Profile

I joined Lovells as a trainee in 2002 after studying law at Manchester University and then the LPC at Nottingham law school. I took some time out after law school to travel around the world so starting work was quite a reality check! I chose to join Lovells rather than one of the other large international London firms due to the people I met at my interview who were all very friendly and fun. I was given the impression that by working at Lovells I would be working in a fantastic team atmosphere and that has certainly been true in my career at Lovells so far where I have worked with some very inspiring partners and lawyers in supportive teams.

My training contract gave me a great opportunity to spend time in different practice areas throughout the firm and to learn and develop a variety of skills. From this experience I was able to make an informed decision of where I wanted to qualify. The training offered by Lovells is excellent, covering a broad range of practical and commercial skills and specific legal training. I spent the second seat of my training contract on secondment to the banking team in the Hong Kong office. The secondment was a brilliant opportunity to work overseas in the dynamic and exciting business culture of Hong Kong. Working in a smaller team also allowed me to have more responsibility than I had working as a trainee in the London office and to work on a more diverse range of banking transactions enabling me to gain more confidence and experience.

I qualified as a lawyer in 2004 into the acquisition finance banking team at Lovells. Since qualification, I have advised on a range of transactions including cross-border leveraged buy-outs of well known companies such as Fitness First and Fat Face together with take-privates of listed companies and leveraged recapitalisations advising both the banks and private equity houses.

Last year I went on a client secondment to the leveraged finance deal team at Merrill Lynch. It was a great opportunity for me to learn more about the commercial mechanics of a leveraged finance transaction and to work closely with the bankers to find out what they really want from their lawyers. It also allowed me to develop the client relationship between Merrill and Lovells.

Whilst at Lovells I have been involved in pro bono for the Prince's Trust as a business advisor. This has been very rewarding allowing me to share some of my knowledge and experiences with young people setting up businesses in association with the Prince's Trust. Lovells is very encouraging in asking its lawyers to get involved in pro bono work.

What I enjoy most about working at Lovells is that I work in a young, energetic and fun team which is so important when you are working against a tight timeframe in a competitive situation and sometimes working long hours. I would highly recommend joining Lovells not least for the solid training in a truly broad range of expertise and practice areas but also for the energy, enthusiasm and good humour of the people you will work with at all levels within the firm.