Appearance in court part II

Still learning lessons... early on I spotted the agent for the other side and introduced myself. She wasn't interested in talking, but afterwards I noticed her pull out the file and start reading it in detail. Oops... gave her warning that I was ready and prepared, so she was preparing.

So I asked her if I could see what papers she had. (Why not?). And she told me. Handy, let me adjust what I was going to say.

Then it came to it. Did my best to present something structured, tried to pace myself, tried to keep calm. And not give in. And try try try not to say anything really stupid.

It worked. Sheriff was with me. Other side less sure of her facts. I won. Happy days.

First appearance in court

Had my first appearance in court today. It went really well... until I did something a bit silly.

First thing was discovering that the other side hadn't sent one of their trainees but the heavyweight pro from the office. Not great.

Second thing was being first up - bad, as I didn't have the chance to gauge the sheriff beforehand, but good as he wasn't yet impatient by the time I was on!

I was nervous beforehand but when I went up I felt fine. The pursuer's agent set the scene then the sheriff turned to me.

I made my submissions (went well), tendered a photocopy from McPhail and a Westlaw copy (I know...). Went well, sheriff was with me. I was doing OK. Sheriff was even smiling at me. And then... doh!

Pursuer's agent said that he didn't have the papers he needed with him and asked for a continuation. And I didn't oppose it. So it was continued for 2 weeks. And the sheriff told me that whilst he was impressed with my submissions, agreeing to the continuation was "commendable". I think that means he was calling me a ninny.

Why? Because it was in the bag... and now I have given him the chance to appear with a bunch of papers that will no doubt cast enough doubt about my defence to sink my arguments, or something along those lines. Or I will have a less sympathetic sheriff. Or I will be last on (being a continued diet) so the sheriff will have no patience for bringing out McPhail. And I could have put it to bed this morning and returned to the office to a hero's welcome (or something like that).

Drat.

So why did I do it? Well, I didn't actually think it would be worth opposing a continuation. Right? Wrong. Let's face it, the pursuer's agent should have been prepared with the right papers, just as I was.

A lesson in inexperience! Am becoming fed up of learning from mistakes! At least I enjoyed the advocacy. And maybe it will be OK in 2 weeks... we'll see.

Insurance companies

Spoke to a claims handler at an insurance company, the defender in an action. He was mightily upset that I'd raised proceedings against him. He said, after all, he only had 2 letters on file from us! He was genuinely aggrieved and annoyed.

I explained to him that the first letter (sent months and months ago) was just to bring them into the picture and give them a chance to respond. When I had heard nothing, I sent the second letter, giving them 14 days. Then when I heard nothing, I raised it.

(What would he like me to do? Tell the client "Oh, the insurance company has ignored us, let's just forget all about it! How many letters did he want - and how many more would he have ignored?)

He was very angry about that. He accused me of just trying to get the most money for my client (he really said that... as if!). I was quite calm (I think it's easy to be calm when you're the one who has initiated things) and he became quite agitated. In the end he said "I'm not going to get into an argument with you" (who was arguing?). And then "I'M PASSING IT TO MY SOLICITORS" (like it was a big threat). Great - perhaps they'll be more professional!

Been a while

Havent posted in ages, which is a shame, as have been having a brilliant time at work.

Am now in full flow, files and clients coming my way, up to litigating. Of course I'm not yet able to do the courtroom stuff myself, so I have to let my managing partners name be on my litigation. But I'm still getting to do the pleadings in the summonses + writs which is an art (proficiently rushed by the pros, they take me ages!)

The office is still a fun place to be. It's a happy office with good people, making the workday into a great thing.

Finally got to use my law society ID card on a trip to court. Of course, now that I have it, they scarcely even look at it. I just waved it in the general direction of security and they nodded me through - it could have been any old card!

Name in the journal

Very small moment today when one of the solicitors noticed my name in the journal of the law society as a new entrant :) Quite exciting to see it there. Plus had the added benefit of proving to my managing partner that my training certificate isn't forged and the law society really has my name on their lists...

Contract

Finally got round to signing my training contract. I'd been waiting for the firm to provide one. It's almost the deadline when the law society demands it, so I emailed my managing partner and the head of HR to see what was going on.

Five minutes later the partner came in and said "but we've been waiting for you to give us a contract! Haven't you received the standard one from the law society?" I had, of course, but I had assumed that the firm, being fairly large, would have one of their own.

There were a few things to tweak. I resisted the temptation to add in clauses for the exclusive use of a company limo, regular meals out paid for by the firm, or even a pay rise.

I spoke to a 2nd year trainee who had to do the same thing at another firm. When doing the same thing she'd inserted for her pay "the law society minimum" whilst her colleagues had put in the actual figures. Come the increase the following year she gained the increase above her colleagues.

So I lightly tweaked my contract accordingly and added in "or greater amount as may be agreed between the Trainee and the Employer". This was picked upon by my managing partner and the finance director.

It was quite a moment going through the contract with the partner, as he picked through each word and ribbed me about it. Especially when he noticed that I had also made the slightly embarassing mistake of misspelling his name...

Management meeting

Had my first management meeting today. Went well. Apparently my efforts not to drown in too much info by noting everything on the file is seen as being organised and not lacking in mental abilities (all of my colleagues seem to be able to remember the last detail of every case off the tops of their heads).

Lunch was hectic - was looking forward to a break but the phone kept ringing. One witness was livid. I'd sent him a copy of what he'd said to me. "No! I can't say that, I'm not qualified to say that. That's not what I want to say". But you did! That's why I wrote it down.

Just when I thought I could cope with the phone and nibble my lunch at the same time, reception called. A client had popped in to see me and drop off photos he thought I should see. No rest for the wicked!

New trainee

I'm not the newbie any more - one new trainee has started and there's another coming soon. Although I'm only a few months ahead of them, because I've passed the basic hurdle of getting used to the system, and have (hopefully) shown the office I can cope with the things that are thrown at me, I've been told that I may as well be a whole year ahead of them. It's a perception thing. At least, thats the experience of last year's trainees!

I am beginning to feel that I'm covering a fair spread of what I might eventually be doing, apart from, of course, being allowed to open my mouth in court! At the beginning I was excited by the tasks I was being given. Whilst they seem basic compared to some of the more technical legal activities which I've been trusted with, the importance of a good basic precognition is only becoming more acute as the basic building block in gathering evidence. And whilst I was very excited to be passed clients of my own, I'm now juggling an increasing load of cases.

I can still take comfort, though, as a trainee... my juggling efforts look small time compared to the 100+ files the 2nd year trainees and NQs have on their desks.

First summons

Better get used to saying "its been a busy week" - think thats how it's going to be from now on. It's not a bad thing if you manage it all properly, had considered a grimace when being given new tasks to dissuade people from giving me too much... but then again as a trainee I'm striving to be helpful and capable so will be grateful for everything I'm given!

Have had some very interesting things this week. Top of the list was drafting my first summons. This of course involved thinking about liability, injury and quantum, so had to spend some time valuing the claim and wondering if my assessment was realistic. Of course it doesn't matter what I put, the answers are always going to say "The sum sued for is excessive"! Hopefully there's enough of a case there that it doesn't get punted out on a rule 22 note (if thats the right one I'm thinking of).

It's now over 2 months since I started. I'm still overjoyed to say that the place is still as much fun as when I started. The atmosphere is still friendly and open. Results are undoubtedly expected, but they are achieved with a positive vibe rather than driven by fear.

Another week

Another week has zoomed by. I'm now managing my cases, and fitting these around the various tasks that are sent my way. My managing partner asked me how my workload is - shouldn't be twiddling my thumbs, but definitely shouldn't be pulling out my hair under an unmanageable weight!

My own case load is growing. I'm finding it much more useful progressing my files, as I have to know (or find out) all the various procedures / forms, assess whatever I need to know about liability and the losses or injuries suffered, and get the necessary evidence. Some of it is quite interesting - such as finding out in detail about industrial processes.

I've begun to notice how much some people despise their jobs. Some people have to put up with pain and discomfort, which they can't avoid. I've also had a few interesting dealings with witnesses. In one day I had both ends of a spectrum - a witness who was just not interested in revealing anything - it was like pulling teeth - to another witness who had been made redundant and hated his old employer. He was desperate to dish the dirt.

My Law Society ID card has finally arrived. Now I can waltz into court without being searched, and without having to queue with everybody else. Unfortunately the arrival has coincided with the inevitable decline in opportunities to actually use it! My workload is increasing, plus there's a new trainee starting on Monday, so we'll have to take turns in going to court.

Proof

Sat in on a proof today, which was brilliant. It's very different to all the procedural stuff that goes on beforehand - in some ways looks easier, as you'll have specifically prepared for that and know the file, but in many ways harder as it's down to advocacy.

It was also interesting to watch. The solicitor I was with doesn't have huge experience of proofs, and was up against Mr Slick - the partner in his firm, who used every trick in the book - it was clear he hadn't done the preparation and ground work and instead relied on his impressive gravitas and advocacy skills.

I was hoping for a decision soon, but sadly the Sheriff (who wasn't shy to intervene) said that as he has so many on which he's taking avizandum, it will be 10 weeks to find out whether classy advocacy beats preparation and quality evidence.

Working on my own files

I'm enjoying working on my own files. I'm getting to work out just what to do, what I need to find out to assess liability - who I need to speak to, what other evidence I need, and what the law is.

At the same time, I am responsible to the client. Although ultimately I am supervised, I still obviously strongly feel that I don't want to let the client down. I'm being extra diligent!

Bad Law

Am beginning to learn about bad law. How does it come about? I've seen 2 types so far.

One is law lords down in London coming to inexplicable conclusions - with detailed reasoning that doesn't match the outcome, or follow statute (thought they weren't supposed just to make it up!). It makes it hard to know the law and predict an outcome.

The other can be blamed squarely on lawyers who don't consider the issues, prepare properly, or have poor advocacy. There will be a decision or an award that is out of line with what the client should have expected.

The upshot is that it makes it everybody else's job much harder! Bad lawyers mean bad precedents for their colleagues later on. It also means you have a responsibility to do your own job properly or you risk messing things up for everybody else!

Clients

Had my first disappointing client experience today. Having spoken to some witnesses, it looks like the client's take on what happened doesn't exactly match what happened in reality, and that the client is hardly the innocent party. I guess it's part of investigating any claim and finding out now saves lots of wasted expense and possibly very red face in court!

On the other hand, had a couple of comedy moments taking client statements today. One factory worker said that his colleague had said "Oh my goodness, I have cut off the tip of my finger!". When I asked him if that's exactly what he'd said, he admitted not exactly, it may have been in slightly stronger terms.

Another comedy quote was from a friendly girl who had witnessed an accident on the other side of the road. I asked her where it happened and she helpfully said "I was on the left, and the oncoming cars were to my right on the road". That settles that then!

Settling in

I'm beginning to feel like I'm settling in and getting into the swing of things. Work is being handed to me routinely (well a bit more than routinely... NQ in the office is passing me tonnes!) and I'm also dealing with my own caseload. The task now is not to work out what to do / how to do it, but has moved on to managing it all - doing the right work at the right moment and making sure it is properly time recorded.

I'm also finding that I'm chomping at the bit to progress and investigate my own cases. My other half asked me how much investigation I need to do, and whether I trust my clients. The simple answer is that if they were telling porkies, I'd be wasting my time if it got as far as court - you can be sure the other side will have checked out everything they can.

And I thought intimating someone elses claim was exciting

SO yesterday I was excited about preparing to imtimate a claim. It was a file I had worked on, but it was a colleague's file.

Today I'm getting ready to do the same for one of my own clients. Have to admit that it's really exciting. I've done it all myself so far, and it's all down to me (and up to me too). It always helps that I like the client, who has been hard done by. That's what it's all about.

Less exciting things today included preparing a bundle for an advocate, which was a fairly big task. And annoying a solicitor with too many questions so that in the end I had my head bitten off a little... guess it goes with the territory!

We're off to a training day next week. Apparently one of the other new trainees, due to start fairly soon, will be there. Will be nice to meet them, hope they don't show me up!

a mad day!

Totally crazy day today. Started off quite excitingly - prepared my first intimation of claim, kicking off the process officially.

After that the work just started piling in! My to do pile grew madly. At the same time every client wanted to chat. While I was on a call the voicemails came in. While I listened to the voicemails more voicemails came in! Did enjoy talking to clients and witnesses today though, everybody was being helpful!

I guess this is how its going to be. Enjoyed it but, it really teaches you to prioritise!

Meeting a friend

Finally met the first of my diploma buddies to have started his traineeship. I knew there was someone else out there and that I was not the only one to have started! He looked very professional and grown up (more than I do!).

Patient partner

The firm has a big case about to start, and I asked the partner about it. He sent me details of the action, which I then read and fired back a few Qs. Was very surprised (and more than a little pleased) when the partner came to my desk this afternoon and went over my questions. I know it's not a very big thing, but it was great that he did so!

A case load

Have finally reached that stage... I have my own caseload. Now I'll need to juggle priorities, watch deadlines, keep track of my files, remember which client is which. It's slightly daunting. The powers that be have clearly decided that I'm up to the task. Yes, I now have my own files, my own case load. I can hold my head up high with the solicitors in the canteen, each with their caseloads of 100+ cases now that I have one too. Err... except that mine comprises 3 cases so far :)

Actually I'm rather pleased about it. It will give me a proper chance to work out exactly what it is you do with files. It's all very well looking at a statement and working out this was breached, liability sits there, or whatever. The less fun part is the important bit - dealing with the client, sending letters, working out how to make entries on the computer system, and combining that with other tasks (I still have my mountain of tasks to do, statements to take, that kind of thing). Plus I still get to do the fun bit of working out if there is a case there and intimating it to the other side... with the secret hope that I'll get to raise it in court. On the other hand, unless it takes 11 months from now to get that far, it won't be me in court doing the fun bit!

what a day!

Am on the blackberry to type this. Has been some day. First of all had mocking number 1: it was dress down day and of course newbie trainee turns up in a suit - the only one in the office.

Then I announced (in shock) Michael Jackson is dead! Tumbleweed moment of silence before the laughter and mocking number 2. That was last nights news and I'm the only person in the world not to know.

We had our team meeting today, where troubled cases are discussed. Got put on the spot for that: the partner opened with let's hear what the trainee has to say about liability on this one. Luckily hadn't fallen asleep yet so at least I sounded coherent.

Finally had a chat this afternoon with one of the solicitors. She agreed that everyone here is really friendly and the place is just nice. So what's the catch? I've seen the film "The Firm"!

The library

Thought I'd have a look at the "library" today. Which is a collection of useful (and expensive) books shoved on some metal shelving. "Shoved" is a kindly term, masking the complete mess that was there. Most of the books were hidden under masses of updates for the loose-leaf volumes, many still in their wrapping. And handily for historians there were loads of Law Society directories going back years, to the Blue Book directories before the white books now used.

It was all too much so I spent a while tidying and sorting. It's now in some kind of order and looks neat. It still looked neat a few minutes later when I finished up and went home. I don't rate the chances of it still being tidy this time tomorrow though!

Blackberry day

Got my office Blackberry today. It's very nice. I love how the calendar and email match whats on my office PC. They talk to each other (what are they saying about me though).

The downside is that now I'm officially on the office leash. Client calls can follow me home. I'm never away from email. I've seen everyone else habitually checking their Blackberries - at lunch, in court, probably in the toilet too!

On the plus side there's no network coverage at home, provided I stay in the kitchen. Which is beginning to sound appealing.

Meeting a client

Took my first in person client precognition today - the client came to the office. Was very careful to make sure I didn't miss anything out.

Got back to the my desk after to hear about the search party that had been sent for me. Tales about how complicated his story was, the infinite complexities of necessary detail, all fell on deaf ears. Still, would have felt worse if I had rushed it and missed out something vital!

Interesting day in court

Got to spend the morning in court once again. Tagged along with a reluctant solicitor, as she was worried about her motion. (In court, not a stomach related thing).

It was a great morning of options hearings. Everything possible came up. The sheriff was clearly very experienced and not one to take fools gladly. One party litigant appeared and didn't understand when the sheriff asked him if he opposed a motion which had been put forward. Sheriff wasn't impressed. It transpired that the next diet was going to be a debate. Sheriff asked him if he would be seeking the services of a solicitor. He said no, he'd represent himself. Stunned sheriff shouted incredulously "AT THE DEBATE?". Loud hint of sarcasm, sneer, surprise and shock from the direction of the sheriff.

Noted another agent sitting waiting for her case. For some reason she sniggered at every party litigant. Some of them were quite reasonable so not sure why!

Finally our case was called, right at the end. My mentor stood up, slighty nervously, and was about to say "Agent for the pursuer" when another agent stood up and said "Agent for both parties, m'lady". Looked like there was going to be an argument, except there had been some agreement beforehand about today's motion. As the other side put each point, my mentor meekly said "I agree" or "not opposed". She hadn't needed to worry at all.

My own client!

A very exciting day. I have my own file... and my own client. I've spoken to the client already, and it's a fair enough case. The defender is well known for being pig headed, so it will be a tough one. Am looking forward to it a lot!

Also faced a small demon today. Had been dreading a witness calling to explain a complicated industrial process to me, and what happened to his friend. Spoke to him finally and it was (of course) fine. As the partner says - "build a picture in your head".

Meeting an advocate

Quite an exciting day... got to behave exactly like a solicitor today. It was a consultation with a client, and I was there with the solicitor and an advocate. The advocate did all the talking, and just like a real solicitor, I got to sit there... and listen :) It was actually quite impressive, as the advocate was very clear and good to listen to (as you would hope!).

Am also slightly excited, as I seem to be progressing a case from the start. We'll see how it pans out. I did the initial statement from the client, and it has given me the chance to assess the legal merits of the case. Which might sound dull, but it was quite satisfying to work out that there was a sound basis to proceed. We'll see what happens next.

The case report

Tried to get hold of a case report today from a rural court 5 years ago. Couldn't track it down, so gave the court a call. Sure, they can provide a copy... for £20. Yikes. Is it a public document? What about a freedom of information request? (that would only wind them up!)

Anyway a while later was chatting to a colleague. Turns out it was one of our cases... and there are plenty of copies floating about. He even had one in his drawer!

Monday morning...

The office felt empty today - most of the people around my desk are on holiday or away on a conference. It was so quiet... and so dull! Definitely missed the banter.

Gave me a chance to catch up with the pile of work on my desk. Didn't take long to amass a proper sized bundle of things to do, with priorities to juggle.

Hilarious day... in court

Went with one of the solicitors to court today. Turned into a full proper legal debate citing cases and McPhail. Decent sheriff will think about it for a week. Was good to be there for some proper legal stuff!

Most of the hilarity came before that though. Spent the afternoon waiting for our turn, so got to hear some classic stories about a work experience girl from school and an agent who had both tried to leave the courtroom through the wrong door, the girl going into the sheriff's chambers (!) and the agent going into a cupboard. Mental note to self - DONT DO THAT!

The solicitor I was with confessed that she'd had a small incident last week when leaving court - her gown had caught on the back of one of the swivel chairs which had whipped round and whacked an agent. Oops.

The difficult bit in court was to avoid guffawing out loud. Would be bad to face a complaint to the law society before I've even qualified. So it was a relief to escape for lunch into the canteen.

That's where the real comedy was going on, thanks to a couple of seasoned, comical and more than slightly riské criminal agents sitting at the table with us, jumping on any innuendo possible, and forcing another well known seasoned but less comical criminal agent to storm out moaning about the content of the conversation. Oops!

Am looking forward to going back next week for the outcome. But I'm not sure if I'm hurrying back for the legal content or the comedy circus. Laughter is the best medicine after all!

Long distance precognition

Spent most of today getting a precognition from a police officer way out in the country.  Left nice and early.  Decided to go by train and avoid any hassle.  Arrival was no problem.  Policeman was very nice and helpful, and even gave me a lift back to the station in a police car.  

Arrived at the station 5 mins too late for the last train for 2 hours, so got to sit and soak up the sun.  Being a tiny village there was nothing else to do.  Not even a pub!  It wasn't until I got home that I discovered that I'd been sitting relaxing on some paint.  So my nice old suit, with its carefully sewn on buttons, is now a write off.  It's a sign.

Real trainee work

It's all very well precognoscing clients and dictating medical reports... but today I finally got some real old fashioned trainee work.  Yes, I was sent to the library to photocopy a case.  And luckily I had some cash with me as the firm's photocopier card had expired!

Sat in on a client consultation this afternoon.  Hope I'm not the only trainee who has almost fallen asleep in front of a client and a solicitor.  Well, it was so hot, the sun was streaming in, and the details of his case were quite detailed and not entirely scintillating!

First taste of trickiness

My mentor asked me to attend a useful consultation between him and a client this morning.  He was keen for me to come as it's quite a tricky case on liability.

10 minutes before it was due to start the partner dropped by my desk, handing me a file.  "I want you to do a detailed precognition of this client.  Take 2 mins to read the file, then call her immediately, as she's on her break now."  That was the tricky part - reading the file plus getting to grips with the relevant questions for this particular type of industrial accident.  Plus the client liked to chat... while Mr Mentor looked on impatiently, then gave up and headed on to the consultation.  

More trickiness later when my computer flagged up a new case for me to take on.  One of the urgent ones involving calling the client immediately.  Blimey, that would have been fairly in the deep end, had it not been a mistake.  It was meant to be assigned to someone else (obviously more experienced) with the same first name...  

Have a choice of things to do on Friday - 3 invitations to court.  Cool!  Which one to pick...

Back to school

I thought I'd left essays behind... and essays about cases long gone since 1st year.  However today's new task is to write a case report for an online journal that the firm contributes to.  

I can console myself with it being a job that the partners do too, so it's not just a lowly trainee task.

A few people have been concerned about whether I'll be able to sift through a 40 page House of Lords judgment.  No problem, said I... having seen a million in mooting.  We'll see!

The end of the week!

So have managed a whole week.  Today got stuck into a variety of incomprehensible medical reports, from bad writing, through mad jargon, to craziness.  For example a physio report on a client with a knee injury had a little diagram with his knee marked, and a line pointing to it marked "toothache, patella (r)".  I guess i have much to learn.

Work is now piling up on the desk.  I'm also being introduced to making sure I'm time recording properly.  That's what it's all about!

It was a very sociable day.  Firstly it was home baking day (for charity) and lots of people baked.  Fantastic!  Then was taken to lunch by the partner to see how the week had been.  Nice.  And after work went for a quick drink - would have loved to have stayed longer but had to dash home.

So the verdict after week 1 is definitely very positive.  It's been great.  What was I so nervous about!

Real live clients

Only a couple of files sitting on my desk when I arrived this morning.  No clue about what to do with them though!  Spent a good while examining them (and recording the time under 'training' - now's the time to start time recording).  Worked out what they needed.  Later on got an email asking if I had received the instruction for what to do with them, which hadn't come in and would have saved me all that time!

Today's highlights involved real clients in the flesh - one interview at the office and one at the home of an injured elderly lady.  I went with one of the solicitors, who had permission to use a partner's car to get there.  He made a big fuss about getting his car out of the car park, and even offered to do it for the solicitor in case he scraped it.  I knew one of the partners has a new Jaguar, and from the fuss I imagined it would be something really fancy.  The car park was full of expensive metal and skipped straight passed the new Porsches and BMWs to... a Honda Civic.  Which turned out to be remarkably the most complicated car in the world ever - with more digital displays and buttons than the helm of the Starship Enterprise!  

As I mentioned, the time has come to time record work on all files, making sure I don't take too long on each (and too much of the fee, not that it comes to me!).

Tomorrow will make a whole week - I can't quite believe it, or how great it's been!  

Big day!

Lots of big things happened today.  Wonder which is the most exciting?

First was my first trip to court (tagging along as the trainee of course).  It was great, apart from having to queue with the criminals (humiliation!) because I let it slip that I was a trainee (will look out for that guard in future to blag my way straight in).  First 2 hours was vaguely interesting - not for the sorting out of the days business - which definitely wasn't - but for the ongoing negotiation between our firm and the other side.  Sadly for us they wouldn't cave and insisted the Sheriff decide.  Happily for us it was a big mistake and the sheriff - clearly a fan of reasonableness - went with our args.  Highlight of the morning was one agent's call for decree on an unpaid debt, with no defender present.  There had been an offer to pay the £1200 outstanding at £150 a month- not good enough for the finance company who wanted the lot.  Despite no defender, the Sheriff took the initiative and said "Thats a bit mean ... you're not getting it".  Nicely said.

Next big thing was getting my fill of stationery.  The girls in that department must like me because I got good stuff that nobody else has!

Spoke to my first witness too, taking a phone precognition.  The tricky bit was remembering to do the attendance note for my 24 minutes :) 

Following on from it was one thing I had been dreading - doing my first dictation.  Actually it was easy!  And it led to... my first feeing!  The firm makes plenty off each page of the precognition.  Suspect today will be enough to pay my weeks wages.  Thats assuming the dictation was as easy as I thought.  I'm half anticipating a testy note from the typists.

May have made a slight error of judgement.  In my enthusiasm I emailed my department offering my services just now to do precognitions.  Various people have now told me to watch out as I'm likely to be utterly overwhelmed!

Day 2...

Even more fun today.  I discovered that my firm likes to litigate.  And everybody knows that.  So if my firm contacts you, settle or be prepared to go to court.  Simples, no?

The computer system seemed slightly less daunting today.  I had a look at a couple of files.  The first was in preparation for a precognition, which I tagged along to.  Plenty interesting stuff.  The second is part of a more tricky case (which is code for possibly not a winner).  Looking forward to the client interview on that one.

Incredibly everybody seems nicer and even happier today.  But was introduced to the undercurrent of performance indicators - its OK to be happy, just make sure the fees are coming in!

Day 1...

Set off nice and early.  Decided to catch the bus and arrive nice and relaxed, in time to pick up a new tie from tie rack.  Great plan batman, except that an old picture house caught fire last week and the main road into town is still closed.  I knew that already and thought I was prepared by taking a bus that didn't use that road.  What did Baldrick not think of here?  If the other road is closed... all of the traffic will be stuck on the road which is open instead.  Genius!  So a huge traffic jam.  Packed bus emptied as everybody got off to walk instead in the sweltering heat.  Luckily for me the driver was impatient and soon decided that red lights were not for him. 

Arrived with just enough time to nip to tie rack.  Foiled again - it had gone!  Instead picked up a new tie from a major department store for a major price.  At least it looked good.

Then the grand moment.  Walking in to the office.  First chat in the corridor with the HR head who was markedly sociable and cheerful.  Good start.  The morning involved a basic induction with the training person, a chat with the partner heading my department - he was especially friendly and seemed open - and then a grand tour to meet everybody.  Lots and lots of people, whose names I'll try to remember, honest.

The big event for the morning was joining in a big training meeting about the funding scheme used.  First hour for newer people, second hour for the pros.  Lots of info, lots of people there, and most of the presentation seemed aimed at... me.  Maybe I imagined it but the partner giving the powerpoint seemed to be looking directly at me through the whole thing.  At least it was interesting, and his dry sense of humour definitely helped.

After lunch was introduced to the firm's impressive and complicated computer system.  Scary!  I'm sure I'll get the hang of it.  Help!

The best part is everybody there is very friendly.  And they're all falling over each other to tell me how nice a place it is to work.  

Mental preparation

In a few hours I'll be getting up and going to work like a normal person.  Still nervous and a bit anxious.  How much should I know?  How much do I know?  What exactly will I be doing?  Or will they expect me to know nothing?  And is that any better?

So tonight's preparation is... a bath and spa (with the bubble machine).  Have set my alarm, and checked it twice.  Suit is sitting out, new shirt, slightly doubtful tie.  

Sewing buttons onto a suit

Feeling unimpressive, having just sewed buttons onto a suit. Perhaps it is time to buy a new one!

Tomorrow

Tomorrow is the big day. Intended to be all prepared. Had a manicure and a haircut. Can't afford a new suit, so making do with some slightly elderly suits and instead bought some nice new shirts. Shaved most of the beard off, trimmed to a neat goatie. Felt all smart and prepared.

We went to see my brother in law, who runs a law firm. His first 3 questions were:

"You going to shave?" -- err, already did?

"Getting a haircut?" -- what? It's just been cut!

"Got a new suit?" -- hmm. This isn't going well.

From results to manicure

It's all very last minute.  Supposed to be starting my traineeship on Monday.  Results came in yesterday (Thursday) at 4.30pm.  Luckily for me passed the lot (even accountancy).  Looks like I will be starting as expected.

I'm not afraid to admit that I'm a bit nervous.  Why?  My firm has a great reputation. It's supposed to be a good firm.  People keep saying to me "they're a good firm".  What does that mean for a trainee?  I met some psychiatrists who do work for them, and they said "they're a good firm".  I asked what that means.  They said "they pay their bills on time".  Sounds professional to me.

I haven't had a lot of contact with them since the offer.  Way back then, after the interview, and the second interview I inveigled my way into, and they said to me "well done!", I asked if I'd be invited to the office that summer to get to know them.  They said just pick a start date, and we'll see you then.   More recently I asked them what my salary will be.  They (professionally) wrote back within a day or so.  I phoned them to arrange a start date and they said "ok, we'll just see you at 9.30 then".  Apart from that nothing.  Perhaps trainees are so lowly that we don't need contact, or a contract.  Perhaps they don't like talking to trainees.  Or perhaps they're just really relaxed.

Even before all of that, they had an interesting approach at the law fair.  Most firms have people saying "join us!  we're great".  Or "come to us, we love this firm!".  Or even now "This is a great firm.  We don't defer many trainees!"  (which is probably a lie). Instead my firm said "are you sure you want to come to us?  I mean, are you really sure?  You'll be doing litigation.  Are you sure you want to do litigation?".  It was either a test to see if I was really serious, or a bad case of self doubt (unusual for a law firm).  

So here I am, anxiously anticipating Day One.  I had wanted to buy a new suit, but the coffers are empty.  Well, not quite empty, more like in some serious deficit.  Hopefully I'll still make a nice impression in my old suit.  Instead I've opted for a haircut, beard trim and... a manicure.

My friend suggested that for this blog I don't use the firm's real name, because, well, that would be really stupid.  So I have all weekend to come up with a comedy name, which should be vaguely realistic.  Not forgetting of course that in any case it'll probably be really easy for anybody in the know to work out who I work for and where... Just look for the trainee with the manicured nails.