Welcome to our Trainee Hub – here you can find a raft of information and resources to help you decide if you’d like to apply for one of our regular Training Contracts here at Machins.
A training contract is the first step in your legal career. We make every effort to provide our trainees with the opportunity to gain experience outside of just developing their technical expertise and to become well-rounded solicitors with a real investment in the firm.
We offer three training contracts each year for law and non-law graduates from a variety of backgrounds.
The aim of our training contracts is to offer a rich variety of work experience providing on-the-ground team-based experience enabling each and every individual to find the practice area that they are best suited to. We offer four seats lasting six months each. You will work directly with a partner in each department who will be your training supervisor. You will also be allocated a mentor, who will be a partner or senior solicitor, who can provide ongoing advice, support and feedback along the way.
Training seats currently offered are:-
Dispute Resolution
Company Commercial
Commercial Property
Employment
Family Law
Private Client
Residential Conveyancing
From starting as a trainee solicitor, I have been surprised by the level of responsibility and accountability which comes with the role, even as early as my first seat. Unsurprisingly, as a trainee it is unlikely that you will walk straight into a firm and be ready to run a case or make strategic decisions
I am currently splitting my time between working in the office and at home on a 50/50 basis. This began mostly because of COVID-19 but I find it is best suited to me. I balance seeing my colleagues in the office as well as enjoying the easier commute to my kitchen table. On this particular
7:30am: I’m usually in the office two or three days a week, and although I’m at home today I tend to get started at a reasonable time to stay in a good routine. After a shower, breakfast and a quick flick through the news I’m ready to log on. 8:45am: I fire up my laptop
As a Trainee Solicitor, you typically spend the first 4-8 weeks of each seat rotation fighting what feels like an uphill battle whilst you get to grips with the new found territory that is your new department. Everything is new and unfamiliar and your experience in your previous seat where you had some comfort in
This particular day starts in the office, but given that we are still navigating COVID-19, I am currently splitting my time around 50/50 between working from home and being in the office. Whilst I generally prefer working in the office, you really cannot beat the commute from the kitchen to my home desk. I tend
Changing career has certainly become more common in recent times, and while the average age of an individual admitted to the Law Society’s role of solicitors is now 29-30, it is still relatively unusual to see more mature trainees. The process of securing a training contract is a stressful and frustrating one, and adding in
Samantha is a 2nd year trainee at Machins Solicitors. Having worked previously in another Bedfordshire firm as a conveyancing assistant, Samantha’s background leans mostly towards property matters. Samantha’s seats have included Commercial Property (6 months), Family (9 months), and is finishing her training contract in Dispute Resolution (9 months). Samantha is due to qualify in
Every firm deals with recruitment differently, and here at Machins we invest a significant amount of time into finding the right individuals for our yearly Trainee Solicitor intake. We receive a considerable number of applications and have multiple stages of the recruitment process to ensure that our process is fair and effective. Like most firms,
Machins Solicitors is a highly regarded full-service law firm with over 100 staff working across our two offices in Hertfordshire and Bedfordshire. We offer a wide range of legal services across both commercial and private client sectors, with our client base ranging from individuals, soles traders, SMEs, national, international businesses and multinational corporations.
We are recognised in the latest edition of Legal 500 UK achieving seven practice area recommendations including a top-tier firm recommendation in the area of family law.
We are proud of our highly experienced legal team with backgrounds from reputable local and City firms. We achieve great results when it comes to staff retention; take a look at our partners, some of whom joined us as trainees! Cultivating a sense of pride in your work is at the core of our staff ethos – we aim to go above and beyond when it comes to valuing and investing in our employees.
We want Machins to be a great place to work so we take the time to listen to feedback and understand what we can do to support our workforce from both a personal and professional perspective. We understand the importance of well-being, home and family so we take the time to actively encourage a healthy work-life balance recognising that all our staff need to enjoy their life at work as well as outside the office
We have a great team and the winning combination of our friendly people and inclusive culture is what makes us great to work for. We’re down to earth, likeable and caring.
We are incredibly proud of our diverse workforce that reflects all backgrounds, talents and routes into the legal profession. We want you to achieve your full potential so our training programme ensures every employee has the chance to develop their core skills to progress and succeed in their legal careers
The last few years have seen exciting changes for the firm, including the Luton office location move to larger premises in early 2019. The new office in Luton is now double the size which will facilitate the continued growth and expansion of the firm over the next few years.
Join Holly Baker, Bradley Johnson and Thomas Palmer – as they discuss their fourth and final seats in their journey to becoming a fully qualified Solicitor.
Join Holly Baker, Stephen Nolan, Thomas Giles and Dan Bradley – as they discuss some tips for getting a head start in your journey to becoming a Trainee Solicitor.
Join Holly Baker, Stephen Nolan and Thomas Giles as they discuss career changing to become a Trainee Solicitor.
“From day one of my training contract I have been trusted with direct client contact and undertaking key legal tasks. I have felt challenged, but supported throughout and a valued member of the team. Every trainee has a mentor to support them and there is a real focus on learning and aiding me to be as prepared as possible for qualification.”
Thomas Palmer, (Trainee Solicitor in the Private Family Law team)
“Since starting at Machins in the Public Family Care team, I have been moved by the importance of the work and the level of trust and responsibility the team has put in me from day one. I feel that the combination of support and self-discovery of the training contact has already built my legal and personal skillset considerably. I already feel that I have learnt to do so much in such a small amount of time.”
“Trainees have a real hands on learning experience at Machins, I was sitting in on tribunal hearings in my first few weeks, and discussing strategy with my supervisor and counsel. It’s been a really interesting and varied workload so far, and it has great to apply my academic knowledge to real world legal problems.”
Stephen Nolan (Trainee Solicitor in the Public Family Law team)
“From day one I have had a great mix of responsibility and support. I feel trusted to get on with my work but I always know I can go to anyone for advice if I need it. I have a lot of client contact and feel like a valued member of the team.”
We offer three training contracts each year for law and non-law graduates from a variety of backgrounds.
You can email our HR Department with a covering letter and a current copy of your CV. Please send CVs to [email protected]