Non-law applicant - resources to study key technical parts of commercial law?

[hungry_for_TC]

Hi all,

I've been struggling to find a 'easy commercial law guide for dummies' source. I am a non-law student and want to familiarise myself with how banking & finance, private equity, IP and corporate crime departments work. I don't know how intensely to self-teach this as I know they won't expect a non-law student to know about contract law specifics, but... what would partners and associates interviewing me for my AC expect me to know? How can I learn this information if I've graduated and don't have access to friends' notes or libraries? I didn't study business either so I'm relying on nebulous Youtube videos and articles where most words are things I need to Google.

Thank you!

 

[George Maxwell]

Hi all,

I've been struggling to find a 'easy commercial law guide for dummies' source. I am a non-law student and want to familiarise myself with how banking & finance, private equity, IP and corporate crime departments work. I don't know how intensely to self-teach this as I know they won't expect a non-law student to know about contract law specifics, but... what would partners and associates interviewing me for my AC expect me to know? How can I learn this information if I've graduated and don't have access to friends' notes or libraries? I didn't study business either so I'm relying on nebulous Youtube videos and articles where most words are things I need to Google.

Thank you!

Hey @hungry_for_TC,

This is a great question. I empathise with your anxiety about this as I was a non-law student too. I completed two HSF scenario interviews during my vacation scheme AC and not only did I rely on my commercial awareness heavily, but I felt that this was a decisive factor in me ultimately being successful. In terms of what you should be aiming for, I think I was only asked once (not in my HSF interview) about a specific ongoing commercial story (Gamestop) and what my thoughts were on it.

Broadly speaking, your aim should be to develop your technical knowledge to the point where you are comfortable discussing and using basic commercial terminology. In terms of an approach, I found keeping up-to-date with commercial news (e.g., reading the FT/watching Bloomberg) to be an easier (and more natural) way of doing this than just revising off websites like investopedia.com.

This post outlines the resources that I used when I was applying, which I really do think are fantastic. Watson's Daily and Jake Schogger's Training Contract Handbook are solid places to start (and I can't recommend them enough). This video from A&O gives a really good introduction to Corporate M&A terminology. There are also a number of other YouTubers who are useful, such as this guy. I watched these sorts of videos when I was preparing.

In terms of answering some of the worries that you have.

• Personally, I would advise you to have some idea about basic principles of contract law. Even as a non-law student this might be expected of you (and even if not- this is a fantastic - and not too difficult - way to wow you interviewers).
• It is difficult to answer (definitively) in the abstract how much your interviewers might expect you to know. All I would say is that prepping little and often, with the resources I mention above, in addition to being willing to go above and beyond, will stand you in very good stead.
• In terms of further resources which really are worth exploring, TCLA's courses are awesome (in particular the Private Equity course) and there are a number of posts, particularly by @Anon08, which might help give you further guidance on commercial awareness preparation- but some of which are only accessible as a Premium/Gold member.

I hope that helps.

Please do let me know how your applications progress and I would be more than happy to answer any follow-ups you might have too!

 

[hungry_for_TC]

Hey @hungry_for_TC,

This is a great question. I empathise with your anxiety about this as I was a non-law student too. I completed two HSF scenario interviews during my vacation scheme AC and not only did I rely on my commercial awareness heavily, but I felt that this was a decisive factor in me ultimately being successful. In terms of what you should be aiming for, I think I was only asked once (not in my HSF interview) about a specific ongoing commercial story (Gamestop) and what my thoughts were on it.

Broadly speaking, your aim should be to develop your technical knowledge to the point where you are comfortable discussing and using basic commercial terminology. In terms of an approach, I found keeping up-to-date with commercial news (e.g., reading the FT/watching Bloomberg) to be an easier (and more natural) way of doing this than just revising off websites like investopedia.com.

This post outlines the resources that I used when I was applying, which I really do think are fantastic. Watson's Daily and Jake Schogger's Training Contract Handbook are solid places to start (and I can't recommend them enough). This video from A&O gives a really good introduction to Corporate M&A terminology. There are also a number of other YouTubers who are useful, such as this guy. I watched these sorts of videos when I was preparing.

In terms of answering some of the worries that you have.

• Personally, I would advise you to have some idea about basic principles of contract law. Even as a non-law student this might be expected of you (and even if not- this is a fantastic - and not too difficult - way to wow you interviewers).
• It is difficult to answer definitely in the abstract how much your interviewers might expect you to know. All I would say is that prepping little and often, with the resources I mention above, in addition to being willing to go above and beyond will stand you in very good stead.
• In terms of further resources which really are worth exploring, TCLA's courses are awesome (in particular the Private Equity course) and there are a number of posts, particularly by @Anon08, which might help give you further guidance on commercial awareness preparation- but some of which are only accessible as a Premium/Gold member.

I hope that helps.

Please do let me know how your applications progress and I would be more than happy to answer any follow-ups you might have too!

George thank you so much. You are always so consistently helpful! I actually remember you being in an online webinar event I was at in 2020 or 2021 (time means nothing now)! I'm very grateful for these resources. I am going to check them out and come back to let you know how it went after the AC!

 

[George Maxwell]

George thank you so much. You are always so consistently helpful! I actually remember you being in an online webinar event I was at in 2020 or 2021 (time means nothing now)! I'm very grateful for these resources. I am going to check them out and come back to let you know how it went after the AC!

Awesome stuff @hungry_for_TC, I am so pleased to hear this.

Please do let me know 🔥 how you find these resources and how the AC goes!

 

[curious_cat]

Hi all,

I've been struggling to find a 'easy commercial law guide for dummies' source. I am a non-law student and want to familiarise myself with how banking & finance, private equity, IP and corporate crime departments work. I don't know how intensely to self-teach this as I know they won't expect a non-law student to know about contract law specifics, but... what would partners and associates interviewing me for my AC expect me to know? How can I learn this information if I've graduated and don't have access to friends' notes or libraries? I didn't study business either so I'm relying on nebulous Youtube videos and articles where most words are things I need to Google.

Thank you!

Hi there, I echo with George's comments and no AC puts you at a disadvantage if you're from a non-law background. However, it is worth familiarising yourself with some common legal terms in contract law so you're not thrown off when they come up in written exercises/case studies. They always provide definitions but it helps to know so you can approach it in a more confident manner. I will also DM you a cheatsheet I used for M&A - you can develop a similar one for other practice areas too if you like 😊