Tom Haigh, Trainee Solicitor, Commercial Litigation Department

Tom Haigh (First year trainee, Commercial Litigation Department)

Degree: Law (LLB) at The University of Teesside (First Class Honours)

Work experience: I spent a year working as a paralegal with a local sole practitioner (general litigation work), but also had vacation placements with the Endeavour Partnership as well as a local high street firm and a few days work experience with a small criminal defence practice.  Throughout university I worked in restaurants as well as a summer job with a tree surgeon and in a local garden centre.

Hobbies: Mountain biking, snowboarding (if I get the chance!), frequenting the gym, reading (currently reading “I, Partridge: Let’s talk about Alan”), movies (favourite directors Guillermo del Toro and Steven Spielberg).

I am a first year trainee in my first seat in the commercial litigation department. During the seat I have been lucky enough to deal with a very varied caseload. By way of example, I have been involved in everything from complex multi-million pound cross-jurisdictional contract claims to simple debt collection and everything in between.  I am pleased to say that there has been an abundance of work to keep me busy.  The department is busy and generally has a real “buzz” about it.  Everyday activities range from drafting proceedings and case management documents and attending court with or without Counsel, to generating correspondence and regularly liaising with clients and negotiating settlements with the other side.

I am supervised by Paul Bennett, head of the department, who provides the majority of my work and files. I also assist the other partner and solicitors in the department from time to time who all supervise accordingly. The level of supervision has been very good and, importantly, consistent. Generally, an “open door” policy is adopted (even though the majority of the office is open plan!) and all members of the litigation team are approachable should extra supervision and/or assistance be required. Of course, I also occasionally call on the experience of the previous litigation trainee, Emma Bennington, who is in a unique position to be able to provide tailored advice from a trainee perspective.

I applied to the Endeavour Partnership following a vacation placement with the firm during the summer of 2009. The placement was within the commercial litigation department. The variety of work combined with the inclusive attitude of the team contributed to my decision to apply to the firm for a training contract. I also feel that the placement really helped when it came to my interview for a training contract as I already had an insight into how the firm operated.

I firmly believe that one of the firm’s main strengths is the fact that a majority of the staff and, in particular, fee earners, are local to the region. I attach importance to this characteristic of the firm as each member of the team understands local issues, is up to date with economic developments in the area and, as such, are “in tune” with the factors affecting the clients of the firm.

Already I have had the opportunity of attending an array of social/networking events with the firm. Within a few weeks of joining the firm, I was invited to attend an annual Go-Karting event organised by a local firm of accountants (I was just pipped to the post by one of our commercial solicitors for Endeavour’s fastest lap).

Myself and Metab (my fellow first year trainee) were fortunate enough to be signed up to an external networking course by the firm which provided an excellent opportunity to network with local professionals from various organisations across the region. We have attended various social events following invitations from members of the sessions. As well as being fun, these events have allowed us to be introduced to people who we wouldn’t ordinarily have met through the normal course of things.

Further to this, trainees at the firm are encouraged to join the Tees Valley Law Society (TVLS) who organise social events throughout the year and who provide seminars, some of which are tailored to trainees. Through joining the TVLS, I was given the opportunity to take the role of joint trainee representative at the monthly TVLS council meetings.

There is much that Teesside and the North East generally can offer trainees. I think that the region has acquired an undeserved reputation that there are no training contracts or newly qualified positions in the region (particularly in commercial law firms). In fact, along with other members of the firm, I attended an event held at the University of Teesside in an effort to dispel this myth and to emphasise that there is a vibrant commercial and legal community in the area and that, there are positions available of you look for them!

I also feel that practice in the North East is much more conducive to a healthy work-life balance. There isn’t the same culture of long hours as perhaps you would see in the city and regional practices, with average working hours at the firm largely reflecting “normal” office hours, i.e. 9 am – 5 pm (although probably 6 pm in the commercial litigation department) and none of the horror stories which you hear of in City firms. There may be exceptions to this rule; however, the Endeavour Partnership is not one of them.

Generally, I think that the North East is a great place to train. You are not far from the commercial centres of Newcastle and Leeds and you are not more than a short drive from the coast, North Yorkshire Moors or, further afield, Northumberland. There is something for everyone!

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