legal industry2) A deep knowledge of howbusinesses work and of
currentaffairs3) The ability to understand andconvey how business
and economicevents can affect law firms and theirclients.
23
CAREERS
PER INCURIAMMICHAELMAS 2014
COMMERCIAL AWARENESS IS Asomewhat ambiguous phrase, but onethat
you will come to hear a lot fromgraduate recruiters during your
time atCambridge so what does it reallymean and why is it important
if youwant a career in Commercial Law?Commercial awareness is
about
having a real understanding of the
context in which law firms operate. Itshaving an awareness of
the economicand business landscape; so that as alawyer, you are
able to offer informedand contextual advice.Put simply, to be
commercially aware
you need to have the following:1) A genuine intrigue
andunderstanding for the commercial
Commercial Awareness:whats the big deal?How to hone your
commercial awareness and the importance of doing so as alawyer in
the CitySarah Cockburn, Senior Graduate Recruitment Manager, Allen
& Overy LLP
24PER INCURIAM
CAREERS
MICHAELMAS 2014
So why is this important?In a competitive application
process,commercial awareness is what makes acandidate really stand
out from others,but above all, its a skill thatcommercial law firms
truly need.Indeed, it has become such animportant part of our
training here atA&O that we have recently designed aLegal
Practice Course (LPC) called theMA LPC with Business with BPP;
acourse that all future trainees mustundertake. This qualification
placesequal emphasis on understandingbusiness, as well as law, and
thecorrelation between the two. We wantour trainee lawyers to have
an equalunderstanding of both. Why? Becauseas a firm, we have to be
able tofundamentally understand our clientsbusinesses in order to
provide the verybest commercial, business-focussedand legal advice.
Being able to conveythe potential impact of issues to ourclients
can be a real competitivedifferentiator for a law firm.
A lawyer is not just a practitioner oflaw but a business
advisor. You will bedealing with complex businesstransactions
covering multiplejurisdictions at A&O and we need toknow that
our lawyers are able to offerpractical and innovative advice to
largeglobal corporates, financial institutions,regulators and
governments. As the legaland economic landscape is
constantlychanging, there is more pressure thanever in a
competitive market for us to beable to offer our clients the very
bestcommercial legal advice.Claire Wright, Graduate
RecruitmentPartner, Allen & Overy LLP
On a more fundamental level, mostapplication processes place
heavyemphasis on assessing commercialawareness (on the application
forms aswell as in interviews) and this, is wheremost students will
fall down. To setyourself for success in applicationprocesses, it
is important that youplace an equal emphasis on focussingon your
academics, gaining a
commercial understanding and yourextra-curricular activities
whilst atuniversity. In addition, as a trainee or vacation
student starting in a law firm, you willfind that already having
a commercialawareness will accelerate yourunderstanding and enable
you to getup to speed more quickly. Not tomention youll be able to
contributereal value earlier on whilst also gettingmore from the
training that youreceive.
As a trainee solicitor, I have learnedthat knowledge of the
black-letter lawtaught at university is just thefoundation of being
a good practisinglawyer. Negotiating transactions andadvising a
client requires an even morecomprehensive skill set. Lawyers have
tomake constant judgment calls based onan assessment of their
clients case in thebroader context of the market for thattype of
deal. When you apply for atraining contract you obviously canthave
the kind of detailed knowledge thata qualified solicitor would
have. But Ithink being able to display a bit ofcommercial savviness
and knowledge ofsome headline-grabbing deals at theapplication
stage really conveys to a firmthat you understand how important
thisaspect of being a lawyer is.
Jemma Trainor, Trainee, Allen & Overy LLP(BA Hons Law,
Churchill College, Universityof Cambridge)
How can I acquire commercialawareness?
1) Start now. Scan the business newsdaily and subscribe to legal
industrypublications. Using Twitter is auseful and time efficient
way of
keeping track of commercial newsdaily during the busy
Cambridgeterm time.2) Dont just learn the facts; developan
intellectual curiosity about whatyou are reading. Think about
howwhat you are reading may affect bothlaw firms and their clients.
Debatethese issues with peers and atgraduate recruitment events,
ask lawfirm representatives for their views.Go beyond the theory
and thinkpractically.3)Many law firms (and indeedbanks, accountancy
firms andconsultancy firms) offer theopportunity to undertake
practicalbusiness games, case studies orattend commercial case
studiesthroughout Michaelmas term; takeup these opportunities and
see themas ideal practice for the applicationprocess.4) Think about
the businesses youhave worked in during youruniversity and school
holidays, canyou articulate how they werestructured, operated and
theircommercial drivers? What wouldyou say were the
strengths,weaknesses, opportunities andthreats for those
businesses? Whatwould you do differently if youowned or ran those
companies?
In summary, commercial awarenessgoes beyond memorising facts;
youhave to show a genuine interest andreal understanding of both in
business,law and the interplay between the two.If you can do this
you will be settingyourself up for successful vacationscheme and
training contractapplications and indeed a flying startto your
career as a commercial lawyer good luck!
as a trainee or vacationstudent starting in a law
firm, you will find thatalready having a commercialawareness
will accelerate yourunderstanding and enableyou to get up tospeed
more quickly
