Working in the office – Tax
7:15am – I wake up and get ready for work. This involves picking out an outfit (depending on the weather) and checking my TfL app in case there are any tube delays. My commute is 45 mins and includes a 20 min walk to the station which helps get my steps in.
9:15am – I arrive at my desk in the London office and log in, check my emails including the daily “Current Awareness” email to check for any news/updates which may be of interest. I also check my diary and make a to-do list. I then head upstairs to the restaurant to grab some free breakfast.
9:30am – I start my day by drafting and amending the tax clauses in an Agreement for Lease where we act for the Landlord. The opposing party had sent over their Tax changes and comments so my job is to review those and amend the tax clause to be more in line with our client’s objectives.
11:00am – I then go for a quick tea break and when I’m back at my desk, start brainstorming some ideas for the next edition of the Verve network newsletter. Verve is our ethnicity people network and as a committee member, it’s my job to draft the newsletter once every few months.
11:30am – I join the team meeting where the Partner who is head of the team gives us general updates on what’s going on in the team including financials, upcoming socials and capacity within the team. As the Tax team has many areas of expertise, we also discuss interesting client work so everyone has visibility of what’s going on and potential opportunities for new work.
12:00pm – I then, with a fresh pair of eyes, look back over my draft of the Agreement for Lease and once happy, speak with my supervisor about my changes. I then make some further amends based on our chat and pass our Tax mark-up to the Real Estate team who asked for Tax support.
1:00pm – I grab lunch with the trainees from our favourite local burrito stop and head back to the office restaurant to eat and catch up. Having lunch with the other trainees is a lovely way to unwind and check in to see how everyone is getting on. As we all sit in teams which are spread out across the office, we don’t always get to see each other so lunch is a great excuse to take a break and catch up.
2:00pm – I get back to my desk and a Partner approaches me to ask for some help with a research task. An existing client has asked for potential Tax advice regarding the tax implications of appointing non-UK directors in a UK company. The scoping call with the client is tomorrow so I prioritise this task and do some preliminary research.
2:45pm – I prepare for a consultation with Counsel in relation to VAT dispute with HMRC by reading over the Instructions to Counsel and review the bundle of documents. My role is to take a detailed note of the meeting so it’s really important that I know as much background as possible, understanding who the parties involved are and what key terminology to look out for.
3:15pm – I then head over to Chambers with a Senior Associate and Partner to join the meeting with Counsel. The client is also present so it’s a great way to get some face-to-face client contact. Also, as the meeting is in person, it’s great to witness the interaction between the parties in the room.
5:30pm – I arrive back in the office and have been tasked with proofreading a Tax structuring paper which needs to be sent to the client this evening. I like to print out documents if I’m proofreading and use a red pen to highlight any changes. I then let my supervisor check over the changes and once agreed, make changes to the live document and send the final, clean version to my supervisor along with a draft email for the client.
Working from home – Tax
8:00am – I wake up and do a 30 min home workout. As I don’t need to commute to the work, I enjoy the extra hour or so of sleep I get and not needing to get “office” ready. I make myself a cup of tea and have breakfast whilst checking my social media apps.
9:00am – I log in, check my emails and my diary, and make a to-do list.
9:15am – I start my day by calculating our clients SDLT liability for lease they are entering into. This task was given to us by the Real Estate Team and requires review of the lease and property. Once I have completed my calcs, I’ll draft an email to my supervisor and book in a call for later to discuss before reverting to Real Estate.
10:30am – I then get a call from a Partner in my team asking for help creating a structure diagram for a new Corporate deal. Diagrams are very helpful as they are a visual way of mapping out the transaction and illustrating the tax implications of the deal structure.
11:30am – I have a little break by catching up with my sister who I live with and doing the dishes. I think it’s important to have small breaks whilst working from home, the same way you’d have breaks in the office so that I don’t get too fatigated during the day.
11:45am – I return to my desk, respond to my emails and catch up on admin, including requesting invoices to be generated for the client for the previous month.
12:00pm – I get an email from an Associate asking me to make a stamp duty submission to HMRC. I prioritise this as it is important to make stamp duty payments on time to avoid our client incurring any penalties or interest. I calculate how much stamp duty is due by reviewing the share purchase agreement, draft the submission letter to HMRC and liaise with our Corporate colleagues to request the funds from the client.
1:00pm – As the sun is out, I head out to run some errands and get some fresh air before heading back home to make some lunch and chill out.
2:00pm – I head back to my desk and check my inbox to see that I’ve been asked to do some research into an employment tax query. I give the Associate a call to get some background on the task and discuss what the client needs. I then make the most of the mass legal resources we have access to for research.
3:00pm – I make a cup of tea and turn my attention to some pro bono work I’m involved in for the KIND project. I prep for an interview I’ll be leading with the mother of a child whose British citizenship application we are supporting and review the documents on file.
3:30pm – It’s time for the call with my supervisor to discuss the SDLT task. Once I’ve walked her though my calculations and findings and we are in agreement, I inform Real Estate of the client’s tax liability and next steps to ensure the SDLT submission is made to HMRC.
4:15pm – I grab a glass of water and a snack and get ready for my client call shortly.
4:30pm – I join the scoping call with the client which I helped the Partner research for yesterday. I make high level notes and jot down the client’s objectives so we are clear on what the client’s needs are for the Tax advice we will eventually prepare.
5:15pm – I then go back to my employment tax research and draft an email to the Associate with my findings and thoughts. I always like to draft an email for the Associate to send on to the client to be proactive and save them some time.
6:00pm – After the Partner has reviewed my structure diagram from this morning and spoken with Corporate, there are some changes to the structure of the deal which needs to be reflected in my diagram. I make those changes and reshare with the Partner.
6:30pm – I have one last check of my emails and make sure I’ve completed the tasks on my list that need to be done today. I record all my time for the day and close my time down.
6:45pm – I log off for the day and get ready for dinner with some friends.