Member Article

Perfect 10 for Talbots as investment in trainees pays off

Talbots Law has maintained its commitment to developing the legal talent of the future by supporting 10 trainees to qualify as solicitors.

The independent law firm cast aside the pressures of the pandemic to support its trainee solicitors through their Training Contracts and will now be using their expertise to assist a growing client base across the Black Country, Birmingham and Worcestershire.

Chris Jones, Laura Underhill, Sharan Kaur, Jade Hinton and Jodie Wilding all qualified in the Residential Property department, whilst Ajay Sharma and Amy Marsh will be specialising in the booming New Build Residential Property arena.

They were joined by Sam Oakley (Childcare), Katie Jones (Dispute Resolution) and Rebecca Pickering (Commercial Property).

The investment in bringing new talent through the ranks comes at the right time for Talbots, after it predicted a 20% increase in fees over the next twelve months.

Rachel Pardoe, Director of Human Resources, commented: “We’ve scored a perfect 10 with our latest trainees, with all of them who started the Training Contract successfully passing - despite Covid-19 striking in the middle of their learning.

“This is great news for the long-term expansion of our business and a real testament to the commitment, passion and knowledge of our new solicitors, who have mixed one-to-one support with remote learning, socially distanced meetings and their Professional Skills Courses.”

She continued: “We are extremely passionate about developing our own talent and ensuring the training is tailored to suit the interests and skills of each potential solicitor, giving them access to experienced colleagues and Directors who they can learn from.

“On application, every trainee will choose a specialism they are passionate about and, during the Training Contract, will also receive their professional skills training in client care, finance and general business practice.”

Jade Hinton, who qualified in the Residential Property department, went on to add: “Talbots’ approach to the training contract was really innovative and unique, giving me the impression from the outset that the aim of the training was to not only make me into the best newly qualified solicitor that I could be, but to also shape me into a ‘Talbots’ lawyer.

“Another great element of the training was that all the trainees would meet regularly (whilst social distancing restrictions allowed) to attend bespoke, in-house seminars on the other areas of law. These were designed to ensure that we still got a taste of the other department’s work, although our training was predominantly focused on our chosen areas.”

Talbots, which employs 265 people across its six offices, received some good news last week, with the company maintaining its Two Star rating in the Best Companies to Work for Awards.

The firm was recognised as outstanding for employee engagement and its agile approach to personal development and competitive salary above the industry average has seen it ranked in the Top 20 law firms and Top 100 employers in the Midlands listings.

Recently qualified New Build Residential Property Lawyer Ajay Sharma added his support:

“The global pandemic hit during my Training Contract and, like many trainees across the country, I probably feared the worst. With Talbots, however, the seamless transition to working from home during lockdown meant that my learning was largely unaffected, with reviews and training sessions with Directors switched to zoom or over the phone.

“The support I was given, especially in a worrying time for businesses all round, was unbelievable and something I will be forever grateful for.”

He concluded: “My current remit is working with clients who are looking to purchase plots with National Developers up and down the country, in a bid to meet the 28-day exchange deadline.

“My long-term goals are to build up my post qualification experience, continue to provide a 5-Star service to clients and also help our junior members of the team gain experience and further their careers here at Talbots.”

For further information, please visit www.talbotslaw.co.uk or follow @talbotslaw on twitter

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Russ Cockburn .