Hi
@Abbie Whitlock
Please correct me if I’m wrong, but I understand that corporate lawyers generally work in four main areas:
- Advisory/Regulatory – would trainees mainly be updating clients on legal developments, doing legal research, and drafting advice?
- Contentious – would a trainee’s work involve assisting with litigation, preparing witness statements, supporting court preparation, and conducting legal research to develop arguments?
- Transactional – would trainees primarily draft and negotiate contracts? Also, in M&A deals, do trainees ever get involved in negotiating the deal price, or is that mainly handled by investment bankers?
I’d love to know if this is an accurate view of what trainees do in each area, or if there are other key responsibilities I should be aware of.
Thanks in advance!
Hello!
This is a good breakdown, and you are broadly right - I would just add a few tweaks on what trainees actually do!
Advisory / Regulatory
Yes - this involves lots of legal research, drafting first versions of advice or client updates, and preparing compliance and board documents (to ensure they meet legal obligations). A trainee is likely to be supporting the analysis of the regulations, rather than giving independent advice
Contentious
You would typically assist with disclosure, draft chronologies and parts of witness statements, prepare bundles, and carry out research. Trainees will often contribute to building the case itself, but won't necessarily lead the strategy.
Transactional
I'd say that trainees don't usually negotiate commercial terms. Instead, they run due diligence, draft some ancillary documents, manage checklists, and help co-ordinate signing and completion. The headline deal price is normally negotiated between the buyer and seller (often with input from investment bankers), rather than trainees.
Overall, I'd say that trainees play a key supporting and coordination role across all areas, rather than leading things such as negotiations or strategy
