Why did you choose to work at DLA Piper?

I chose to work at DLA Piper for two main reasons: (1) Quality of the Work: I was previously at a magic circle firm and it was important for me to work at a top international law firm that are market leaders and attract the best work. The Insolvency & Restructuring team at DLA are a tier 1 practice group in the region who regularly secure the largest mandates across the GCC; and (2) Culture: whilst I was keen to develop my legal skills by working on high-quality matters, it was equally important for me to work in a team that I felt naturally comfortable in and whose values and working practices aligned with my own. One of the strengths of the firm is the incredibly supportive and collaborative culture that we have and this has helped me (and I am sure others) produce their best work. 

Do you have any advice for students aspiring to pursue a career in law?

I would encourage students aspiring to pursue a career in law to do everything they can to build their network – what I mean by this is that they should be attending law firm open days, networking events and utilising any mentor schemes set up by their law schools or universities. Securing a training contract at a large international law firm is incredibly competitive and it is no longer enough to have excellent academic records. What I found helped me when applying for vacation schemes was meeting the HR teams and fee earners at the various law firms that I wanted to apply to and developing a relationship with those individuals. I would also encourage students to connect on LinkedIn with the HR teams at the law firms that they are interested in and ensuring that they stay on top of any upcoming events that the firm may be hosting. 

What has surprised you most about DLA Piper?

The biggest surprise I have found since joining DLA Piper is the depth of the expertise that our lawyers possess. One of the benefits of being such a large law firm is that we have a significant number of fee earners that specialise in different areas of law, and in many cases I have had to lean on the expertise of other fee earners when advising our insolvency clients on areas which our team may not have a great deal of experience. By way of example, when advising the liquidator of a shipping business in the UAE we were required to help negotiate the terms of a vessel sale agreement, this is something which our team in the UK have experience in and they were able to assist our client on the sale documentation.