Joanna S

Profile:

I am a solicitor working in the Commercial Property team at Brachers LLP, a leading regional law firm in Kent.

After graduating with a history degree, I was interested in studying the GDL.  However,  I had no practical experience of law and no connections to the profession so was unsure whether law was definitely for me.  I began applying for jobs within law and took a job as a full time secretary in a high street law firm.  I loved it.  From there I decided to carry on working full time whilst studying part-time for my GDL, which enabled me to self-fund my law school fees whilst gaining valuable experience.  I then worked full time in the in-house legal team of an international facilities management company whilst studying part time for my LPC.

Competition for training contracts was fierce, especially as the recession had recently hit.  I was lucky enough to be offered a training contract whilst studying the LPC and I started as a trainee at Brachers in 2011.  Having gained two years post qualification experience at Brachers, I joined the Real Estate team at Nabarro LLP before re-joining Brachers in 2017.

I love my job and I am passionate about diversity in law. I am a first generation lawyer and I appreciate how difficult it is to be successful and gain opportunities into the profession.  Standards and competition continue to be extremely high.  The most important advice I could offer is never give up.

The accessibility of law is a long standing issue, but it is improving.  I would love to help anyone from underrepresented groups in law to achieve their potential.  Please feel free to get in touch if you would like to speak to me about my experiences or if you would like any support, advice or guidance.

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