New Threads

Hi guys!

I have an interview coming up at Slaughter and May. One thing I've noticed is that they don't have international offices, and like Travers Smith, they have 'best friend' law firms whom they partner with.

My question is, how does this really work in detail? Do they simply work with the local law firm in a region (let's say, Japan), and work on a client matter 50/50 - and then take 50% of the billing from this client? And what are the advantages/disadvantages of this?

Thanks!

Hi

Has anyone done an AC at HFW for direct TC? I would really appreciate any kind of information or advise.

Thanks,

Hi everyone!

Welcome to the first commercial news update for August.

Happy reading!

Commercial News Update: 7th August 2019

Topics covered this week are:

1. The London Stock Exchange Group’s Proposed Acquisition of Refinitiv (@ELA)
2. Enduring Hong Kong Protests Begin to Add to Economic Uncertainty (@LJ)
3. Saudi Arabia’s Sovereign Wealth Fund Investing in Babylon Health (@Sara Moon)
4. Managing Interest Rates in Uncertain Times (@Jaysen)
5. GlaxoSmithKline and Pfizer Consumer Health Merger (@Sairah)
6. The Falling Pound (@Alice G)

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1. The London Stock Exchange Group’s Proposed Acquisition of Refinitiv @ELA

The Story:

The London Stock Exchange Group (LSEG) confirmed it has agreed on terms to acquire Refinitiv in a US$27 billion all-share transaction.

Refinitiv, which is currently owned by Blackstone and Thomson Reuters, is one of the world’s largest providers of financial markets data and infrastructure.

The deal would make the LSEG – best known for running stock exchanges and clearing derivatives – a leader in market data and analytics, capable of competing with Bloomberg.

Impact on Businesses and Law Firms:

Finance and corporate lawyers would have been involved in structuring the all-share acquisition, which will result in Refinitiv shareholders owning about 37% of the combined group. Voting rights would have also been negotiated – the two current owners of Refinitiv are expected to own around 30% of the total voting right of the LSEG. It remains to be seen whether the proposal is approved by LSEG’s shareholders and competition authorities. Due to the size of the both companies and Refinitiv’s offices in ninety locations around the world, antitrust regulation probes in the EU, UK and US are a strong possibility.

From a strategic perspective, the proposed acquisition exemplifies the way in which financial institutions – like other businesses – seek to adapt to their changing economic landscape. The LSEG has focused on developing the data services branch of its business for several years following the financial crisis: its former executive Mr Rolet spent £4bn on acquiring data and clearing businesses such as Russell Investment in 2014, and last year data services generated 44% of the LSEG’s revenues, while only 22% came from capital markets. The move to acquire Refinitiv can be seen as another manifestation of the LSEG’s efforts to become less dependent on volatile financial markets for its income, relying instead on offering information which market participants (be the index compilers, fund management institution, hedge funds, investment banks, or private investors) will always need.

2. Enduring Hong Kong Protests Begin to Add to Economic Uncertainty @LJ

The Story:

With Hong Kong’s protests now into their third month, the economic implications are becoming increasingly explicit. The demonstrations began in opposition to an extradition bill proposed by Carrie Lam’s government which is thought to put Hong Kong residents under the authority of the mainland Chinese courts, undermining the ‘one country, two systems’ agreement. Excessive force by the Hong Kong police, as well as violence by apparent pro-Beijing men wearing white shirts in Yuen Long, have further provoked demonstrators. There remains “no sign of the movement losing steam”, the FT reports.

Impact on Businesses and Law Firms:

The events in Hong Kong only further add to the more general global economic uncertainty facilitated by the US-China trade war and crisis with Iran. Business activity has reached a decade low in Hong Kong, as professionals in a multitude of sectors began striking this week. This understandably has an impact on potential investment, making transactions and deals less likely. Indeed, many City firms (such as DLA Piper and Clifford Chane) hold invaluable international offices in Hong Kong, with large US firms (such as Mayer Brown and Baker McKenzie) also already noticing potential concerns. Consequently, corporate lawyers will feel this economic impact, with clients less incentivised to hire expensive City law firms, both domestically and internationally.

We should also not forget the severe impact that this can have on China itself. China utilizes Hong Kong through its stock market as an economic gateway to the Western world. While China’s respective economic growth has meant it relies on Hong Kong less, this capacity remains significant, and it will be keen to control this uncertainty from perpetuating further. Many analysts have pointed to China’s legal capability to deploy the PLA, but China will want to avoid this if possible. As Hong Kong’s growth was already under 1% before the protests, the future looks concerning for both its own economy and the many parties connected to it.

3. Saudi Arabia’s Sovereign Wealth Fund Investing in Babylon Health @Sara Moon

The Story:

Last week, it was announced that Saudi Arabia’s sovereign wealth fund, the Public Investment Fund (PIF), is investing $550 million in the health start-up Babylon Health. Babylon Health is a UK based start-up that developed a chatbot that checks the symptoms of patients and provides a remote consultation service with doctors via text and video messaging. Its chatbot is currently being used by the National Health Service. The investment will be used to expand Babylon’s business to the US, Middle East and Asia.

Impact on Businesses and Law Firms:

Saudi Arabia’s investment is part of its ambitious Vision 2030, which is a strategic blueprint that aims to diversify the Saudi’s economy so that it could become less reliant on oil. The Public Investment Fund is the main vehicle through which Vision 2030 is to be realised and Saudi aims to invest a quarter of its assets overseas by next year, and half by 2030. It has been making several tech bets so far, most notably $45bn in SoftBank’s technology fund.

From the British perspective, this investment will help it to create a stronger economic relationship with Saudi Arabia and strengthen the partnership established between the two countries last year. In 2018, the two countries agreed a £65 billion mutual trade and investment deal and promised to share expertise and support in various sectors including education, health care and entertainment. This kind of partnership comes amid Brexit uncertainties, which may force the UK to create new trade relationships with other countries.

Saudi’s Vision 2030 and the UK’s Brexit means that it is highly likely that transactions between the two countries will increase significantly in the coming years. This could come in various forms, including direct investments, partnerships between companies and M&A deals. This means that there will be a flow of deals that law firms could work on, and law firms with a presence in the Middle East or with strong Middle Eastern teams will particularly benefit from this.

Hi all, I have a question regarding where I should apply for a vac scheme. My results from my first year weren't amazing- with a low 2.1 average and a 61% in contract. I am sure I am able to boost my overall result in year 2 by working harder and having now understood how to answer law questions. However, due to my low first year result, I was wondering which firms are less picky with grades and which firms I could have a chance of securing a vac scheme with?

Some of the firms I am interested in are Clifford Chance, Hogan Lovells, Norton Rose Fullbright, Simmons&Simmons, DLA Piper and Baker Mckenzie.

For those that haven't seen my email, we have a new private equity guide!

Find private equity confusing? Want to know the difference between an MBO and an MBI? Unsure why some bonds are called 'junk'? Curious as to what private equity lawyers actually do? You're in luck!

Check out this super detailed guide into private equity by @Ginevra Bizzarri.
https://www.thecorporatelawacademy.com/what-is-private-equity-a-guide-for-future-lawyers/

Hi guys! I notice that the vac scheme thread pretty much centers on practical tips e.g. how to do well, what not to do, what to do etc., but there is no post on specific experience! The vac scheme diaries are great, but they focus more on the legal experience.

I am wondering whether there are any personal stories on failed vac schemes - or how a vac schemer turned an unpleasant experience into a pleasant one. I do have one failed scheme - I will share it with you guys soon

Meanwhile, I heard from my friends that a girl was isolated by the lawyers who share a room with her - but she persisted, befriending other lawyers in other departments. She even went as far to request accompanying a lawyer to a due diligence trip (which no one likes to go generally). In the end, she got a TC offer.

A huge thank you to the amazing members of the forum who scored TCs ultimately at their favourite firms for their amazing advice! I'm quite interested in knowing more from others on the forum though, and I believe it might be useful or encouraging to those who are having a rough time!

Hi everyone,

I feel a bit silly even posing my question, but here it goes.

I have secured a VS and now have been invited to attend an AC with another firm on the same start date- common sense of course tells me to ask the AC firm to arrange another date if possible - however, from the group's experience, what would be the likelihood of this? -especially as its an AC with a smaller sized firm. I would hate to lose a good opportunity.

I've heard that it may be a good thing for employers to know you are having positive responses from other firms, however this did not work in my favour from my second to last interview experience.

Thank you!

Hi guys do you think for the Clifford Chance 600 word question we should pick a couple of things to talk about? I've applied before and got rejected and I wonder if it was because I spoke about everything I did and tried to use the star technique too much instead of giving a broader view of what I do and how this has helped shaped my desire to be a lawyer. Not sure how to approach it this time or what to say that really stands out?

Hi! I am going to apply for A&O's training contract or vacation scheme this year. Considering that I am a graduate student now, what should I apply for? Is there a greater chance of securing one than the other or a vacation scheme is a route to TC?

Hi!

I have just begun applying to attend the lawcareersnet live event in December.

I was wondering if anyone had attended these events in the past and how useful they found them?

I am currently trying to decide whether to attend to London or Bristol event because I study at Bristol but the London event looks like it has much more interesting workshops and I could stay with family.

Has anyone else applied or will be applying?

Thanks in advance!

Hi all, I apologize if this has been posted elsewhere but I couldn't find anything when I searched.

I am going to be a penultimate non-law student and I am becoming more and more confused about what I can apply to this year! For some firms (such as shearman and sterling) I can very clearly only apply to the 'first year schemes', while for others it appears as if I am eligible to apply for the vacation schemes (A and O). To add to the confusion some firms gr are saying different things to what was said when I met them in person (NRF said I could only apply final year, but when I emailed to enquire about first steps I got told I can apply to the vacation scheme???)

So through this rambling my question is, does anyone know of - or is willing to help me make a definitive list - of firms I can apply to? Both 'first year schemes' and vacation schemes? Also, am I right in thinking that I can only apply to Freshfields this year?

Thanks in advance!

Hi everyone,

I was wondering if anyone had any experience/ knowledge about Memery Crystal's first round interview for TCs?

Cheers

Hi All,

I'm pleased to say Jessica Booker, a former graduate recruiter for a variety of magic circle firms, has joined our forum team.

You can use this thread to ask Jess any questions relating to the application and interview process. Jess will also be around to answer questions throughout the forum.

For more details about her background:

Jessica Booker started her career in graduate recruitment for law firms. Over nine years, she worked for three Magic Circle law firms and one regional law firm, focusing on bringing candidates through the recruitment process as well as campus marketing.

In 2014, Jess decided to work as a freelancer setting up her company Star Potential. Since then, she has worked on a variety of legal recruitment and employability projects for a wide range of law firms, universities and other organisations in the sector, like the Law Society.

Hi guys, I am planning on applying for the 2019 Winter Vac Scheme at A&O, however on their website it states "you may only make one application for either a Vacation Scheme or a Training Contract every 12 months.".

As I applied for the 2019 Summer Vacation scheme in the application window that closed this January, I was wondering if this made me ineligible to apply for the winter vacation scheme or if it is ok seeing as they are in different recruiting years.

Thanks for any help with this.

Hi All,

I'm very grateful to everyone who participates in our forum, whether it's new members asking questions, longstanding members supporting the community, or future trainees sharing their own experiences. TCLA wouldn't be here without you guys.

With that in mind, I've been looking for a new system to reward members for regular participation and helpful contributions to the forum. We used to do this manually with our trophy system, however as the forum has grown, it has become too difficult to update trophies for individual members on a daily basis.

That's why I'm pleased to introduce TCLA Credits.

How does it work?

You may have already noticed a new tab on your navigation bar and next to your avatar displaying how many credits you have. From today, you will receive credits based on a very large variety of forum activities including:

• Creating a post
• Creating a thread
• Receiving post ratings and rating others
• Having your profile viewed by others
• Your birthday!
• Sending private messages

And much more!

There are also many activities I may add in the future, such as awarding credits through a lottery system.

What are the rewards?

The rewards will including everything from new username styling and thread highlights to free application reviews, subscriptions to TCLA Premium and Amazon gift cards. We will regularly look to add new rewards.

I'm not going to reveal the credits required for each reward just yet because I want to assess how credits are awarded first. Once I do, I'll update this section, but note, the rewards will apply retroactively - so you can start accumulating credits now.

What's going to happen to the trophy system?

The trophy system will continue to run alongside the credit system, but its purpose is to now recognise member milestones (such as your 50th post), rather than being tied to this reward system. You can still review our notable members here. Fun fact: About half of those members have now secured training contracts!

At the moment, I'm looking at ways to tie in the two systems, so members with a particular number of trophy points will receive credits.

If anything is unclear or if you have any questions, let me know!

Hi guys,

Forgive me if this sounds pre-emptive, but with the deadline for most applications tomorrow, I was curious when most firms welcome applications again for 2022?

Couldn’t find much with a simple google so thought I’d ask those with some experience!

Hi,

I am currently going into my second year at the University of Birmingham of the LLB for Graduates program (2 years instead of 3 years to get a law degree), as I already have an undergraduate degree. I'm also an international student from Canada looking to start my career as a solicitor in the UK.

I have previously applied to vacation schemes in 2018, and with no luck did not even get to the interview stage. After many meetings with Career advisors and peers, I managed to secure a work placement scheme through UOB with Pinsent Masons in June 2019.

As I'm a penultimate student, I am currently applying for Training Contracts for 2021 positions. I was wondering if I should even bother applying for Vacation schemes for 2020. I've received advice to apply straight away to the TC but I want to be proactive and keep my options open. Additionally, I will complete the LPC in 2020-2021 and hoping I can secure a TC for sponsorship.

Any tips/suggestions for me would be highly appreciated!!

Thanks!

So I have an upcoming Macfarlanes TC assessment day - I've been able to find a lot of information for what is included in the vacation scheme AC but not much for the TC AC. From what I can see, the main difference is that the TC includes a group presentation - does anyone have any experience with this/tips for this?

Thanks in advance!

Hi all,

I hope you're all well!

I was wondering whether anyone had any tips/pointers/guidance on case study exercises and in-tray exercises, please?

The only guidance I have from the firm is:

Written Exercise

• 45m to prepare two pieces of writing.
• Past things have included memos, letters to clients, etc.

Intray Exercise

• 30m to read documents and the answer questions on it in the interview.

Any help is appreciated!

Thanks

Hi All,

As we're back to the training contract cycle, by way of reminder - you can book mock interviews with future trainees and/or myself over here: https://www.thecorporatelawacademy.com/mock-interview/.

The future trainees are all either heading to magic circle firms or US firms.

An additional note on my mock interviews: as we've launched some new software, I can now offer recordings of your mock interview (should you wish to review your answers/my feedback).

Best,

Jaysen

I have an assessment centre coming up at a firm I am really interested in and am thinking of some interesting questions to ask at the end.

One question I am interested in is the gender balance; the firm is pretty equal lower down (e.g. trainees/associates) but when you get to partner level, the numbers are much much lower for women than men. I would perhaps word the question along the lines of 'What is the firm doing to improve this?', but I am unsure if this is a suitable question to ask, or if it seems a bit attacking?!

Would I be better sticking with some more generic questions?

Hi guys,

I'm applying for a firm and this is one of the questions:

Describe an important event in your life. Why have you chosen this particular event?

I'm a bit stumped with this one. Any tips for how you might approach this one? I'm not sure if I should talk about a personal or professional event. Are they looking for some life-changing event that's happened to me?

Thanks!

Hi guys,

Quick question.

On application forms, one of the very first questions is 'How did you hear about X firm?' and it gives you options to tick LCN, career fairs, Legal 500 etc.

I tend to use this section to just tick everything I used to do my research. However, I wanted to know if you did the same or if you keep it focussed on where you first heard about the firm i.e. law fair?

So Im applying for a TC with Trowers and Hamlins and one of the questions says

What makes you particularly suited to a career at Trowers & Hamlins compared to other applicants?

I am not sure how to answer this. Please help and please be gentle. Im new to this so i dont know whether im coming or going im so overwhelmed.