Written By Billy Sexton, Editor, AllAboutLaw.co.uk

Marriages, Wills, Deaths - What's A Seat In Private Client Law Like?

Written By Billy Sexton, Editor, AllAboutLaw.co.uk

Rachel Mock is a trainee solicitor at Girlings and has just completed a seat in Private Client law. Having already undertaken work as a legal secretary in Commercial Property, Rachel details the differences in work between the two departments and provides an insight into her training contract generally…

In just a few words, could you explain the sort of work you do in Private Client law?

Not easily! Private Client is a vast area of work, in just one day you can be taking instructions from a new client to make a will, registering Lasting Powers of Attorney and registering the death of a client who has died and instructed us in their Will to administer their estate.

Why did you choose to take this seat?

I chose this as my first seat because it was such a shift from what I had been doing already. Before starting my training contract I worked for Girlings as Legal Secretary to a partner in the Commercial Property Department. I wanted to ensure that on the first day of my training contract I had the same nerves and excitement as someone new to the firm would have and I wasn’t just walking into a department which I knew inside out. Starting work with the Private Client team ticked all the boxes - a different office and a different type of client with very different needs.

What kind of projects have you been working on so far? Do you tend to take on short-term tasks or work on longer-term projects?

My workload consists of a huge variety of matters. More short-term tasks involve meeting a couple and preparing wills to cater for their upcoming nuptials, (did you know that marriage revokes a will?!). There were also matters which take a little longer, such as preparing Lasting Powers of Attorney for someone, and following the rather involved registration procedure.

Then there were matters which took considerably longer to finalise, most notably administering the estate of a client who had passed away. This involved informing various institutions of the death, arranging payment of the funeral, calculating the amount of Inheritance Tax payable (if any), obtaining a Grant of Probate and collecting in and distributing assets, and much more besides. Despite some matters taking much longer than others, I quickly learnt that there is an art to prioritising workload to ensure that all matters, regardless of what they are, are dealt with in a timely manner.

Does your training put you in direct contact with clients?

In a word, yes!

Private Client is very client facing, and I’ve had contact with clients from the start. From the very first day of my seat I was answering client queries on the telephone and shadowing a partner in client meetings, observing how certain topics were handled from the things we explain to clients, common questions that clients ask and the more complex legal topics which took more explanation.

As I became more familiar with certain topics I then held my own client meetings and by the end of this seat I was handling matters from instruction through to completion with minimal supervision. This involved attending clients both in and away from the office, speaking with existing clients and prospective clients on the telephone and writing to clients by email and post.

How much do you correspond with senior colleagues and clients on a daily basis?

As outlined above, liaising with clients is an integral part of the role of a Private Client solicitor, most days I would speak with clients on the phone and have several client meetings. Due to the amount of time spent in meetings I ensured that I utilised my ‘desk time’ as well as possible. Whilst it’s not always possible to plan your day due to the nature of the work, I found it helpful to take a few minutes each morning to list what I needed to achieve by the close of play so that I was focused on what I needed to do as soon as I was back at my desk! This also meant I didn’t over commit myself. Whilst as a trainee you’re incredibly eager, it’s important not to just say yes to everything that comes your way as you have only so much time in one day!

Girlings invest a lot of time in trainees as they recognise we may well be the future equity partners. My supervisor made it clear from day one that I could always go to her with any query and we frequently reviewed matters that I was working on. I’ve found colleagues at all levels throughout the firm have shown an ongoing interest in my development and offer practical advice based on their experiences!

What sort of responsibilities do you have as a trainee in Private Client law? Are you tackling hands-on project work or undertaking more general research and protocol training?

Aside from working on client matters there are many other aspects to my training contract. I have undertaken more general research, which rather than being planned research topics as on the LPC, tends to be as and when a question pops up on a matter. It’s great being able to research a point further and feed-back my findings to the whole department. As a trainee it’s also a requirement that I keep a training diary of everything I’ve done and I soon saw the benefits of doing so. It allows me to look back and see the progress I’ve made in a week, month or during a seat. I also have the compulsory training I’m required to complete as a trainee. This often involves a day in the City or a residential course somewhere further afield! I’ve found these courses to be good fun (honestly!) - at the start of my training contract I attended a residential course at the University of Reading. I met up with lots of other trainees and we headed into town for dinner and soon found we had plenty in common!

How does this seat compare with others you have completed?

This is the first seat I have completed, so whilst I can’t compare it to another seat, I can compare it to my time in Commercial Property. For me, it felt completely different, from the type of client you are dealing with to the nature of the work. Needless to say discussing the renewal of a lease with a commercial client requires a very different approach to discussing the death of a loved one with their family member.

Private Client work often involves dealing with emotionally heightened situations such as attending the hospital to make a will for someone who is seriously ill. It’s important to not let that person’s situation get in the way of your judgement and to remain professional throughout although it does pull on the heart strings.

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