I wanted a career that appealed to my academic side but was also practical; set in real life. Law appealed to both sides.
Deals perspectives: Nallini Puri
Deals perspectives: Sylvia Andriessen
In high school I got fascinated by courtrooms, the idea of standing in front of a judge and arguing! I’ve always loved to play with language and debate. I wanted to be in private practice, that was my dream, thinking that I knew what that was, which of course, I didn’t! When you’re so young and idealistic, it was more conceptual, looking for justice, rather than understanding what you really want when you’re 15.
Deals perspectives: Samantha Thompson
I saw a seagull trying to drink a glass of red wine the other day. I was at the House of Lords for an event on ESG governance and standing on the balustrade of the terrace was a massive seagull sticking its beak into a glass of red. It knocked one glass into the Thames and then another. There are so many awful things going on in the world but this kind of thing keeps me amused!
Life During Law: Diala Minott
My mum is Syrian and my father’s Iraqi. I was raised in Saudi Arabia and Lebanon. I was influenced by the war in Lebanon and then the war in Iraq. Constantly moving and never having a place that you can call your own, but also fighting to be educated.
As a girl in Saudi Arabia, I had to dress up as a boy to go swimming and horse riding. All the things women weren’t allowed to do. When I became a teenager, I wasn’t allowed to any more. It was very obvious that I was not a boy and I found my world cut in half. Continue reading “Life During Law: Diala Minott”
Disputes perspectives: Bankim Thanki QC
My father had been a lawyer in India and East Africa but wasn’t keen on me becoming a lawyer. It’s a bit of a standing joke but it’s true – every Indian parent wants their kid to become a doctor, whether or not you have any skillset in that direction! My dad was dead against the Bar in particular because it didn’t have a regular income attached. There was no family encouragement whatsoever. Continue reading “Disputes perspectives: Bankim Thanki QC”
Disputes perspectives: Sue Millar
I was always naturally argumentative. But I didn’t have any role model at all, nobody that I knew was involved in law.
I was either going to be a journalist or a lawyer. What swayed me? I grew up in the 1980s and you start to get politically awakened in your teens. This was at a time when Margaret Thatcher was in government and everything was extremely political. I realised that I would probably have to write in accordance with the political wishes of the editor and I didn’t think I could do that. Continue reading “Disputes perspectives: Sue Millar”
Disputes perspectives: Susan Dunn
I come from a family of engineers. I have not a single engineering bone in my body, to my father’s great disappointment, but it’s about problem solving, and I guess that’s the sort of thing that runs through engineering and through law. Continue reading “Disputes perspectives: Susan Dunn”
Disputes perspectives: Rob Fell
I was one of those children who spent a lot of time arguing with parents and siblings over the dinner table. They must have thought I was a natural advocate, even if I didn’t. I fell into law, frankly; I studied history at university. Continue reading “Disputes perspectives: Rob Fell”
Herbert Smith Freehills: Between two peaks
London. A bitingly cold day at the end of January and Legal Business ventures out on a novel expedition to Liverpool Street. An enforced pandemic-induced break from office-dwelling has made deciphering which of Exchange House’s two entrances will gain us access to the Herbert Smith Freehills (HSF) offices a little more challenging than it should have been.
Luckily it’s not just us. Ironically, Justin D’Agostino, HSF’s chief executive, encounters the same quandary. This is his first in-person meeting since taking the top job in May 2020. It is also his first day in London for nigh on two years. Continue reading “Herbert Smith Freehills: Between two peaks”
Life During Law: Linda Woolley
My mum got me my first job at Essex County Council in PR. The first exam I ever failed was a PR diploma! It wasn’t for me. I’m not a sales person.
I did an A-Level in law to see if I enjoyed it. I did. Keeping my options open, I applied for the CPE at the College of Law and I also applied to be a teacher. Continue reading “Life During Law: Linda Woolley”