TCLA Vacation Scheme Applications Discussion Thread 2024-25

[M123]

Spring

If you haven’t sat it already, dm me! I applied for the summer vac scheme so haven’t heard back but i spoke to a future trainee who gave me an insight to it

 

[TCLA Community Assistant]

Thanks for your guidance again, I guess I was just was under the impression at the time of writing that it was acceptable to round certain experience lengths up on cvs

Unfortunately that won’t be a legitimate reason - nearly doubling a placement length by rounding up a three day placement to a week could bring into question judgement/integrity.

Hopefully the reference check agency or recruitment team will not be concerned given it was a very short placement or won’t cross reference the discrepancy.

If you have to confirm employment details for the employment reference check (eg you have to resubmit your employment details to them) - then make sure that information is correct at the point of submitting the information again.

 

[bsh]

Unfortunately that won’t be a legitimate reason - nearly doubling a placement length by rounding up a three day placement to a week could bring into question judgement/integrity.

Hopefully the reference check agency or recruitment team will not be concerned given it was a very short placement or won’t cross reference the discrepancy.

If you have to confirm employment details for the employment reference check (eg you have to resubmit your employment details to them) - then make sure that information is correct.

Hi Jess, just wondering what the situation with this will be for self-employed roles?

 

[Shandy101]

That Goodwin VI was unnecessarily stressful!

Really? I thought it was ok.

 

[TCLA Community Assistant]

Hi Jess, just wondering what the situation with this will be for self-employed roles?

You typically have to provide another form of proof of employment. For instance, I have had to provide either my corporate tax returns, bank statements, or even a reference from my accountant. Any formal document that shows income is likely to be sufficient.

 

[AnAnonymousDuck]

@Jessica Booker @Amma Usman @Andrei Radu

When a firm says that during an interview they will be looking for "knowledge of current affairs and ability to apply this knowledge to the benefit of a discussion" in a case study exercise, what exactly do they mean by this? Does this mean that, for example if the case study is related to an M&A and has a specific element to it, I should be able to discuss a similar M&A with that element that has been in the news lately? Apologies for a clumsy question.

 

[lolololol]

any insight into wfw vi?

 

[TCLA Community Assistant]

@Jessica Booker @Amma Usman @Andrei Radu

When a firm says that during an interview they will be looking for "knowledge of current affairs and ability to apply this knowledge to the benefit of a discussion" in a case study exercise, what exactly do they mean by this? Does this mean that, for example if the case study is related to an M&A and has a specific element to it, I should be able to discuss a similar M&A with that element that has been in the news lately? Apologies for a clumsy question.

I wouldn’t expect you to be able to talk about another M&A matter. It’s more about thinking about how general macro level trends, as well as things changes in things like regulation might be changing or influencing clients’ business operations or concerns.

 

[LawJourney101]

Has anyone not received the Baker test after completing their application for summer vac scheme?
(near deadline)

 

[LB24]

Kennedys VI invite! Anyone have any tips or have any idea as to what the questions may be?

 

[AnAnonymousDuck]

I wouldn’t expect you to be able to talk about another M&A matter. It’s more about thinking about how general macro level trends, as well as things changes in things like regulation might be changing or influencing clients’ business operations or concerns.

would thing like the increase in scrutiny from the CMA and EU Commission towards digital markets or increase in investments into technology be examples of this?

 

[futuretrainee8482]

Has anyone not received the Baker test after completing their application for summer vac scheme?
(near deadline)

Summer Baker tests out?

 

[jacksollaf]

Summer Baker tests out?

No I don't think so; I once asked them about the application process and they said: "We hope to have test invites out by 10 January 2025".

 

[jacksollaf]

REMINDER: Clyde & Co will be sending out their Cappfinity digital assessment tomorrow, or at least are supposed to, as confirmed by the email I received stating: "If you meet the eligibility criteria, you will be sent a link to complete our Cappfinity digital assessment on Tuesday 7th January. You will then have 5-days to complete this. Please note, we are unable to extend this deadline as we have a short timeframe to shortlist for all our roles."

Good luck!!!

 

[APGCA]

Pinsent AC London!!!

 

[TCLA Community Assistant]

would thing like the increase in scrutiny from the CMA and EU Commission towards digital markets or increase in investments into technology be examples of this?

Yes.

 

[BillSikes]

Is Addleshaw closed? it says its still open but I'm not seeing anything?

There apps shut at 17:00

 

[Lastseasonwonder]

Just bombed a VI. Worked so hard on the app, so really hoping a miracle happens here ...

 

[LegalSara04]

Just bombed a VI. Worked so hard on the app, so really hoping a miracle happens here ...

So sorry to hear this. Honestly VI’s are the worst part of any application.

Do you mind saying what firm it was for?

 

[Andrei Radu]

@Jessica Booker @Amma Usman @Andrei Radu

When a firm says that during an interview they will be looking for "knowledge of current affairs and ability to apply this knowledge to the benefit of a discussion" in a case study exercise, what exactly do they mean by this? Does this mean that, for example if the case study is related to an M&A and has a specific element to it, I should be able to discuss a similar M&A with that element that has been in the news lately? Apologies for a clumsy question.

If you were able to add value to your analysis by discussing how a certain element has been dealt with in another deal that would definitely be impressive, but you are certainly not expected to do that. As Jessica said, firms are looking to test (i) the level of your commercial awareness - just how much you know about what is going on in the business world; and (ii) the extent to which you can analyze the relevance of that in the context of the particular case study you are completing. For (i) I think general commercial awareness includes both trends (like the growth of private capital, antitrust enforcement, declining inflation) and relevant events (like the US elections, new regulations and laws, wars). For (ii) firms are looking to see if you can use your knowledge for the purposes of commercial analysis.

For instance, say at one point in an M&A case study you are looking at competition law compliance concerns. Besides using the information given in the exercise, you can bring in the fact that in the US, UK and EU in recent years antitrust authorities have been a lot more active and assertive when doing merger control assessments, which is potentially a cause for concern. To make for a more nuanced take, you can then say that with the new US administration having a significantly more relaxed attitude towards antitrust enforcement and with recessions in the EU bringing back a more business-friendly attitude in Brussels, it is not that problematic. Finally, though not necessary, you could integrate some prior transaction knowledge and conclude that in a worst case scenario the issue could be dealt with by negotiating with the regulators and either carving out parts of the acquired business or proposing behavioral remedies (as was done in the Microsoft-Activision Blizzard deal).