A seat with the Employment team

read time: 3 mins
16.05.22

The first seat of my Training Contract was with the Bristol Employment team. With limited knowledge of employment law before starting I wasn’t sure what to expect, but the team were extremely welcoming, supportive and took the time to go through the basics with me. Before I knew it I was getting stuck in assisting fee earners on matters and even given the opportunity to take the lead (with supervision)! All in all, I had a great experience and would really recommend an employment seat if you are given the opportunity.

The Employment Department

Ashfords’ Employment department spans the Bristol, Exeter and London offices and deals with both contentious and non-contentious employment issues. I was predominantly involved with employment litigation during my seat but had opportunities to assist with non-contentious matters too.

The Work

Employment litigation spans a variety of areas. Over the six months I was involved in claims for unfair dismissal, wrongful dismissal, redundancy, discrimination, victimisation, harassment, TUPE, unlawful deduction of wages and breach of National Minimum Wage (and that only touched the surface of employment law!). I also assisted with high value breach of restrictive covenant claims and breach of contract claims in the County Court and High Court. 

The variety of work means there’s never a dull day in the department and it’s a seat where you can really get stuck in as a trainee. Over the six months I really developed my confidence and abilities and the team encouraged me to get involved with every stage of a tribunal matter. Having the opportunity to be so involved meant I had great exposure to what a career as an employment lawyer would be like.

Typical Trainee Tasks

The workload can be fast paced and typical trainee tasks include liaising with Tribunals, Counsels clerks, ACAS and insurers; drafting pleadings, undertaking merit assessments, taking attendance notes from calls with Counsel and clients, attending hearings and mediations, producing bundles and undertaking research for the team.

An employment seat is great for developing your skills as a trainee. You can be given a high level of responsibility and there’s a high level of client contact. You will work with a wide range of clients from large businesses to individuals and you are exposed to a variety of contentious and non-contentious work. Through this, you will develop the skills to communicate with clients on what will often be sensitive issues, and this can be invaluable experience.

Top tip for any trainee

My top tip is to have an open mind and get involved and exposed to as much as you possibly can during your seat. You certainly get out what you put in and you’ll be amazed by how much you can learn in six months. You also never really know if you’ll enjoy an area of law until you experience it, so absorb as much as you can whilst you have the opportunity as the time will fly by.

Next up is six months with the Corporate team; they say you’re either a litigation or a transactional lawyer - I’m excited to find out!

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