this mean for the law firms I am applying to?
You will see me put this mantra to use over the next few weeks.
Please feel free to reach out if you have any questions! Otherwise, I look forward to some spirited commercial news discussions!
Moving ahead, I am going to be taking a more active role in the commercial discussion threads given how much I enjoy keeping up with commercial news.
My background
A little bit about me: I am due to start my TC in August at a UK firm known for its work in international trade, shipping, maritime, and disputes.
I am a career changer, having worked as a recruitment and management consultant in London for a few years before switching to law. I primarily worked in the investment management space with private equity and credit fund clients, focusing particularly on distressed and special situation investment strategies, which also meant I worked closely with investment bankers. In the process of applying for TCs, I also worked as a paralegal for a US firm in London in its Restructuring practice group, which overlapped considerably with my previous career. Happy to discuss this if anyone has any questions.
As an American, I was an international applicant when applying to TCs, so I am also happy to discuss the unique challenges and opportunities other international applicants often face.
My philosophy on developing commercial awareness
Regarding commercial news and building our commercial awareness — I take the view that the commercial world is best understood by staying on top of a few areas that interest you and checking in regularly. Staying engaged is important because commercial developments typically move fast. The landscape is dynamic and often unpredictable. New factors emerge that can change the news narratives, which can make perspectives and opinions quickly outdated unless we try and keep up.
A great example of this how quickly inflation in 2021 went from being "transitory" to "entrenched". If you read a couple of articles in September 2021 about inflation, you might have concluded (as many did) that inflation would ease on its own. However, by November, the evidence began to suggest otherwise and suddenly the threat of inflation became something of a crisis.
Once you immerse yourself in the areas of the commercial world that interest you, you will find that you will start to form opinions on the commercial developments and that previously unfamiliar concepts start to make more sense. This in turn will help you tremendously in interviews, because at the end of the day, sound commercial awareness in an interview context just means being comfortable enough with the landscape to form well-reasoned opinions. Rarely is there a straightforward right or wrong answer to the themes that dominate the headlines. It is more important to demonstrate that you understand the different perspectives at play and their implications for law firms.
Honing your commercial awareness for interviews
Though they go hand in hand, it is one thing to be engaged with commercial developments generally and another to ensure that you can demonstrate your commercial awareness to graduate recruitment and your interviewers.
Remember — law firms are businesses at the end of the day. If you can link back your answer to any question that touches upon commercial awareness to how the commercial development impacts law firms and their clients, you will signal to interviewers that you appreciate this dynamic.
To ensure that I am integrating commercial developments into the perspective of law firms as a business, I have developed a little mantra I use every time I tune into commercial developments:
1. What is the story about generally?
2. What sorts of law firm clients stand to be affected by this?
3. What does this mean for the law firms I am applying to?
You will see me put this mantra to use over the next few weeks.
Please feel free to reach out if you have any questions! Otherwise, I look forward to some spirited commercial news discussions!
