Read our latest articles, news briefs and legal updates across all our different services.
Normally the return to work in January as a trainee comes as a big shock to the system – you’re often starting in a new department with new colleagues, and have to shake off the brain fog brought on by too much food over the Christmas break. This time around, however, I am staying in
Seat rotations are one of the main stresses in your training contract. Making sure you are working towards getting you to the right place for qualification is a careful balancing act of what you think you want, the needs of the firm and a developing picture of where your skills are best utilised. So, here
An employee at Lean Education and Development (LED) training firm won £11,885.62 for her unfair dismissal claim after she was accused of making deliberate mistakes to financially ruin her employer. Tracie Shearwood worked for LED for several years and after numerous promotions she held the role of head of compliance. In April 2018, her managing
You’ve made it past the interview stages, accepted the job offer, the initial excitement has passed and now the first day of your new job in a law firm is approaching. The nerves might be starting to settle in. Here are some top tips based on my experience to help ensure that your first job
An interview is likely to be required almost every time you apply for a role, and this is equally true when applying for training contracts. The process at Machins is currently split into three: (1) an application; (2) an initial interview and (3) a final partner-led interview. This post gives some tips from my experience
Beginning a training contract can be a daunting task for anyone even if you have previous experience. As a paralegal in the residential conveyancing department at two of my previous firms I found the experience to be invaluable in building up the key skills required to succeed in my training contract particularly in the following
Private Family Law is a fast-paced and unpredictable area of law as court hearings can be listed last minute and parties can issue without notice urgent applications to the court. There are some responsibilities that almost every private family law paralegal will come to experience and even though things can be daunting at first, the
As I enter my sixth month of being a paralegal in the residential conveyancing department at Machins, I would like to provide an insight into my experience so far and advocate on behalf of a practice area that is perhaps not seen as the most glamorous field to qualify into. Nevertheless, there is a lot
The Employment Tribunal has ruled that a civil servant who was sacked after she looked up her neighbour’s private data on a government database was not unfairly dismissed. The case involved Louise Kelly, who said her behaviour had been caused by a lack of Hormone Replacement Therapy (HRT). Kelly had worked for the Department of
The Employment Tribunal has ruled that a former employee was subjected to direct race discrimination after a client demanded that only “white female croupiers” deal for him. The case involved Ms Semhar Tesfagiorgis, who worked for Crown London Aspinalls for over 13 years. The casino’s patrons were wealthy individuals and the respondent kept records of