Charles Russell Speechlys LLP

The Legal 500 Future Lawyers verdict on Charles Russell Speechlys LLP

Charles Russell Speechlys boasts a ‘broad range of practice areas which operate at a very high level’, where you can ‘experience top-class private client teams without sacrificing the opportunity to try fantastic corporate and commercial work too’. Work/life balance and hybrid working ‘aren’t just buzzwords’ at CRS. In fact, there are ‘various generous initiatives, and supervisors and colleagues actively encourage you to take advantage of them’. The firm offers training contracts in London, Guildford and Cheltenham. Each office has a ‘welcoming and inviting culture’ and is a ‘genuinely nice place to work’. The ‘international and client secondment opportunities’ are a big draw too; for one respondent, a stint at a high-profile investment bank was the highlight of their training. CRS recruits get ‘high levels of exposure to interesting matters’ where they are ‘challenged but supported’, which makes for ‘a great environment for learning’. The most aggravating things about CRS are the ‘differentials between offices’, and the seat selection process: ‘in some rounds you just don’t get any of your seat preferences’. Elaborating, one respondent said that ‘there’s a pervasive sense amongst trainees that they won’t get the seats they want’. Recruits have their share of tough times too, such as ‘being asked to do a complex task with no proper indication of how to go about it’, ‘being handed over a matter which was wrong and trying to sort it out’ nor ‘the mandatory GDPR training’. Thankfully, ‘attending a hearing at the High Court’ and ‘completing a matter from start to finish for a big client’ helped to soften the blow. To train at ‘one of the few firms that offers the combination of top-tier work, work/life balance and a culture where you look forward to working in the office’, research Charles Russell Speechlys.

A day in the life of… Leigh Stimpson, trainee, Charles Russell Speechlys LLP

Departments to date: Banking and finance; Construction, engineering and projects; Corporate client secondment; Financial services and funds

University: University of Law

Degree: Law, First class

9.00am: I arrive at the office, get a cup of tea from the kitchen on our floor and then log on and check my emails and diary for the day. Trainees are required to be in the office at least three days a week but the firmwide policy is very flexible and is based on a hybrid model. I’m checking to see if there is anything that has come in overnight which is likely to be discussed in the team meeting this morning that I should be aware of. Some of the team will start a bit later but I like to get in and feel prepared for the day ahead.

9.30am: We have a team meeting in one of our board rooms so that we can use the technology facilities for Luxembourg colleagues to join in. We also are joined by the funds team and a corporate partner who work closely alongside the financial services team. In the meeting we go around the table for each person to discuss any new business, networking opportunities they are aware of or have attended in the last week, current industry issues and any learning from the last week.

10.00am: After the meeting a few of us grab an iced coffee from the canteen and catch up on what we did at the weekend. It is a great informal way of getting to know team members better and also to ask questions about anything discussed in the meeting that I’m not sure about. My supervisor and an associate are there and we also use the time to catch up on a matter that we are all currently working on.

10.30am: I have been asked to help draft certain sections of a legal opinion for a client and I need to conduct some research on the relevant legislation and how this interacts with the FCA’s Handbook rules. Once I have read and understood this I summarise the legal position into a style that is sufficiently accurate but also succinct for the client to be able to read and understand. I have a reasonable deadline to return this to the partner by but I prefer to get more technical work done in the mornings and know that I have calls scheduled in afternoon.

1.00pm: I head up to the canteen (‘Charlies’) to meet a few of the other trainees for lunch and we decide to sit outside on the roof terrace to get some fresh air.

2.00pm: My supervisor and I have a call with a client. They are a client of the commercial team and have asked for a contract to be reviewed that has regulatory aspects to it so we are providing input on these. I have already set out comments in the contract to respond to the client’s queries and we explain these on the call. I take some brief notes and send a follow up email after the call to my supervisor and the commercial team partner so that we have a record of the agreed actions and next steps.

2.30pm: I continue working on the legal opinion and take a short break to read through some current awareness articles that have come into my inbox during the day. I am particularly looking out for articles in relation to the financial promotion of cryptoassets as I am delivering a presentation to the team on this topic in a few weeks.

3.30pm: We have a very high-profile ongoing matter where there are daily calls with the regulator. The partner of our team has asked me to join all the calls and take accurate minutes so the client has a record of what has been said and is free to focus on participating in the meetings.

4.15pm: I respond to emails that have come in during the day and I start pulling together the information for my presentation. I am asked by the partner of the team to look into a query that a client has emailed to him concerning whether an FCA-authorised firm must keep recordings of internal telephone conversations as well as those with external customers relating to investments. The partner needs the answer before he has a call with the client at 5.30pm so I do some research online and also have a quick call with one of the associates on the team who I know has previously done some work on this topic. I then set out the answer in an email and go and discuss this with the partner once I have sent it to check whether they need anything else.

5.30pm: I finish responding to emails and saving the work I was doing during the afternoon. I start updating tomorrow’s to-do list and check my calendar for any meetings/events tomorrow to ensure I have done anything required in preparation for these.

6.30pm: I log my billable hours for the day against the relevant clients and catch up with a few members of the banking and finance team to confirm plans for tomorrow morning when we are attending an external breakfast networking event.

7.00pm: I leave the office and head home to get to gym class. There is usually at least one team holding a social event or drinks on any given evening, including the trainees organising to meet up and opportunities to join any early talent team events that are going on.

About the firm

The firm: Charles Russell Speechlys is an international law firm with a focus on private capital, at the intersection of personal, family and business. We are based in London, Guildford and Cheltenham in the UK with international offices in Europe, the Middle East, Singapore and Hong Kong.

The clients: Bellway; Central Bank of Bahrain; Derwent; Howard de Walden; Stonegate; NIKE; Caffe Nero; FarFetch; Ascent Capital Africa.

The deals: Advising Marcus Rashford MBE on a range of brand protection and commercial matters, as well as aspects of his high-profile children’s food poverty campaign; advising Nike and its subsidiary, Converse, across the full range of practice areas, including ecommerce, digital and social media, sponsorship, sports marketing, advertising, regulatory, privacy and data protection, litigation, employment and real estate; acted for various celebrity claimants in the group voicemail interception litigation against News Group Newspapers Limited (News of the World and The Sun) relating to the unlawful gathering of private and confidential information, achieving a number of successful settlements since 2018 for clients including Caroline Quentin, Nikki Saunderson and Ryan Thomas; advised TDR Capital LLP and the Issa brothers on the real estate aspects of the ASDA acquisition followed by the sale and leaseback of Asda’s warehouse portfolio; advised the owner of No.1 Lounges Ltd, the operator of UK airport lounges (also operating under the brand ‘Clubrooms’), on its sale to SwissportALD, a joint venture between Swissport and Airport Dimensions; advising IFS, the global enterprise software company, on the acquisition of Axios Systems Plc, a global provider of cloud-based enterprise service management (ESM) software.

Senior partner: Bart Peerless

Managing partner: Simon Ridpath

Other offices: London, Cheltenham, Guildford, Doha, Dubai, Geneva, Hong Kong, Luxembourg, Manama, Paris, Zurich, Singapore.

Who we are: Our ability to understand people makes us who we are. Our firm is built on establishing trusted, personal relationships with our clients. Relationships that matter. We are an international law firm with a focus on private capital, at the intersection of personal, family and business.

We offer legal services across the private capital space and a broad range of integrated advisory, transactional and contentious services. The results are deep and trusted relationships that deliver meaningful value.

We are here to guide our clients through their most pressing challenges and rewarding opportunities. We do this by getting to the heart of their needs to bring them the best-fit solutions.

Our firm is headquartered in London with offices across the UK, Europe, Asia and the Middle East.

What we do: We offer a broad range of work so as a trainee you’ll be able to experience a variety of types of client and sector across your programme.

Business advisory and transaction services: In our ‘business advisory and transaction services’ practice we work with a range of individuals and clients from early stage, entrepreneurial businesses through to established, international operations.

• Our corporate team advises on corporate and private equity deals, fundraising from the capital markets, and offers ongoing corporate advisory services.
• Our commercial team provides legal and commercial advice to UK and international clients across a variety of sectors with a particular specialism in technology, retail and financial services. This could involve commercial contracts work, supporting in-house teams through deal structure planning, leading on negotiations to advising on implementation and operational issues.
• Our financial services and funds team advises both authorised and unauthorised funds both on and offshore, as well as working with a range of banks, lenders and investment funds.
• Our banking team advises both corporate entities and private clients on domestic and cross-border financing transactions and restructuring, working closely with other CRS departments such as corporate, real estate and construction.
• The employment team advises individuals and employers from a broad range of sectors on how to manage and mitigate employment law risks, covering issues arising in the day-to-day operation of a business, in the course of corporate transactions and in the context of disputes.
• The immigration team provides advice for private individuals and employers. Individual advice often ties in with other disciplines such as international tax, family and private client. Immigration advice for employers focuses on sponsor licence compliance and international hires, dovetailing well with the firm’s employment and corporate disciplines.

Private client: Our ‘private client’ group is a dynamic division, spanning a wide range of practice areas including tax and estate planning, family and relationships, property and philanthropy. Our expertise is bolstered by being a full-service city firm, with a strong regional and international presence. Consistently ranked as a leading private client group, the team is trusted by a diverse global client base – whose stories are often as interesting as the work!

Construction, real estate and disputes: In our ‘construction, real estate and disputes’ practice, we support across large and small-scale projects both in the UK and internationally.

• Our construction team represents both suppliers and purchasers (including employers, major contractors, specialists and leading engineering consultancies) to provide the full range of construction services including procurement, transactional, project advisory services and disputes advice.
• Our real estate and disputes team spans transactional and contentious work over a range of development, planning, environmental, regeneration and investment specialisms.

Litigation and dispute resolution: Our ‘litigation and dispute resolution’ division works on diverse mandates – ranging from commercial disputes, contentious insolvency and fraud, right the way through to private wealth disputes (including contested estates and arts and heritage), healthcare and regulatory issues, and IP litigation.

What we’re looking for: We look for candidates to achieve ideally a minimum of a 2(1) in their degree as well as showcasing how you align with our values of being authentic, collaborative, committed and forward looking. We also look for other key attributes, such as being client centric, committed to driving high standards, commercially minded, and mindful of your own personal impact and growth.

What you’ll do: We offer training contracts in our London, Cheltenham and Guildford offices. Our preference is for candidates to undertake the Solicitors Qualifying Exam going forward, however our training contract will also support those who have already commenced or completed the LPC. Please note, we will only sponsor the SQE going forward.

You’ll undertake the new Solicitor’s Qualifying Exam (SQE) route, unless you have already started or completed the LPC at point of offer.

If you haven’t studied a law degree: If you have studied a non-law degree, we’ll sponsor you through a Post Graduate Diploma in Law (PGDL). Usually this takes 9 months to study full-time but we appreciate that this isn’t feasible for everyone so we also offer a 20-month part-time option too. If you prefer to study part-time, you’ll be able to choose the approach that works best for you from a range of weekend or evening plus online options.

SQE Course and Exams: In order to support you through the SQE exams, we have partnered with the University of Law to provide comprehensive courses focused on SQE 1 and SQE2. Alongside studying for SQE 1 and SQE 2, our programme with The University of Law includes the SQE Plus Programme. You’ll choose modules from our CRS Elective list to study in more detail. This will prepare you well for practice at the firm by focusing on our areas of specialism, alongside developing practical legal skills. The SQE 1, SQE 2 and SQE Plus programme combines together so you’ll be studying for a Masters in Legal Practice (LLM).

‘Qualifying work experience’: Once you’ve passed your SQE LLM (including your SQE 1 and SQE 2 exams), you’ll join us at the firm for two years of ‘qualifying work experience’. This will consist of four six-month seats, giving you the opportunity to experience a range of different practice areas and get involved in high-level work with both private and commercial clients. We provide a practical learning environment where emphasis is given to early responsibility and supervised client contact.

We actively encourage our trainees to go on either a client or international secondment. These opportunities help you build a wider skillset and see things from a client’s perspective, or enhance your international outlook by gaining exposure to work in a different jurisdiction. Secondments vary depending on business need, but our current client secondments include a private equity fund manager, a commercial bank, and an in-house commercial team for one of our large construction clients. Our international secondment opportunities include private client in our Swiss offices, or a mixture of practice areas in our Hong Kong, Dubai, Luxembourg or Paris offices.

We also expect you to get involved beyond the day-to-day work through our Responsible Business activities, whether that’s through our pro bono practice, volunteering with our CRS Foundation, or getting involved in diversity and inclusion initiatives. We place a strong emphasis on pro bono work during your training contract, and you’ll have the opportunity to support our social housing, family or employment pro bono clinics alongside our other programmes such as disability benefits appeals. You can find out more in our Responsible Business reports on our website.

Russell Up is our pioneering innovation scheme for trainees and apprentices, aimed at fostering a culture of innovation and empowering our Early Talent to drive change. Launched in March 2024, the programme requires our future lawyers to take the lead on projects that harness the latest legal technology – from AI to document and process automation, application building to data visualisation. Each trainee or apprentice is tasked with delivering a project that challenges the status quo, working closely with our legal technology experts and knowledge development lawyers. Providing a supportive environment for innovative thinking, these projects culminate in practical solutions which trainees share with their practice groups demonstrating tangible value to our firm and clients. To support this drive for innovation and change, the firm has established innovation committees across various disciplines.

Throughout the training contract there are regular catch-ups and reviews between trainees and supervisors to support your development and ensure you are continuing to receive a broad range of quality work. You’ll also have broader career conversations with our early talent team to support your wider development as you consider your longer term qualification options.

Your legal training will also be supplemented by our CRS Business School which has specific development programmes for each stage of your career, including the Ignite programme which is designed for trainees to build professional and commercial skills.

Furthermore, as part of our sports and social committee offering, you could get involved with a range of additional activities from football or netball to yoga or tennis. Whether you’re a beginner or a pro, it doesn’t matter – it’s about connecting with your colleagues and taking part.

Perks: 25 days’ annual holiday, plus long service accrual; private medical insurance; income protection; life assurance; pension scheme; employee assistance programme; enhanced maternity/paternity/shared parental benefits; virtual GP access; cycle to work scheme; season ticket loan; qualification leave; dress for your day policy.

Sponsorship

We provide sponsorship for PGDL and SQE LLM courses with our chosen provider, the University of Law, alongside covering the cost of the SQE exams with Kaplan. During your period of study, we will also provide you with a maintenance grant of £10,000 if you are studying in London and £8,500 if you are studying outside London or online.

Seat options

Corporate, commercial, banking and finance, financial services and funds, employment, corporate tax and incentives, immigration, private client, private property, family, commercial dispute resolution, corporate restructuring and insolvency, private wealth disputes, intellectual property, real estate, real estate disputes, construction engineering and projects. International and client secondments. (Please note, not all seats are available in all office locations.)

Tips from the recruiter

1. Ensure you go into enough depth in your application form to explain what interests you and why. Give examples to showcase the breadth of your research and talk about what is really important to you, rather than what you think we want to hear.
2. Ensure you use a variety of sources to research the firm and the legal industry. This could include the firm’s website, LinkedIn and social media accounts, profiles like Legal 500, and podcasts that we produce such as ‘Property Patter’.
3. Attention to detail is key. Please spell the firm name right. Also think about your answer structure in order to answer all the sub questions.

Diversity and inclusion