Published on September 23, 2019 by lauraduckett

Two people sitting opposite eachother about to sign a contract

In this post, a trainee solicitor gives an insight into life during a Sidley Austin Training Contract. Read on to find out what a typical day is like at this leading international law firm.


Name: Hermina Wong, Trainee
University: Cambridge
Degree: Politics, Psychology and Sociology
Departments: Global Finance and Banking and Financial Services

8.15 am: I read through my emails in the morning and take mental note of matters which may require my attention during the day. I get ready for work and read the FT on my commute.

9.30 am: I get to my desk and discuss with the partners and associates matters which require our urgent attention. We often work with clients based in the US and Asia-Pacific, so often things may come in overnight due to time differences.

10.15 am: We are advising a client on its reporting obligations under a piece of EU legislation. An associate asked me to research the regulation and other relevant published guidance on the regulator’s powers to impose sanctions and fines.

11.30 am: My supervisor asks me to conduct an urgent piece of research on the rules surrounding regulatory capital for a client. In the regulatory group, clients often have questions which require our immediate attention. As a trainee, I contribute to the advice to our clients by researching the law and drafting a summary, which can then be sent across to the client immediately. I discuss my research with my supervisor, who then invites me to join a phone call in which he explains the implications of the rules to the client.

1 pm: I grab lunch with other trainees on the firm’s roof terrace which is open all summer.

1.45 pm: I research EU and UK legislation and the relevant published guidance on sanctions and fines. I then produce a summary of the research and present my findings to the associate.

3.30 pm: It’s a nice day out so an associate invites me for a quick ice-cream break near the office.

4.00 pm: I start working on a long-term project which aims to update our clients on the latest developments in the payment services industry. I review a number of relevant articles and publications by EU authorities which may help with the process of drafting the client alert.

7.00 pm: I finish up the notes I made on the articles and publications. I log off and head home to watch Wimbledon with my friends.

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