I am a second-seat trainee and my current seat is in Financial and Political Risks. My route into law was quite typical as I first completed an LLB followed by the LPC. In between the LPC and starting my training contract, I paralegalled for around 9 months before taking a few months off to travel around South America.
![Laura Valpas- Original](https://d8qb5cxd9qhkd.cloudfront.net/images/Laura_Valpas-_Original.original.jpg)
What is your current role and how long have you been at Kennedys for?
I am a trainee solicitor at the firm’s London office. I started my training contract in the end of August which means I have been at Kennedys for around 9 months now.
What inspired you to apply to Kennedys?
My main reason for applying to Kennedys was an interest in the firm’s practice areas, insurance in particular. Before applying, I had done work experience in-house during which I came across some insurance matters which sparked my interest in this area of law.
What's the single most important thing you've learned so far in your role?
I would have say adaptability as you never know what type of work you will be doing or what types of opportunities may be presented to you. You may have planned your whole day out in advance, but then something urgent might pop up which completely alters everything.
You might also be pulled into meetings last minute to take a note or asked to assist on something that you have never come across before. Being adaptable and staying open to new opportunities will allow you to make the most of your training contract and ensure that you learn and experience as much as possible.
What would a ‘normal’ day look like for someone in your role?
No two days are the same – this is partially because as a trainee you end up assisting on so many different matters. You might only do a single task for some matters, but then work on others for weeks or months at a time.
Some typical trainee tasks include legal research, attending hearings at various courts and taking an attendance note, drafting items such as settlement offers and updates to clients, document reviews, bundling and contacting different chambers.
What do you find most interesting with the sector/industry you’re in?
In general what I like about being a trainee is that you get to experience so many different areas of law and go from hardly knowing anything about a certain practice area to surprising yourself of how much you have picked up in six months.
In my current seat, I enjoy learning about the financial markets and the ins and outs of different types of insurance policies e.g., directors and officers insurance. I also find the international element of the work interesting as I often get to research laws in different countries and liaise with our international offices.
What is the company culture like?
Kennedys is filled with great people who always take time to help. As trainee, you will have lots of questions, so it’s great to know that you will be supported through every step and have your questions answered.
Everyone (even partners!) are very approachable and due to hot-desking, you end up sitting next to and meeting different people every day. The overall culture is very supportive, where you'll be provided with any training you need. We also have regular office-wide and team specific socials, as well as socials with my trainee cohort.
How important is diversity to you and what is Kennedys doing in this space at the moment?
DE&I is very important to me - at university I was a committee member and contributor of a website which aimed to promote awareness about DE&I in the Scottish legal industry.
DE&I is also a key priority at Kennedys and the firm has various initiatives to promote it. For example, Kennedys has regional DE&I Advisory Groups where members are empowered to share their ideas and advise on key priorities. Kennedys has various networks related to DE&I, such as EMBRACE: a cultural and ethnic diversity network, and the Rainbow network: a LGBTQ+ network. The firm also has a reciprocal mentoring scheme where juniors from ethnically diverse backgrounds mentor a more senior colleague.
Finally, any tips for anyone who’d like to apply to Kennedys?
I would recommended looking into the virtual work experience programme Kennedys offers. You get to do a variety of trainee level tasks and learn about the firm’s practice areas and culture.
Do not let having no experience in insurance law put you off from applying to Kennedys - it definitely helps, but is by no means necessary. Kennedys provides great training and support to ensure that you do well regardless of your background.