Starting my journey as a Trainee Solicitor: First impressions and lessons learned

As with starting any new job, my first day as a Trainee Solicitor came with the usual nerves. However, given that I have worked at Ellis Jones since 2022, I was very fortunate that there was a sense of familiarity. I know that Ellis Jones is a great place to work and that I would be supported through my training so I felt reassured and my  nerves soon passed.

My first seat in Dispute Resolution

I started my first seat in the Dispute Resolution team on 1 September 2025. I was particularly nervous given that this is an area of law that I have never worked in before. It was somewhat daunting knowing that I would be going back to being in a position of having a limited legal knowledge in the area that I would be working in. However, I knew that once I got stuck in, I would start to feel more comfortable.

Building connections and gaining insight

The team were incredibly welcoming from the outset and immediately made me feel at ease. I spent a lot of time in the first few weeks with various members of the team getting an understanding of the type of work that they each do. It was very assuring that people took the time to explain what sort of cases I could expect to be working on and providing me with an understanding of the legal principles.

Since then, I have become increasingly more involved in a variety of cases ranging from property litigation, contentious probate, commercial litigation, insolvency and debt recovery. It has been really interesting to be involved in such a broad variety of cases as no two days ever look the same.

The importance of the Training Contract milestone

After many years of studying, starting a Training Contract feels like a big step towards the end goal, which is to qualify as a solicitor. I am now nearly halfway through my first seat and feel assured that I am learning each day and gaining valuable exposure to a variety of different cases that will support me through my next seats and future career.

I knew that Ellis Jones would provide me with a supportive and exciting training experience with plenty of different opportunities. I have learnt (and been reassured by the team) that being a trainee is about learning and that you are not expected to know everything. I am encouraged to ask questions and to take every opportunity to expand my knowledge.

Looking forward to the next chapter

I am excited to see what the remaining months of my first seat have to offer and looking forward to where I end up for the next part of my training.