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Hi [USER=17155]@AvniD[/USER]

Recession and Autumn Statement

To understand how this will impact law firms and their clients, I think it is important to understand how this will affect individuals:

• In general, those who are middle-class and earning money in the range of the tax brackets that have changed will be the most affected by the Autumn Statement.
• The wealthiest individuals will be largely unaffected by the Autum Statement. Even though the amount of extra money they now owe the government has increased to a mind-boggling amount, it is still only a tiny fraction of their overall wealth.
• The poorest individuals will be slightly better off due to the supports put in place by the government. These supports are not so substantial as to be likely to fundamentally change their spending habits.
• Those who are renting are much worse off than those who own their house. Rent prices are rapidly increasing and people are likely to be priced out of areas that they live in.

The impact this has on law firms is directly linked to how their clients will be affected:

• The businesses that will likely be most affected are those who have products and services that are nice to have, but not essential (e.g. paid for streaming services, mid-tier retail, mid-tier restaurants). These businesses are likely to require financial help, and restructuring and insolvency advice. Law firm departments that deal with these issues and type of work can expect a busier period. They may also need to lay off staff, suspend pay raises, or suspend hiring to help with cash flow problems which will involve employment teams in law firms.
• Budget products and services are likely to see a bit more consumer activity, this means that businesses may be stocking up on theses products or services. These decisions will largely be taken by management teams and are unlikely to involve law firm expertise, but it is important that law firms are boradly aware of these actions to help advise these businesses in the long term.
• The very highest end products are unlikely to see a great change in consumer activity, so law firms advising on these are unlikely to be doing anything drastically differently.
• With increases in rent and energy, some businesses may attempt to streamline their services. This could involve offloading any under-utlised office spaces and employing more of a hybrid or remote work environment. This will involve real estate teams and employment advice, especially if this changes the terms of any employment contracts.
  • As an aside, I read an article about how Musk's new work policy (i.e. you must work in an office) has been challenged by disabled workers who say the new policies are discriminatory. This may lead to litigation, so litigation teams and dispute resolution teams ought to be prepared for more work. Litigation is quite expensive, however, so for more sensible businesses, they may be even more proactive in staying away from litigation and focusing on broader dispute resolution for contentious issues.
• Although renters are worse off than home-owners, many people will not be able to be in the privileged position of a homeowner as it requiires a lot of cash upfront. Furthermore, some people will have been forced to sell their home due to financial situations, but they will still need a place to live. Therefore, (despite the astronomical costs) people are more likely to be renting. This is an opportunity for real estate lawyers and landlords, especially as there may be situaions where people are unable to rent whole houses. This means more money for landlords and more work for real estate lawyers who may be in a situation where they are letting out rooms in houses of multiple occupancy rather than whole houses/flats.
• Due to planned public spending cuts and historic wage stagnation in the public sector, there is likely to be strike action (as has already been happening). This will give work to firms that specialise in the public sector, and will specifically utilise employment teams. It is also an opportunity for those in the private sector. For example, many NHS workers have moved to agencies where they are paid better and have better benefits than the NHS. Every time there is a worker shortage in the NHS, these agency workers are brought in (at a crippling cost to the NHS) to maintain NHS services. Law firms could be involved in negotiating the contracts for bringing these workers into public entities.
• There could be a potential for more M&A work for lawyers as foreign businesses, such as those in the US, look for opportunitties to purchase companies with a lot of potential for a cheap price. They may find that in the UK, so law firms with expertise in cross-border deals may see more work.

I'm sure there are many other impacts and opportunities for clients/law firms, but these are the main ones I can think about. Thanks for steering me in a direction that helps me think about the importance this has to law firms, it has really helped me to think about the story more critically!

Applications

I have almost finished the application I started at the weekend. I plan to finish that today and then start work on the next one. The grind never stops! My NRF vacation scheme starts on 5th December and ends 16th December. In preparation:

• I am researching the potential seats I will be sitting in (projects, corporate energy, or corporate life sciences). I want to make sure I am up to date on what these entail and what the firm has been doing in these areas.
• I have a Google alert set for the firm so I stay up-to-date a bit more generally.
• I have put together a bag, notebook and pen as well as questions I will ask myself at the end of each day to write up.
• I am researching previous experiences of NRF vacation schemes.
• I am keeping myself interview ready with my booklet and going through the TCLA question bank.