Careers at Laurus: From law student to training contract
Jack McBride joined Laurus after graduating from Nottingham Law School in 2018, with a Masters’ degree (LLM) in Law. Now, Jack is starting his training contract with us, having been an integral part of the Property team as a Senior Paralegal. We sat down with Jack to find out what advice he has for starting your legal career, choosing a firm and training as a solicitor.
What drew you to a career in law?
I think what drew me to law is being able to help people – I like having the knowledge to be able to help people with things they can’t necessarily do by themselves. Day to day, people come to us with massive changes in their lives like moving home or even relocating countries, and we make it happen. I enjoy focussing on the client and not just brushing them off – being someone they can trust.
And why did you choose to start your career at Laurus?
Joining Laurus, I remember having a phone interview with James in my Uni flat, and then a week after Uni finished I started the job. I first joined client services – opening files, scanning – and about six months later I became a paralegal. I could start in a junior role and work my way up. It was a good way to do things.
What has been your career highlight so far?
We’ve had some really interesting clients over the years! One of my first clients was a sale in South Kensington – I had only just started as a paralegal and I had to go and pick up papers from the property. I hopped on the train and ended up at this stunning house valued at around £7 million, which was surreal at the time. It was such a good feeling getting to exchange and get that sale through.
Has it been challenging to start your training contract remotely?
It’s been interesting – I was meant to start my training contract on the 1st of April, but obviously due to Covid it had to be postponed. Then, once the dust settled, we were too busy to start my contract in the summer! It wouldn’t have been ideal to start training 100% remotely, so now is a good time since our new office has opened and we can go in on a rota and I can get some face time.
Of course, if more restrictions are brought in, I can always go back to working from home full time. One good thing about working from home is that it forces you to think through your questions and think around problems by yourself – you can’t just turn around and ask someone. It can be a pain, but it forces you to use your brain first! In that way, it’s good for your development.
Obviously, I miss being with everyone at the office, and who knows what the next 18 months will bring, but I’m looking forward to getting back to normality at some point.
What are you most looking forward to about your training contract?
I’ve always worked in Property, so I’m looking forward to learning the last few bits that will allow me to do everything on my own, as well as doing some commercial property with James at the Clapham office.
Then it will be really interesting to see the firm from the other departments’ perspectives. The Family team are often at Court, and all the teams have different challenges and things that they enjoy. I’ll get to see the same firm and the same people I’ve worked with for years from a completely different viewpoint, which will be quite exciting.
Do you have any advice for anyone considering getting into law, or thinking of becoming a solicitor?
My main advice would be to be patient, especially at the moment. Don’t compare your career to other people – trust in what you’re doing and your skills, because it can be a long road. My time at Uni was hard, you do have to completely commit to your studies and sometimes getting a training contract at a big firm is not the way to go.
If you need to get a job first like I did, that’s okay, trust in the process. Being a lawyer isn't only about your grades – it’s also about your people skills, your mentality and the hard work you’re willing to put in. If you trust yourself with these skills and keep going, you’ll get where you want to be.
