TCLA General Discussion Thread 2022-23

[Sarak]

Hi everyone!

Apologies if this has been addressed in the thread already, but I would really appreciate some advice.

I’m due to start the SQE in September at BPP (Manchester). I’m sponsored by my firm and they offer around £5k to £6k grant. I currently work for the firm as a paralegal, and hoped to continue part time when I start the SQE. Based on what I’ve read about the SQE from people’s experiences re the workload I’m now not sure if it’s viable to work while studying the SQE. I am super appreciative of the grant my firm provides, but unfortunately I rent my home and live far from my parents and am unable to rely on them for financial help.

Does anyone have any experience of working whilst doing their SQE? If so how did you find it? Alternatively, would anyone heavily recommend against working while studying the SQE? Are there any other options? I’ve considered also asking my firm for a loan on top of the grant which I could pay off later, but just wanted to get a feel for whether working + studying works or not.

Thanks ♥️

 

[thoms]

Hi everyone, I intend to start the PGDL in September and I was wondering which provider is better Ulaw or BPP? I haven't secured a TC yet. if anyone can help that would be much appreciated. @Jessica Booker

 

[Jessica Booker]

Hi everyone, I intend to start the PGDL in September and I was wondering which provider is better Ulaw or BPP? I haven't secured a TC yet. if anyone can help that would be much appreciated. @Jessica Booker

I don't think one is better than the other - I'd probably look at how the course and assessments are run (historically there have been differences in this which means one course might be better suited to one person better than the next), location of the courses and work out which one is best for you.

 

[LlamaLaw]

Does anyone have experience with asking to do your firm sponsored SQE/LPC online? Mainly to cut costs with rent/commuting; as struggling to afford this. Thanks

I asked to switch after having started in-person and they were very receptive. In my case it was for personal reasons but you can only ask.

 

[Aspiring.lawyer.to.be]

Hi @Jessica Booker

during my LPC, I was in grief due to a bereavement so I had to resit LPC modules.
I submitted a concession form to university of law and did resit for my LPC exams as a first attempt. I’ve now passed my LPC. Will the SRA ask me for information regarding details of the bereavement etc or does evidence of my transcripts is enough to pass SRA screening tests? I presume the transcripts shows that I had submitted a concession form and it was accepted by Ulaw.

 

[Jessica Booker]

Hi @Jessica Booker

during my LPC, I was in grief due to a bereavement so I had to resit LPC modules.
I submitted a concession form to university of law and did resit for my LPC exams as a first attempt. I’ve now passed my LPC. Will the SRA ask me for information regarding details of the bereavement etc or does evidence of my transcripts is enough to pass SRA screening tests? I presume the transcripts shows that I had submitted a concession form and it was accepted by Ulaw.

No - you will not be asked this by the SRA.

 

[futuretraineesolicitor]

Hello @Jessica Booker Could you please tell me which is better; meeting the complete 500 word word count for an answer and including extra details here and there (these details do make the answer more descriptive but I can absolutely do without them) or writing a 400 word answer which is super tight and concise? What would grad rec appreciate more? The fact that someone has spent hours separating and filtering stuff or the fact that someone has written his/her heart out making full use of the word limit.

 

[Jessica Booker]

Hello @Jessica Booker Could you please tell me which is better; meeting the complete 500 word word count for an answer and including extra details here and there (these details do make the answer more descriptive but I can absolutely do without them) or writing a 400 word answer which is super tight and concise? What would grad rec appreciate more? The fact that someone has spent hours separating and filtering stuff or the fact that someone has written his/her heart out making full use of the word limit.

The latter - conciseness and only providing relevant detail will always win out.

 

[futuretraineesolicitor]

Hello, @Jessica Booker. I was writing BCLP's application and have two questions regarding the question "Imagine you are a trainee at BCLP and you have been working on a task for an associate in the Finance department. The associate is away and a partner in the department urgently wants a summary note of the research to send to a client, and has asked you to send it to them by tomorrow morning. How would you react?"

Q1 - Could you please tell me, who proofreads legal research summaries prepared by trainees? Other trainees or more senior people who are non-lawyers? Thanks.

Q2- I don't understand what the significance of the associate being away really is. My answer is just focused on a step wise approach of how I would communicate with the partner, complete the work, proofread it and send it off. But, in my answer, I don't know how to acknowledge the fact that the associate is away. Could you please tell me, what am I missing?

Thanks.

 

[Jessica Booker]

Hello, @Jessica Booker. I was writing BCLP's application and have two questions regarding the question "Imagine you are a trainee at BCLP and you have been working on a task for an associate in the Finance department. The associate is away and a partner in the department urgently wants a summary note of the research to send to a client, and has asked you to send it to them by tomorrow morning. How would you react?"

Q1 - Could you please tell me, who proofreads legal research summaries prepared by trainees? Other trainees or more senior people who are non-lawyers? Thanks.

Q2- I don't understand what the significance of the associate being away really is. My answer is just focused on a step wise approach of how I would communicate with the partner, complete the work, proofread it and send it off. But, in my answer, I don't know how to acknowledge the fact that the associate is away. Could you please tell me, what am I missing?

Thanks.

1) ultimately you shouldn’t need someone to proof read as such, only comment on your content, structure, layout etc. This should be from someone with knowledge of the topic and/or client - but that could be another trainee, associate, senior associate or partner.

2) It’s highly significant in this question. You can’t rely on the person who you have been working with on this client matter. It’s important to understand how you can be independent and use your proactiveness to step up in this occasion (as you can’t rely on the associate where they are away), whilst balancing that proactiveness with understanding how you would get the necessary support to deliver this work to the highest of standards for both the client and for the partner.

 

[futuretraineesolicitor]

1) ultimately you shouldn’t need someone to proof read as such, only comment on your content, structure, layout etc. This should be from someone with knowledge of the topic and/or client - but that could be another trainee, associate, senior associate or partner.

2) It’s highly significant in this question. You can’t rely on the person who you have been working with on this client matter. It’s important to understand how you can be independent and use your proactiveness to step up in this occasion (as you can’t rely on the associate where they are away), whilst balancing that proactiveness with understanding how you would get the necessary support to deliver this work to the highest of standards for both the client and for the partner.

My apologies but I don't understand this fully. For Q2, aren't we working on two different assignments (one for the associate that we might have been working on for quite some time for Client A and one that has just been given to us by the partner for Client B)? You've mentioned that "You can’t rely on the person who you have been working with on this client matter". But can we not seek assistance from other trainees/associates in the finance department? If we can do that, then what difference does it make that the associate that we work is away since I am sure there may be many other associates/trainees in the finance department.

Thanks.

 

[Jessica Booker]

My apologies but I don't understand this fully. For Q2, aren't we working on two different assignments (one for the associate that we might have been working on for quite some time for Client A and one that has just been given to us by the partner for Client B)? You've mentioned that "You can’t rely on the person who you have been working with on this client matter". But can we not seek assistance from other trainees/associates in the finance department? If we can do that, then what difference does it make that the associate that we work is away since I am sure there may be many other associates/trainees in the finance department.

Thanks.

No - it’s the same matter/topic as far as I am aware. The way I read it, the partner is coming to you directly because the associate is away.

And yes, as mentioned in my response, you would liaise with other people familiar with the topic or client. It’s important because the associate is the one who delegated the work to you in the first place, suggesting they would normally be responsible for finalise the research note.

 

[futuretraineesolicitor]

Hello @Jessica Booker , for the question "In your first 3 months as a trainee at BCLP, who would you seek to build relationships with, and what strategies would you implement to ensure that these relationships are long lasting?" is it okay to leave out the support staff/grad rec/ business individuals in our answer? Not because I don't think their job is not important but I just fail to see how they could contribute to my TC journey as much as others like my supervisors, fellow associates and trainees. Basically, will leaving the support staff/grad rec/ business individuals from our answer give the impression that we don't think they're important enough?

Thanks.

 

[Jessica Booker]

Hello @Jessica Booker , for the question "In your first 3 months as a trainee at BCLP, who would you seek to build relationships with, and what strategies would you implement to ensure that these relationships are long lasting?" is it okay to leave out the support staff/grad rec/ business individuals in our answer? Not because I don't think their job is not important but I just fail to see how they could contribute to my TC journey as much as others like my supervisors, fellow associates and trainees. Basically, will leaving the support staff/grad rec/ business individuals from our answer give the impression that we don't think they're important enough?

Thanks.

Yes - you shouldn’t be picking everyone in the firm as that’s not realistic (the firm has 1,000s of staff). You really need to focus on the most important relationships that you’ll need to focus on for your first three months and that are important for your long term career.

Answers to this question work better when you focus on a smaller selection of people and also put your individuality into the answer (eg not everyone will want to build the same relationships).

 

[futuretraineesolicitor]

Hello @Jessica Booker . For the question "What do you find attractive about Bryan Cave Leighton Paisner's sectors/ departments and which area(s) are you interested in having exposure to in your Training Contract and why?" ,

(1) The question is basically asking forWhat areas we like + why do we like them + how will the training contract structure at BCLP and the firm's competence help us in experiencing these areas fully, right?

(2) I am a bit confused about departments and practice areas. Would it be okay if I just write M&A and PE in my answer? Even though I know these are practice areas but the language of the question is slightly confusing.

Thanks.

 

[Jessica Booker]

Hello @Jessica Booker . For the question "What do you find attractive about Bryan Cave Leighton Paisner's sectors/ departments and which area(s) are you interested in having exposure to in your Training Contract and why?" ,

(1) The question is basically asking forWhat areas we like + why do we like them + how will the training contract structure at BCLP and the firm's competence help us in experiencing these areas fully, right?

(2) I am a bit confused about departments and practice areas. Would it be okay if I just write M&A and PE in my answer? Even though I know these are practice areas but the language of the question is slightly confusing.

Thanks.

1) yes - that is correct

2) BCLP has practice areas and sector specific departments, hence the reference to both. It is fine to pick anything you have a genuine interest.

 

[futuretraineesolicitor]

1) yes - that is correct

2) BCLP has practice areas and sector specific departments, hence the reference to both. It is fine to pick anything you have a genuine interest.

Hello @Jessica Booker just a follow-up question here. Can we talk about M&A and Commercial Contracts in this answer or are these two areas overlapping and I should probably pick another one instead of CC? I am genuinely interested in both these areas and if possible, I would like mentioning both but since I am only going to be referring to these two areas, I am a little confused.

Thanks.

 

[Jessica Booker]

Hello @Jessica Booker just a follow-up question here. Can we talk about M&A and Commercial Contracts in this answer or are these two areas overlapping and I should probably pick another one instead of CC? I am genuinely interested in both these areas and if possible, I would like mentioning both but since I am only going to be referring to these two areas, I am a little confused.

Thanks.

I don’t know the specifics of BCLP so can’t really advise on this. It’s probably worthwhile trying to get your head around how seats are structured at BCLP - for instance I don’t know whether commercial contracts would fall into a particular department or be it’s own entity.

 

[futuretraineesolicitor]

I don’t know the specifics of BCLP so can’t really advise on this. It’s probably worthwhile trying to get your head around how seats are structured at BCLP - for instance I don’t know whether commercial contracts would fall into a particular department or be it’s own entity.

Is it okay to just mention M&A in this question? Or does the question "What do you find attractive about Bryan Cave Leighton Paisner's sectors/ departments and which area(s) are you interested in having exposure to in your Training Contract and why?" require atleast two practice areas? I can see that they've worded the word area in such a way where even one practice area can work but I see people write about atleast 3 areas for this question. What would you suggest?

 

[ds]

is it worth doing the LPC LLM rather than just the LPC? There is no extra cost and i have secured a TC with a firm that will allow me to do the LPC.