My week at Pinsent Masons London office

Quite simply extraordinary – that was the instant feeling I got when I first entered Pinsent Masons, and by Friday I was wishing for one more week.

Pinsent Masons certainly left its mark, not only on me, but also on my fellow seven work experience students.  It was no ordinary mark as they had set a standard that would be very hard for other law firms to match…

From the presentations delivered to the Practice Groups we were assigned to, we were treated like valued members of the firm.  If ever one thought the phrase “a friendly international law firm” was merely a marketing tool they would be pleasantly surprised how true this was after spending just one day at the firm. The partners, associates, solicitors and trainees all share the characteristics of humility and honesty. Despite the perception some people outside Law have concerning the cold-hearted nature of commercial lawyers, Pinsent Masons does everything well to bust that myth!

It would be easy to summarise my experience of the week by simply listing what I’d done or who I’d met, but it would serve no practical use. The bottom line is:

You will be busy.
You will be expected to submit work of a good standard.
You will not be asked to complete the unachievable.
To sum this up, there’s nothing more you could want from your work experience placement.

All the essential questions you have will be answered, such as:

Do you want to become a lawyer?
What type of lawyer do you want to be?
Where do you see yourself practising?
How do you become a lawyer?
What are the working hours like?
What salary bands can lawyers expect?
Do you enjoy sitting at a desk, meeting new clients and going to Court?
We were encouraged to ask as many questions as we wanted so never felt we couldn’t get the necessary insight needed.

Pinsent Masons certainly helped clarify a few questions and thoughts we had which is extremely important when you want to shape a career in Law. The solicitors, trainees and partners helped us understand and appreciate the activities of a commercial law firm on a global scale. By the end of the week we began to appreciate how adopting a client-based approach certainly changed your legal perspective.

Coming from a state school and background where if you want to succeed you have to work hard, Pinsent Masons demonstrated to me it’s possible to do exactly that, the only difference between a dream and goal is the action you take. Pinsent Masons is an excellent example of a law firm who not only care about their clients’ interests, but also their people.  People are at the centre of what makes Pinsent Masons so exceptional and this approach is why individuals like me are presented with this opportunity which should not be passed over. I guess there are not many law firms in the world who can say that!

A big thank you to everyone from myself and fellow work experience students to:

The security staff who warmly greeted us on arrival.
The reception staff who made us feel welcome.
The teams behind the programme who make this happen.
The supervisors for making us feel valued and sharing their knowledge.
I certainly now feel my dreams and hopes can come true!

We all had a fantastic experience and while it pains me to rest my pen, I do so with a warm smile as I reminisce about our breathtakingly memorable week at Pinsent Masons, hopefully not for the last time…