Solicitor Apprenticeship Q&A with Jag Taak

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• Why did you choose to do a Solicitor Apprenticeship?

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I chose to study via the solicitor apprenticeship route to benefit from six years of practical legal experience, developing key skills while learning, to allow me to hit the ground running when I qualify as a solicitor.

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• What attracted you to Loch Associates Group initially?

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After leaving full time education, I applied for the role of Administrative Assistant with the view of using the position as a stepping stone for my legal career. There were numerous examples of progression within the company and I was particularly inspired by Joe Milner’s progression from Apprentice to Partner. It also meant working at a boutique firm with a small team which provided a great opportunity to gain greater exposure to a range of complex business and employment law matters.

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• What does your role within the Loch Associates Group team currently look like?

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I work closely with all team members across the Group, including Solicitors and HR Consultants, and in particular, the Partners at Loch Law, supporting them with their case workloads across a range of business and employment law matters including:

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·??????? High Court Injunctions and breach of confidentiality claims

·??????? claims in the Employment Tribunal and Civil Courts

·??????? Director and Shareholder disputes

·??????? Governance compliance

·??????? Legal research

·??????? Data Subject Access Requests

·??????? Contracts and Settlement Agreements

·??????? Investigations, grievances, and disciplinary processes

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I also support a number of the teams in other areas of the business. Working with the finance team which has helped me develop a commercial understanding of the work we complete and how to manage client relationships and expectations with respect to fees. Similarly, working with the marketing team in assisting with research for upcoming articles and press interviews has allowed me to gain in-depth knowledge on trending areas of employment and business law that I may not necessarily have had the opportunity to do at this early stage.

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• What advice would you give to would-be apprentices?

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Don’t be afraid of putting yourself forward for new or challenging projects or experiences – it provides great learning and development opportunities and can lead to you discovering the areas of practice that you enjoy the most.

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Ask questions – if you would like further guidance on the task you are given, advice regarding resources that may assist, you,? or clarity around concepts in your studies, always ask questions.

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• How do you handle the balance between work and studying and what advice would you give to others?

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Setting boundaries can be hard but it’s important to be disciplined with your time for both work and studying. I’d recommend blocking out your calendar to allocate time for various projects at work and set study time. Be transparent with fee earners around deadlines and capacity, whilst it can be tempting to take on too much work in view of benefitting from the exposure and experience, which I know too well, it is equally important to ensure that you do not have too much on your plate and burn out.