Vertex Law

What is your job title?

Co-founder and member of Vertex Law LLP and training principal.

What are your main responsibilities?

My primary responsibility is client management and fee earning, along with the usual jobs that go with running a business, such as managing the firm’s premises in Kings Hill near West Malling. I am responsible for all of the firm’s recruitment, including the recruitment of trainees.

Where are you from/background?

Originally from Leeds in West Yorkshire, I studied for an undergraduate degree in Newcastle qualifying as a solicitor in 1990. I moved to Kent in 1994 where I was a partner with two firms based in Maidstone, before co-founding Vertex Law in September of 2004.

Who do you work with?

When we recruit trainees I work directly with Nick Austen, a member on the Corporate Team. In my day-to-day work, I am a member of the Property and Environmental Team. There are 7 other fee earners in the team and 3 secretaries providing administration support. I also work with all the other solicitors of the firm on a regular basis because we try hard to provide a joined-up in-depth service to all our clients.

How did you end up in the law?

My mother was a Magistrates Clerk and our family had many friends who were lawyers. It always seemed to be an interesting and varied career which, as my own career has developed, has enabled me to move into the business of founding and running a law firm rather than just dealing with pure legal issues on a day-to-day basis.

What do you like about law?

I like to apply law in a practical and commercial manner which is relevant to our clients’ day-to-day issues and requirements. Law can be used as a means to an end, I guess.
What do you dislike about law?

Lawyers who don’t understand the above and the fact that they are in business to provide legal services in a proactive, efficient and cost-effective way.

What is the biggest challenge on the job?

Juggling the day-to-day pressures of running a full caseload and also my own business.

What do you look for in a candidate?

I look for a candidate to have the ability to communicate in a structured and intelligent way whilst applying a large dose of commonsense and most importantly, humour.

If you could do something completely different what would you do?

An archaeologist. Our past has always fascinated me.

What do you think of lawyers and do they deserve their reputation in the press?

When lawyers are good they are fantastic, but when they are bad they can and do destroy entire transactions. This does of course apply in all walks of life. The law always makes a good story, and for that matter a great source of television drama. Like the doctor who smokes, lawyers are pretty hopeless at defending themselves/their profession.

What advice would you give to anyone thinking of joining the legal profession?

Know what area you want to practise in and be passionate and honest. If you want to be involved in running a legal practice, be prepared and want to take an interest in business and commerce and learn how to read and interpret a set of accounts. Most importantly, you need to be a “people person”.

Do trainees get paid too much?

No – it is entirely up to those firms who take on trainees to ensure that they become an integral and profitable part of their business from day one.

What are the most and least enjoyable aspects of recruiting?

The most enjoyable is getting to meet and then develop interesting and fun people.

The least enjoyable is having to say “no” to some really excellent candidates.

If you could sum up the legal profession in three words?

Business comes first.