A Day in the Life of a Litigation Trainee

As I approach the halfway mark on the first seat of my Traineeship in Drummond Miller’s Litigation department, I thought it would be a good time to briefly reflect on the range of tasks that I have undertaken on a daily basis and my experience up to present.

The first thing I would say is that two days are never the same in our department. We deal with a wide range of cases, therefore a Trainee Solicitor is never short of work to do within different areas of law that the firm practices in! It is a great way to familiarise yourself with different procedures involved in different work to get an idea of what you may wish to practice in once qualified.

Our department in Glasgow deals with a lot of Clinical Negligence and other Personal Injury claims which are regarded as highly complex areas of law. We are fortunate to have a team of highly experienced Solicitors in the team to guide clients through the legal process in both pre-litigated and litigated claims. These cases also heavily involve the input of skilled witnesses. I have been lucky to have had the opportunity to liaise with a variety of Experts instructed on cases and sit in on consultations where there are discussions on negligence and its subsequent impact on a Pursuer’s injuries.

As a Litigation Trainee, you could perhaps find yourself drafting court documents and lodging these with the Sheriff Courts and Court of Session in the morning and then taking statements from clients and other witnesses in the afternoon. You will find yourself assisting Solicitors with researching tasks or reviewing records and other documents for ongoing cases. Whilst on paper this can seem overwhelming to an aspiring member of the profession, the team never fail to make me feel supported in managing the fast pace environment and high priority deadlines. Further, I really appreciate the firm’s overall client-centred approach and how the Solicitors encourage all Trainees to correspond directly with our clients to understand the importance in communicating effectively and keeping them involved at each stage of their claim.

I have learned so much already in the relatively small time I have been with the firm and have enjoyed working with the close knit team in the Glasgow office and the firm as a whole. I am glad that I will be spending a further 6 months building on the skills and knowledge required to work in Litigation and look forward to broadening my legal experience in the next year of my Traineeship. As I move on to the second quarter of my Traineeship, I would re-iterate the following advice that I have previously been offered to those beginning their Training Contracts or aspiring to work in a law firm in the future:

• Be organised – Litigation (and other areas of legal procedure) are characterised by deadlines and it is important to stay on top of them to focus your mind and effectively assist your team. Outlook’s electronic task function is a great way to keep on top of work.
• Be adaptable – You can be the most organised person in the office but working in a busy legal environment requires reprioritising tasks in line with the above deadlines and business demands.
• Ask questions – As Trainees we are there to learn from the different staff members in the office with the experience to answer our questions, or to refer us the appropriate resource to do so!
• Grasp new opportunities – Your traineeship is a chance to try as much as you can to expand upon your legal experience. CPD and other networking events are a great way to meet other Trainees or practitioners that you will be dealing with in future cases.
• Keep updated – The law moves fast (in most cases), it would be good to set aside some time to keep an eye on legal blogs and publications on case commentary and legislative changes to be best equipped to assist your team.